Cross the volcano crater on a motorcycle

Driving into the volcano crater on a motorcycle. Can you imagine anything cooler? The wind in your hair, the dust on the road, and the undeniable feeling of being awesome.

That’s what I thought when booking an adventure with Offroad Bolivia. The website literally says: “All you need to do is ride”. Seems fairly simple, right?

Oh well. The first dialogue with the owner:

“ – Can you ride a motorcycle?

– Yeah, more or less. I mean I drove a couple of times; so not an expert.

– Strange. In Bolivia we get our first motorcycles when we are 7 or 8. What can be important than that?”

I know, right. What kind of a child would need anything else?

10 minutes later. I sense that I am in a trouble when I cannot find a small nice button to start the bike. Apparently real ones don’t have those. And apparently my “can drive” is very far off by Bolivian standards. After an hour of humiliating struggles around the suburbs, with a deeply purple face, I give up on the idea of seeing the crater. So much for being cool. Total and epic fail.

What to know: if you actually can drive the motorcycle – this seems like a must tour in Bolivia. The reviews are awesome, guides too – and the adventure should be pretty fun. For dummies like me, there are also more relaxed tours around the countryside and drives on the quads.

When to go: anytime you learn how to drive.

How to book: use Offroad Bolivia guys. Expect to pay around $150 per bike. Tell them hi from the Ukrainian girl. They’ll know.