EXPLORING: And then there were 3, hiking at the tip of the continent and chilling in Chile!

We have been so busy since we arrived in Santiago that it has taken me some time to get this post out! Hopefully I´ll be able to post again soon about our tales since leaving Santiago on the bikes. Argentina is fast approaching!

Great friends and Vineyards by the sea
We weren't quite feeling like humans yet when we were up and off out of Santiago again but this time on a bus. We'd had a great nights sleep, a few good showers and were well fed but we were on the move again fortunately this time just for a few days and with only a small bag in hand. We would be meeting a friend from Santiago we had met way back in Montañita 5 months prior and would be heading directly east to the coast where we'd be staying with her good friend Isabel. We'd had also met Isabel back in Montañita and the two of them had since travelled to South Africa staying with Mark's family here and there later describing it as the best holiday destination in the world. Given that they work for a one of the biggest travel agents and airlines in Chile between them and are thus well travelled and now plan to return in Mar next year I found this sentiment something to be quite proud of.



Once we had met up with Tamara we navigated the fantastic clean super cheap Santiago underground metro we were on a 1hr bus heading for the coast to spend the weekend with two almost perfect strangers we can now call true friends. We had an amazing time in Viña del Mar (vineyard of the sea) and our new friends were the perfect hosts in every way. We laughed, drank, lay on the beach, ate way too much and oh yes did a little sight seeing. Valparaíso which can somehow be translated as Valle Paraíso or Paradise Valley is commonly known as Valpo and is one of that country's most important seaports and an increasingly significant part of the Chilean culture. Sailors and tourists have long since called Valpo 'Little San Francisco' or 'The Jewel of the Pacific' and it truly is a special city with an ambiance and feeling that is hard to describe. The street are all small and narrow and mostly cobble stoned. The houses are ancient and rickety but adorned with all colours of the rainbow. It is large but quaint and the atmosphere so invitation and interesting that you could easily send a day just wandering the streets and get lost in all the little antique shops and street side café.







Viña del Mar the modern town right next door to the older Valpo and its contrast is very visible. Its new and everything is clean and the streets are now filled with sky scrappers and hotels as opposed to the little dilapidated homes you see in Valpo. Many of the rich of Chile have holiday homes or fancy apartments here and the seafront is a modern board-walk that could be compared to that of Rio. Being in Valpo and Viña and spending time with our wonderful Chilean friends who are just so awesome, warm and kind was the perfect way to spend the first few days of our holiday off the bike. It had been a long way from Lima and the rest in the beach town with perfect friends, amazing food and gorgeous beaches was just what we needed. We did a few of the touristy things like go up the many 'Cerros' which are small hills of which there are about 20 or so scattered around the Valpo area and each have a little tram, elevator or funicular that take you up to a view point from where you can look down over the whole bay and the the city. It really is a spectacular sight on a good day. As always we stayed away from the tourist spots as much as possible and stuck to the local spots which Isabel and Tamara happily took us.



On our last day after a very late night in which we finally arrived home well after 5am, we spent the entire day sleeping on the beach in the sun and catching up on some much needed sun tanning. Even though on the bikes we are in the sun all day, we are so covered up and pasted with cream that our poor little skinny bodies never actually see the sun.



The highlight of the weekend break off the bikes was without doubt that amazing friends that treated us so well and opened their homes to us with such warmth and kindness. Isabel's family and friends were all so kind to us and even Isabel's mom who is suffering from decades of Parkinson's disease as I understand for around 30 years now joined us at the dinner table which was quite and honour for me because I understand conversation and moving around is not easy for her. I think this too was an eye opener for me as much as anything on this trip as I have heard a lot about this disease and on the face of it the person suffering from it appears very debilitated however if you look past this they are still the same intellectual person on the inside it just a takes a bit of time for them to get their bodies to express their thoughts and movements. Isabel's mom really did take take quite a bit of interest in our trip which I enjoyed.




A 3rd team member and a fat big braai!
A few months back I received a mail for Nick, a good friend of a really good friend of mine from London, who I had met a few times before I headed back to South Africa querying as to ether he could possibly join us on this crazy journey as he was coming out to hopefully teach some English in South America but had some time to kill. I knew he had some great BMXing skills to add to the team so of course we were quite happy to have the balmy Pom along.

Nick was due to arrive in Santiago the day after we got back from our trip to the coast. We were both quite excited to have our new team member join us and that evening our host, Waldo, too was back from being away and had arranged a nice big braai for us to meet all his local South African, Italian, Ghanaian and Chilean friends . Our gallivanting was not over yet though and Mark, Nick and I had planned to fly that night to Punta Arenas down in the far south of Chile, almost on the tip of the continent ,for 7 days to do some hiking, so would be cutting the party short at around midnight and heading off to the airport.

Nick arrived at the house on Thursday 29 Oct morning after a long flight from the UK pretty bushed but after a shower was ready to start preparing for the party later that night and our flight to the bottom of the world. Nick had brought out a few supplies like extra front panniers (bike bags), a waterproof map holder and few Yorkies from the UK so it was bit like Christmas for me.





The South African embassy in Santiago had also invited us around to collect some more South Africa and World Cup 2010 goodies to had out along the way so while Nick cleaned and headed we popped over the embassy. Again the people at the embassy were so friendly and more than happy to meet with us and provide us with some promotional goods. I´d just like to say thank you too all of those who we met with and helped us out especially the Counsellor Anfra Murteira.



