PeruNorth was contacted by German journalist, Richard Kienberger, in August 2022 as he looked for a private vehicle to take him from Chiclayo to Yurimaguas, with a day’s break in Chachapoyas.
This was part of a longer trip to go across South America from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic. His particular interest was in the motorised vehicles - especially trucks - that ply their trade in these geographically-challenging areas.
Below is an abridged, English-language version of the article Richard wrote for French transport magazine France Routes:
“If one drives half an hour from Chiclayo towards the Pacific, you get a good impression of how things were when there were no commercial vehicles to transport goods and people here.
Pimentel Pier, Lambayeque.
At Pimentel, a pier constructed of wood and metal stretches about half a kilometre beyond the beach into the sea, to where the water is deep enough for larger ships.
It has defied Pacific storms for over a hundred years. Even on a peaceful, almost windless day, the waves are metres high.
In some places, the old planks have rotted through. The rails of a steam railway used at that time are still partly preserved.
At the beginning of the wharf, which was mainly used to ship cane sugar overseas, a number of display boards with historical photos depicting, among other things, the donkey and mule caravans that were used to transport goods in and out of the country at that time, inform visitors about the history of this facility.
Today, no one uses donkey caravans to bring goods to the coasts, but the three-wheeled motorbike used by a Peruvian to haul in a heavy load of palm fronds also looks like a museum piece. The driver claims that the vehicle is 28 or 29 years old.
The three-wheelers are widespread in Peru, as taxis and for transporting goods. It is not unusual for commercial vehicles to be in use for three decades.
In downtown Chiclayo, a squad of municipal workers is on the road with a water truck to water public green spaces. Junior, the driver, laughs when asked about the age of the blue Dodge (only the "e" is missing from the lettering on the bonnet) with the many layers of paint, grabs the registration and points to the corresponding entry: the vehicle was new in 1977.
Chiclayo is in the north of Peru, about 350 km (217 miles) from the border with Ecuador. The city is growing, like all cities in this Andean country, where people migrate to the urban regions in the hope of a better life.
Fittingly, the outskirts of Chiclayo look dreary. On the edges of the city the only colour seems to be dirty beige.
The remnants of political slogans on Chiclayo wall.
The houses owe their only colourful spots to the last election in 2021 - the candidates had their lavish election advertisements painted metres high on house walls and property walls.
Everything is covered in a thick layer of dust; rain that could wash off the dirt hardly ever falls here. The clouds first rain themselves out on the mountains or immediately move on to the Amazon basin.
The trucks, that are not allowed into the city centres during the day, park along the arterial roads.
Those who want to travel from here to the remote regions in north-eastern Peru usually take the route via Olmos and Bagua Grande in the direction of Moyobamba.
Tyre repair shop (borracharia) on road to Moyobamba.
There is a large brewery on this road, a few kilometres east of the coastal town. A good business, because beer is drunk in large quantities in Peru.
The usual service businesses have set up shop in the vicinity of the factory: tyre patchers, mechanics, car washers.
Two yellow trucks are parked freshly washed on the dirty parking strip. The two models bear the designation JH6 on their cabs and come from FAW.
The remarkable thing about these Chinese tractor units are the huge tanks behind the cab. “Yes, they are fuelled with Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)”, confirms Cleyver Fernandez, one of the drivers. He says the models came to the company a little over a year ago and have proven themselves well since then.
Modern trucks made in China – and next to them an ancient Volvo, worn and dirty: the picture tells a lot about the range of the transport business in Peru. Cleyver drives "all over northern Peru" and is happy with his job - his credo can be heard in this or a similar form almost everywhere in the world: "It's important to have work."
At first as wide as a motorway, the road gradually becomes narrower and narrower.
The connections to these remote provinces may have been newly-built in the last two decades, but they are not finished, nor will they ever be.
Stretch of Peruvian road with no roadworks!
This is not due to a lack of will, but to the history of the Earth: the Andes, which also divide Peru lengthwise into three parts - flat coastal strip (costa), mountains (sierra) and Amazonia (selva) - are a comparatively young mountain range in which much is still in motion. Loose rock, many landslides and repeated earth tremours ensure that the roads are also constantly "in motion".
There are numerous roadworks on the way east, where traffic is stopped for more or less time, in order to pass the bottlenecks alternately.
