La Cumbre to Coroico and San Pedro jail

Trip Start Jan 26, 2000
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Trip End Jun 14, 2000


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Friday, May 12, 2000

A days rest and I was ready to go and risk my life again. This time it was mountain biking and I decided to cycle a road the Inter American Development Bank call the worlds most dangerous. In 1994 26 vehicles went over the edge, one every two weeks. In 1983 a bus went over the edge claiming the lives of over 100 people. A new safer road has actually been build, but the money is lacking for the final part, a tunnel which will cost $50m. The first big mistake that day was using a company which used Bolivian bikes and saving ourselves $10 over a company which used American make Trek mountain bikes. The road started as paved road with spectacular views down the valley. We had a total of 3000m (10000ft) to descent from La Cumbre down to the town of Coroico. My first concern was the brakes, they didn't work so well, there was no way we were able to lock the wheels up and skid, although they would stop us eventually. An hour on paved road without problems and we hit the unpaved road, this is where the bikes would be put to the test. Just for a taster of some of the things which went wrong with the bikes, my wheel came loose at some point, luckily I spotted it before it was too late and twice my front brake shoes fell off completely! The road itself was fantastic, in places it was barely wide enough for even one vehicle. Even part of the single lane road had eroded away leaving 500m vertical drop offs. There were places where the rock was overhanging so much we rode under waterfalls. Eventually the inevitable happened, I had a wipe out, of all the places to pick though I chose the place which was an inch deep with sloppy mud. After my front wheel skidded and twisted I went flying over the handlebars landing face first in the middle of it all, to say I was a mess was an understatement. When we arrived in Coroico our guide booked me a hotel room so I could have a shower, I don't think he really wanted me back on his bus. It was a 4 hour ride on the bus back up to La Paz and in the dark the worlds most dangerous road didn't seem so dangerous!
My next excursion was to the most unusual of places, San Pedro jail. Some of the local inmates had ingeniously devised a plan to take gringos on tours. This was no ordinary jail though, there were 1800 inmates and when I was there, a maximum of 10 guards. The guards would not enter the confines of the prison unless absolutely necessary. We were let through the main gate where there was an inmate waiting for us, he lead us around explaining the prisons workings on the way. There were different gangs within the prison, his gang were the 'tourist' gang and were apparently one of the strong gangs in the prison - this gave me some relief. Other gangs include ones for supplying drugs, alcohol, and prostitution. For our protection we actually has a couple of hard cases escorting us around, one of the guys who seemed a bit crazy laughed a bit has he told us he was inside for slitting another inmates throat! Once inside the gates it was like been in a new community and people were allowed in from outside to set up shops and stalls and sell the prisoners whatever they wanted. When a prisoner comes inside if they want a room they have to buy it, prices range from $200 in a bad area of the prison to a luxury penthouse which had a jacuzzi and cost a wopping $15000. Once the prisoner leaves he can then sell his place on to another inmate. If a prisoner doesn't have any money then they have no room and will probably end up sleeping in the kitchen with a high chance of getting raped. Many of the prisoners actually have their families in with them if their family can't afford to live outside, this can't do too much good for the prisons overcrowding problem (it was originally build for 600 people). One of the sad consequences of this is many children live within the prison walls by night, leaving to go to school during the day. After 9pm the main gates of the prison are bolted shut, this was potentially a bad time for prisoners who nobody liked or were not part of a gang, rape and murder seemed very common after this time. Overall it was fascinating to see how these communities had evolved, yet it was sad to see the wives and children inside and it must have been tough for the people who were outside the main gangs.
That night I was on for a big session and we went out to Mongos, a place which did fantastic peppered steak. I never made it home until 4am and was dreading my 7am wake up call.
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