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As I write this post from Punta Arenas, Chile, Catherine is arriving in El Calafate, Argentina. She has both bikes and all of the gear, and I have, well, bike shoes. We are separated for the first time since we left Quito. So many parts of our trip have been beautiful, but the overall theme of our trip has been pain and suffering. However, the struggle makes us appreciate a cozy bed and a warm shower when we can find one, and we often remark how happy we are because we can enjoy this adventure together. Despite our happiness we are both very much looking forward to slowing down our pace and enjoying the upcoming beauty of the Carretera Austral in southern Chile.
We learned alot in our first ten days of riding about what it really means to bike The Andes of South America. Here are some of the lessons we learned:
Lesson 1: We are not doing anything special, but we are part of something special.
Our plane from Buenos Aires landed in the small ocean/mountain town of Ushuaia, Argentina, near where the road finds its most southern point. At the airport we met two Colombians who were on a very similar trip as ours to Cusco, Peru. They recommended that we spend our first night after leaving Ushuaia in Tolhuin at the Panaderia (bakery). We were unsure what this meant, but they had been planning their trip for three years, and we for one month, so we thought we should heed their advice.
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| Obligatory picture at the end of the walkway at the end of the road |
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| Catherine's patches a tire at lunch 30 km into the ride (only flat tire of the whole trip!) |
Once we arrived in Tolhuin after our first day of riding with fully loaded bikes we asked some locals where the Panaderia was. A car escort led us to the Panaderia, several large buildings and the hotspot for food in a very small town. We rode around the block confused for awhile until a man came out of the panaderia and asked it we wanted a habatacion. "Sure." We were escorted to the Casa de Amistad. A small bunk room in the flour warehouse. This amazing little room had been the stop of many cyclists before us, and the evidence was on the walls.
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| This casa de ciclista is a stop at the end of a journey for many; for us only the beginning |
Time and time again when we meet other cyclists a conversation immediately starts up regarding where we have been and where we are going. We have met couples, solo riders, and groups of friends from all over the world: Colombia, France, Canada, Bulgaria, Switzerland, England, Australia, USA, Scotland, Holland. Despite the unexpected abundance of others doing similar journeys there is an immediate kinship that we share. Advice, smiles, kisses, and stories are exchanged as a friendship begins because we have one simple thing in common.
Lesson 2: Go at your own pace and be confident in your abilities to survive
As we continued across Tierra del Fuego we prepared in Rio Grande for our trip across the barren island. Food would be unavailable for two hundred kilometers, and we would fight the wind as we worked directly west. We continued with our Colombians as we relied on their research and their mastery of the Spanish language to aid us. Biking into the wind in a group of four is sure easier than just two. After a nice stay in the waiting room at the border crossing in San Sebastian, Argentina we crossed into Chile on Ruta 3 where the pavement ended and gravel stretched to the other side of the island. As a strong wind pushed to slow us down rain clouds approached in the distance. We biked on through the rain so our Colombian friends could see some king penguins. As the day wore on Catherine and I were wet, cold, and tired from the constant battle. However, we were fearful of separating from our helpful amigos as they turned off the road for a side trip to the penguins. A long sidetrip landed us 15 km out of the way at an over priced penguin tourist attraction that we cared not to see. We asked where to camp and headed towards a bridge with minimal shelter while we waited for our amigos to see the penguins. When they arrived at our poorly sheltered campsite they decided to head down the road and ask for a place to camp at the estancia (ranch). Too tired to care we finished setting up our tent and slept poorly on a windswept slope. The next day we biked with just the two of us to a beautiful little refugio amarillo where we both slept twelve hours well deserved. We saw our amigos a few times after that, but we learned that they were on a different schedule than ours and it was best for us just to follow our own and be confident in our own abilities to survive.
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| Into the wind with our amigos..... |
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| The first border crossing and our room for one night |
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| An amazing safe haven from the wind |
Lesson 3: Water can be obtained from passing motorists.
As we crossed Tierra del Fuego we quickly realized that the rivers we had been told we could filter water from ran through sheep pasture. Unable to find water we were forced to ask passing motorists. This worked great and often resulted in a liter of tap water. We stockpiled water bottles in our refugio amarillo, and discovered the kindness of Patagonian Chileans.
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| Making home in the refugio amarillo, note the newly acquired water bottles behind Catherine |
Lesson 4: Chocolate is a great pain killer.
One of the best parts of biking for about six hours a day is that you can eat whatever you want. Every meal is finished with a snack. We especially love the alfajores, an Argentine chocolate covered cookie with dulce de leche in the middle. Once we arrive at a place to camp another favorite is the water bottle with powdered milk and powdered chocolate. A little chocolate shake is a great recovery drink after a tough day of riding, and it always brings a smile to our faces. Snickers are also a great bite to eat while riding when we are pushing to make it to the next town. And of course once in town ice cream is immediately tracked down no matter how cold the weather.
Lesson 5: Relax and enjoy the ride.
We pushed our pace pretty hard getting across Tierra del Fuego and reaching Puerto Natales. We wanted to spend as little time as possible in the barren landscape to reach the stunning granite peaks of the Andes and Torres del Paine. In Torres del Paine we figured despite our soreness from biking we would be able to push a good pace on the hiking trails and to a eight to ten day hike in six. Ouch. It turns out bikepacking is not good preparation for backpacking. We quickly formed blisters in our inadequate hiking shoes as we did 10+ hour days of carrying heavy packs. We were forced to slow the pace not to try to enjoy the journey more, but because that was all our feet could handle. Sadly we missed some very beautiful parts of the park, but we did finish "The Circuit" as we had planned. It was very beautiful, but we learned a tough reminder of how we need to slow down and enjoy the journey.
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| blisters |
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| One of the camps we passed; still not sure what we were thinking |
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| Camp, finally |
