Segment Jayllihuaya-Ichu and Segment Desaguadero Titijoni
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
296 km
Riding-time estimate
5 h 26
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
296 km from Puno to Puno, about 5 h 26 of riding. It goes by way of Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje, Segment Desaguadero Titijoni and back through Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 4,150 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. It crosses from Peru into Bolivia - carry ID and check the toll rules. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Segment Jayllihuaya-Ichu
Puno sits on the shore of Lake Titicaca at about 3,800 metres, and the stretch between Jayllihuaya and Ichu runs along the edge of town into the open altiplano. Jayllihuaya is a district on the western side of Puno; Ichu is the name of a river and of the tough bunch grass, ichu, that blankets the high plateau and feeds llamas, alpacas and the little sheep that wander the verges. The label belongs to the Qhapaq Ñan, the Inca road system that tied this far southern province, Collasuyu, to Cusco, and the old trail is the thread that connects these segments.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Segment Jayllihuaya-Ichu is where the day begins. Next is Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje.
2. Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje
Juli sits on the south-western shore of Lake Titicaca at close to 3,900 metres, and the air is so thin and clear that the far side of the lake, in Bolivia, seems close enough to touch. The town is nicknamed the Rome of the Americas for its cluster of colonial churches, built by Dominican and Jesuit missionaries in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, with carved stone façades and dim interiors full of paintings. Just outside town, the segment of Inca road between Juli and Cruz Pata Ccaje is part of the Qhapaq Ñan, the Andean road system inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 2014. This route, the Urcosuyu branch, ran along the lake towards what is now Bolivia.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje comes up about 77 km into the recorded legs. Next is Segment Desaguadero Titijoni.
3. Segment Desaguadero Titijoni
At around 3,800 metres above sea level the air on the Altiplano is thin enough to make lacing your boots feel like exercise, and Desaguadero is a place where you should take everything at half speed. The town sits on the border between Peru and Bolivia at the southern end of Lake Titicaca, where the Desaguadero river drains the lake toward the south. The segment of old road near Titijoni is part of the Qhapaq Ñan, the Inca road network listed by UNESCO in 2014, which ran along the shores of Titicaca on its way between Cusco and the southern provinces.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Segment Jayllihuaya-Ichu. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Segment Jayllihuaya-Ichu to Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje
Segment Jayllihuaya-Ichu → Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje is 77 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje to Segment Desaguadero Titijoni
Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje → Segment Desaguadero Titijoni is 69 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Segment Desaguadero Titijoni to back through Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje
Segment Desaguadero Titijoni → back through Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje is 73 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje to Segment Jayllihuaya-Ichu
back through Segment Juli-Cruz Pata-Ccaje → Segment Jayllihuaya-Ichu is 77 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.