Bolivia’s road of death

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The treacherous North Yungas Road runs for less than 44 miles from Bolivia’s foremost city, La Paz, to Coroico in the Yungas. Still, for those drivers who dare to take it, this journey is probably more than long enough.

Construction on the road itself began in the 1930s, but even before that it had an alarming reputation. Indeed, during the 1800s thieves utilized the passage to waylay traders moving their commodities between La Paz and Coroico. The bandits would steal the traders’ wares and likely murder them as well.

It's perhaps fitting, then, that a road in an area with such a deadly history should be built during a time of war. The late 1920s and early 1930s saw Bolivia engaged in conflict with neighboring Paraguay over control of the then supposedly oil-rich Gran Chaco plain. The so-called Chaco War resulted in the deaths of roughly 100,000 men – a higher toll than any other conflict waged on the continent throughout the 20th century.

The conflict ceased in the summer of 1935, with Paraguay subsequently awarded most of the contested territory when a treaty was signed three years later. This horrific war, however, served as a chilling precursor to the tragedy and death that would transpire on the North Yungas Road.

Indeed, El Camino de la Muerte, as the North Yungas Road would come to be known, began life thanks to the toil of captured Paraguayan soldiers during this period of bloodshed. There were approximately 2,500 such prisoners of war in Bolivia six months before the conflict died down, and they were put to work on the country’s infrastructure.

One of the projects of the prisoners of war, it seems, was to build this most deadly of roads. Sadly, even the construction of the passage proved fatal for some of the men – and so the road claimed its first victims.

Today, the North Yungas Road begins its path almost 12,000 feet above sea level in La Paz. From this already exceptional starting height, the road then commences to abruptly climb in a snaking pattern to La Cumbre Pass, this 3,285-foot ascent taking in the road’s first 19 paved miles.

Elevated at more than 15,000 feet above sea level, La Cumbre Pass is the place to enjoy some of the route’s incredible views, including majestic snow-capped mountain peaks. After this point, though, the road lurches into its descent.

Over the next 40-odd miles the road becomes extremely treacherous as it descends for more than 11,000 feet to Coroico, a town itself still at an impressive 3,900 feet above sea level. The route becomes unpaved, there are no barriers, and much of the way is barely wide enough for two cars to squeeze past one another.

The road is so dangerous, in fact, that it has its own set of regulations. Unlike in wider Bolivia, drivers on this stretch must position themselves on the left-hand side. In theory, this affords them a superior view of the verge of the road, though whether one wants to see what’s below is a matter of opinion.

Since the 1990s, the North Yungas Road’s reputation as a thrill ride has grown – and this was arguably cemented in 1995 when the Inter-American Development Bank gave it the dubious honor of being the “most dangerous road in the world.” It’s estimated that from 2010 to 2011 more than 25,000 people negotiated the deadly route.

Many of the visitors are adrenaline-seeking cyclists, apparently enticed by the long, almost uninterrupted descent into Coroico and, perhaps, the ever-present danger of death. The road’s sharp gradient also allows for bike riders to travel at over 31 mph, no doubt giving it extra appeal.

There are even tour operators who will take adventurous cyclists along El Camino de la Muerte for a fee, and they are at least able to better ensure safety along the hazardous road. The best advice on offer, though, is to make sure that the bike’s brakes are working: they’ll be needed when going around the road’s many perilous hairpin bends.

Indeed, the road has no mercy. In dry conditions, dust clouds in the wake of passing vehicles will hamper vision, while rain makes the path terrifyingly slippery. Fog, meanwhile, has a hazardous presence throughout the year. And the various dangers account for the deaths of up to 300 people annually; crosses adorn the road’s steep sides where many have met their end.

Perhaps predictably, this is the location of Bolivia’s gravest traffic accident. On July 24, 1983, a bus carrying more than 100 crossed the road’s edge and fell over the verge of the cliff, plunging the people inside to their deaths. Then more recently, in December 1999, eight Israeli tourists lost their lives while navigating the road; and – as of 2010 – at least 18 cyclists have died here.

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