With many bends, the roadway winds its way further up to the summit. Some trucks only manage the steep climbs at walking pace. But this does not prevent their colleagues, who are travelling faster, from overtaking.
Overtaking prohibited? Traffic signs here are usually ignored with aplomb and, at best, understood only as a recommendation!
Officially, the maximum speed limit for lorries is 75 km/h (47 mph). Few reach this speed, as there are potholes to dodge, if one wants to avoid damaging the vehicle.
Abra Porcuya: 2,137 m (7,011 ft) above sea level. The sign at the roadside marks the highest point on this route. Going downhill, the speed is the same as going uphill.
A more modern ‘saint’ on Peruvian truck.
There is also a special feature of the semi-trailers here: they resemble American construction models, rather than the silhouettes common in Europe, the axles are mounted far back. This means that the trucks have to "cut" almost every curve on the narrow, unclear roads. But this is basically not a problem: the deeply religious Peruvians also trust in God at this point and have the corresponding lucky charms or the Bible with them.
They also like to have images of saints painted on the sides of their vehicles, which are a frequent sight, especially on the two- and three-axle solo vehicles.
On the eastern side of the mountains, the landscape gradually changes. More and more green spots break up the dreary, dry stone desert.
In Bagua Grande, 327 road kilometres (203 miles) north-east of Chiclayo, the first signs with the word "Amazonas" appear. This province in north-eastern Peru covers a huge area, with a surface of around 39,000 square km (15,000 square miles). It is almost as large as Switzerland, although only around half a million people live in this administrative area. (NB. The Amazon basin is divided into several provinces).
On the eastern side of the mountains it rains a lot.
A red and white Volvo is parked within sight of Pomacochas – "water of the puma" is what the name of the large lake means in translation. The three-axle F12 semi-trailer, which also has three axles and a self-forged additional tank behind the cabin, is loaded in the typical Peruvian manner: stanchions made of round timber, and the load - rice in sacks - is covered with a tarpaulin and lashed down.
Carlos is the name of the driver of the Volvo, which came onto the market with the smart attribute "business class". And just as a good cowboy doesn't let anything get over his horse, the Peruvian chauffeur praises his truck: "The Volvo may be old, but it's still in good shape and strong with its 400 hp!"
In Moyobamba there is another of the rare road toll stations. Here, too, car and truck drivers don't take the regulations too seriously: a few metres before the pay station, a short stretch of dust road leads past it.
The bypass is not very secret, maybe 500 metres long, and therefore easy to see. In order to save the few soles (if you are used to European tariffs), however, it is gladly and frequently used. No one seems to be bothered by the toll cheating.
Vendor at roadworks on road to Chachapoyas.
A little later, at another roadworks, there is an opportunity to talk to a few truck drivers. The stop is supposed to last an hour, they say. Fortunately, we are not standing under an overhang and tons of loose rubble here.
The itinerant traders know the roadworks and sell the waiting people "vitamins" (in Europe that would probably be smoothies made from greens and fruits), popcorn and drinks.
Truck driver’s assistant, Amazonas.
When Nicolas Sanchez tells us that the Peruvian truckers "drive practically day and night", it is not quite clear whether there are no prescribed rest periods; or whether people interpret the corresponding regulations according to their own taste and sleep when they are tired or at their destination.
He is also happy with his job, not least because the "pay is OK".
His colleague Dani comes from Chiclayo and says it takes him 1.5 days to get from there to Tarapoto. Which would certainly not be possible if European social regulations were applied.
Hours before, the road led through claustrophobically narrow gorges, partly sharing the little space with the Mayo River.
But after San Miguel, the view gives way to green hills. The mountains are finally gone, it is only a few kilometres to Tarapoto, and you get a foreboding of the enormous dimensions of the Amazon basin.
Tarapoto is the last major town on the road that continues to Yurimaguas - and whoever or whatever is to be transported from here to the north-east must take the river.
Distances on the Amazon River & tributaries.
The road ends in Yurimaguas. Iquitos can only be reached by air or water.
It seems like a threat - in a country where signboards with distances seem to be unknown - when a gantry with distances appears at the city limits: Iquitos 668 km, Manaus 2,550 km, Atlantic Ocean 4,050 km. To be reached exclusively via the mighty Amazon River and its tributaries.