Tarmo RTW: Huancavelica

22.08.2013,
Day 916
100 862 km since the beginning of the journey
Route: Huancavelica – Abra Huayraccasa – Huachocolpa – Lircay (122 km),
New altitude record: Abra Huayraccasa – 5059 m.
New door mirrors bought: 1

Sunny morning in Huancavelica, or in the local Quechua language Wankawilka. The city was founded in 1572, currently there are about 40 thousand inhabitants.

Next - some pictures of the old town

Huancavelica Cathedral

The tourist info office is located in the Central Square and last night I got quite a decent map of the city from there.

Claro is a telecommunications company that is operating in a nunber of South American countries and Claro advertisements can be seen in all kind of places.

Plaza de Armas, the cars not allowed here.

After a couple hours morning walk I started the car and began to reverse out of the hostel yard, and then happened a situation, that has not happened for a long time - at some moment the right hand car mirror was gone. I picked up the pieces of the mirror and drove a few hundred yards on, however, it was clear that when you cannot follow what is going on in the street – you should not drive far.

So next I stopped a taxi, showed the broken mirror, and there was no need to explain any more. From the third store I found a more or less suitable mirror (similare - as the Spaniard says). The main thing is that the right side mirror of the car. And then back to the bus.

Since the local tradition states that the car can be repaired by the roadside, so out of town I stopped the car, and I tried to fix the new, without- any–hole- mirror to the door. In short, you take out the drill and are busy for some time.

Life has taught us that every decent household should have a drill, and a cutter as well.

The new mirror is in place, and I think even in the right place. So after an hour of delay I could drive on. Half an hour for searching the mirror and the other half an hour for fixing it.

Some time ago further on from Huancavelica the construction of a railroad had been in progress but it had never finished and now between the hills one can see some bridges and tunnels.

The road turned narrower, meanwhile, there were a few wider places to allow oncoming vehicles to pass.

Road repair works at several places.

And in the altitude of 4500 m the weather gets cooler and the increasingly more cloudy.

Chonta, the height of 4825 m. In some places there are big signposts, but in general, there should be much more of them. The big road goes straight, but while driving to the left there should be one more higher drivable place before the big mine.

Something between rain and snow is falling from the sky and melts at once having reached the ground.

Abra Huayraccasa – it is considered to be South America's highest – located drivable road (in fact, there are still even higher places, but more about them – later).

Only the GPS shows 4972, and that`s that.

The second GPS shows 4989 m. It is like having two clocks – you never know the right time.

Further on - perfectly driveable road, wet, yet not slippery.

In front of the mine I told the guard that I was going to the direction of Lircay and the guard raised the barrier. Consequently - the direction is correct.