A section of the old Inca road, the Qhapaq Ñan, runs through the area, part of the huge network that the Incas built to link Cusco with the far reaches of their empire, now recognised as a World Heritage site. In places the road survives as a paved or stone-edged track that crosses pasture and peat, a reminder of how far a runner or llama train once travelled.
The landscape is vast and bare. A cold wind sweeps over grass the colour of straw, small lakes shine in the hollows, and snow peaks of the Cordillera Vilcanota stand on the horizon, with the Ausangate massif among them. Llamas and alpacas graze in the fields, herded by families in bright woollen clothes, and adobe farms with stone corrals dot the plain. The air is thin, and at this height you notice every climb on foot. Ayaviri is known across Peru for its cheese and its alpaca fibre, and the town has a stone-built colonial centre with a large church.
The road to ride is the main highway from Cusco to Puno, which crosses the pass of La Raya at over 4,300 metres, with a market of knitwear sellers at the summit, and then slides gently down across the plateau through Santa Rosa and Ayaviri toward Juliaca and Lake Titicaca. It is mostly in good condition but with sudden potholes, animals on the road and trucks that overtake on blind bends. Weather can change in minutes, with hail and freezing rain even in the middle of summer, and nights drop well below freezing. The dry season from May to September is clearer but colder.
Ayaviri, about twenty-eight kilometres away, is the place for fuel and a meal, and fuel stations can be far apart, so fill up when you can. Altitude affects both rider and engine, and a carburetted bike will run rich, so go slowly, drink water and rest. A cup of coca tea in a village cafe is a standard remedy for the thin air, and the locals will happily recommend it.