My Favorite Descent in the World

There can be only one. "El Choro" is without a doubt, my favorite descent of all-time. #followcamfriday time travel back to 2016

And now for something completely different. I was digging through some old hard drives last week and went down a major rabbit hole on some content from our trip to Bolivia in 2016. Somehow a bunch of this stuff never made the light of day, but I am pleased to present some of the wild times to the world over the next few weeks. 

In 2016, Carston Oliver, Joey Schusler, Thomas Woodson and myself traveled to Bolivia to attempt the first by-bike traverse of a trekking route in the Cordillera Real mountains outside of La Paz. This was an ambitious goal as the details were sparse. And that was the point. We wanted to do something that had not been done before, which is increasingly difficult in today's society thanks to Instagram, lol. But, more on that adventure later. 

After our bikepacking trip, and after we got over our food poisoning and fatigue, we were treated to this beauty of a descent. El Choro starts just above 16,000ft and drops roughly 12k into the jungle rainforest below. There is an hour of climbing in the middle, but this is perhaps the longest descent in the world. In the alpine, a dilapidated  dirt "road" gets you going with massive exposure. I am honestly not sure how this road hasn't crumbled away to nothing. 

I guess you could call it a "road". Looks more like a pile of baby heads to me. 

The dirt road eventually gives way to a few thousand feet of classic Inca cobbles. I had never ridden anything as wild as this in my life. Basically, you average 30 mph for about a half hour, while constantly jumping over sharp obstacles and holes until you can't feel your arms. This part changed me. 

Always stop and say hello to the children. These kids were shy, but can you really blame them? We couldn't possibly have looked more out of place in the Bolivian landscape. 

Just enjoying lunch with the locals. 

The scale of all of this is hard to describe. Humbling, to say the least. Traveling at these speeds, on trails we had never, and will never see again, days from help, completely at the mercy of our surroundings was a feeling that will stay with me forever. I honestly haven't felt more alive. This one changed me. 

Everyone understands bicycles. No matter where I have been in the world, despite language barriers, everyone understands the bicycle. It is a tool of unity and is understood world-wide. Every culture can relate to what we are doing, and this always brings a genuine smile and a welcoming vibe from all that we encounter. 

Huge thanks to our guide and friend Jubi for touring us around the city and into the mountains. Jubi worked for Gravity Bolivia at the time and was a humble and knowledgeable guide. He kept Joey form dying in city traffic on more than one occasion. 

This is part one of a 2 part series showcasing this descent. It's 12k after all, and needs a couple of episodes. This was a solid three hours of descending. Stay tuned right here as we head deep into the jungle for next week's episode. Much love Bolivia.