When: February/March/April 2022, 8 weeks
A 4400km altitude bicycle expedition from Cusco, Peru, across the Altiplano in Bolivia and Chile and the Argentinian Puna de Atacama to Ojos del Salado, the world’s highest volcano.
Kate will be testing her limits by cycling up some of the highest volcanoes on Earth; Acotango, Uturuncu, Llulliallaco and Ojos del Salado. The journey poses as the toughest challenge of her career so far. She knows it will be on the edge of her capabilities.
Setting off from Cusco, Peru, once the capital of the mighty Incan Empire, Kate will explore ancient ruins and engage with local cultures as she pedals through the southern Peruvian Highlands and across the Altiplano in Bolivia and Chile, before weaving a convoluted path over the Puna (plateau) de Atacama to finish on Ojos del Salado, the world’s highest volcano at 6893 metres.
The story of the journey however, will be more than an exploration of Kate’s physical and mental limits and the positive mindset she must adopt to succeed. It will be infused with insights about Andean cultures, past and present, focusing on what the mountains mean to the people. Kate will investigate some of their beliefs, particularly those related to the mountains she explores, and the innovations and adaptations the Andeans have made to overcome their challenges and improve their lives.
Kate hopes to find out whether there are lessons to be learnt from Incan and other Andean cultures that can be related to some of the issues confronting our global community today, such as climate change, sustainable consumption, gender equality and the need to preserve and work with our environment, not against it.
The story so far:
Kate began the expedition in February 2020, in the ancient Inca capital of Cusco, Peru, visiting Machu Picchu and cycling through the Sacred Valley, the Southern Peruvian Highlands and around Lake Titicaca into Bolivia. She continued through to La Paz and the South Yungas, including Death Road.
After 1106km, she was forced to postpone the expedition as the Covid-19 pandemic swept the world. Kate and her 2020 filmmaker Chris Pennington, with the courageous help of driver, Rolando Zarate, dramatically escaped Bolivia on the last commercial flight out of La Paz.
In 2022 Kate will return to La Paz to complete the journey. She will be working with production company, A-OK Media House to produce another global TV series. Tobias Nash, a multitalented videographer, photographer and conservationist who is currently studying Psychology at University College London, will also join the team.
Watch the 2020 teaser HERE
Find out more from the marketing deck: The Andes, the Altiplano & the Atacama expedition brochure