The braai later that night was absolutely fantastic. I seriously felt like I was back home but with a Chilean twist. For a start we too had a few local guests, Coche and Poncho who we met in Bolivia while checking out the Salar de Uni (their other brother actually just happened to live in the same building as Waldo) and of course our new good friend from Santiago, Tamara. Waldo had invited his South African friends from his work, Anglo, as well as an Italian and a Ghanaian so we great international and local mix and made some conversations hilarious. Tamara had arrive straight from work so was early and is still shy with her English and it was Nick's first day on the continent so didn't know too much Spanish. Later when Mark and I were in the kitchen we heard Nick shouting in English and suddenly realised that the conversation couldn't be flowing too well so listen and laughed for a bit but then took pity on Tamara who Nick seemed to think was hard of hearing.



Later that evening at the braai Spanish was mostly the spoken language we all had in common but obviously each at different levels. My favourite part was when I found myself having a conversation with black and white South Africans in Spanish and the funniest thing about it is you can still hear the various South African accents shining through just as they do when speaking English! It made me think how in 6 months I can learn to speak Spanish well enough to converse but haven't managed this in more than one of our other 10 official South African languages, shocking! I must say I was quite jealous of the black South African's as they definitely seem to pick up a new language far quicker, obviously not because of their colour, but because they have grown up having to learn multiple languages where as most white South African's can get by with English or Afrikaans their home language, I guess its true what they say the more languages you learn the easier it gets.



At midnight we had to leave the fantastic braai but felt so super privileged to have been part of such a crazy South African reunion. Me and one of the girls were just saying how thanks to the changes in South Africa just 15 years before we can now sit as adults with a world of opportunities before us as proud South African's regardless of colour, and for this I will be eternally grateful.

Torres del Paine
We had booked the cheapest flight possible to Punta Arenas so this meant that we flew out at 2am and arrived around 5am in Punta Arenas, in the southern Patagonia region, but thanks to Tamara we had a free 4 star hotel waiting to receive us! The hotel was awesome and took us in way before check in time so we all just hopped on our beds and had a good mid-morning nap before we set out about town planning our 5 day hike to Torres del Paine.



Patagonia is truly one of the last remaining unspoilt and natural wonders of this home of ours we call planet Earth. It sits at the very tip of the world and after you leave the shores and fjords of this magical land there is nothing left but icy water before you will hit the great land mass of the Antarctica. The great Cordillera del Paine (mountain range of pain) is a small but spectacular mountain group in Torres del Paine National Park in Chilean Patagonia. It is located 400 km (244 miles) north of Punta Arenas, and about 2 500 km south of the Chilean capital Santiago. Basically, Patagonia is a geographic region containing the southernmost portion of South America. Located in Argentina and Chile, it comprises the southernmost portion of the Andes mountains to the west and south, and plateaux and low plains to the east.



After some preparation shopping, a great nights sleep and a free huge buffet breakfast at the hotel the following morning we caught a bus about 4 hours to the small town of Puerto Natales which is the closest town to the Torres del Paine national park and from there we went on a another bus and then a catamaran across one of the many icy lakes to the start of the hike in the park. The 'W' route is by far the most popular hike in the area due to the fact that you get to see all the main highlights and also only tales 5 days which makes it very accessible to most level of hikers. It is called the 'W' for the shape of the route in which you basically walk up three valleys giving it the shape of a 'W'.

We finally arrived at the starting point at the Refugio Pehoe at just before 7pm and then had to decided if we could do the 4 hour day 1 hike in the 2 hours of sunlight that we had left. In the end we decided to go for it and just push on fairly quickly. The walk was easy and we were able to make it just after dark at around 9:20pm with the help of our head lamps. On the way we were treating to a snow storm that settled a silence over us that was totally deafening. There is nothing more awesome than the deadly silence of snow falling all around you. The ground quickly turned white and the trees all took on a white covering that made us feel like we were in a fantasy land.





The highlight of the first leg of the 'W' is the Glacier Grey, a large glacier calving into the lake of the same name. Seeing this giant monster carving his way down the mountain and pushing into the lake is an astonishing sight and we were lucky to have been able to get within a couple of hundreds meters of the glacier.

The second valley was a great highlight of the whole walk. Its called the Valle del Francés (Frenchman's Valley), often rated as the best scenery in the whole park. The path leads up into a snowy dead-end, where several small glaciers are visible and in every direction there is something phenomenal to see. When you look ahead its at the giant mountains and there crazy rock formations that have been created over millions of years as the weather and glaciers cut their prints into the land, to the right you see the back of the great Torres Del Paine, to the left a row of enormous snow covered peaks and then if you turn and look over your shoulder at the valley behind you the view of the great lakes that lie peacefully in the valleys below with the southern Andes perched majestically behind them are enough to stop you in your tracks. Its impossible to describe the beauty, it hurts its so gorgeous and truly a humbling experience on so many levels.





Patagonia is a region in which the wind does not blow, but howls and gales as it rushes over the land off the freezing sea in search of the warmer inland areas. The shear power of the wind and its volume are something that we had never experienced and it was truly frightening to lie in your tent with a sound so intense. On the second night of the hike we camped under some large trees where we were woken several times through the night by the wind which smashed through the trees and our tents convinced that if the wind didn't rip my tent apart then maybe a branch tearing from a tree may but fortunately neither came to play.



The third valley takes you up to the viewpoint from where you can best see the famous Torres del Paine (the towers of pain). The towers consist of two distinctive rock types (sedimentary and granite) and their colours are completely contrasting, one being dark and the other very light almost a grey tone. The Towers reach up to almost 3000m and are dramatic in all senses. Its a sight that makes the 5 days of walking in the cold and sleeping in a tent all worth it. We were luckily to have walked quick enough to have had time to see the towers both at sunset and sunrise. However, our the 4am hike in freezing temperatures to arrive back there for sunrise proved a little fruitless because the clouds prevented the towers from lighting up a vibrant orange as often happens at sunrise, and more importantly at the time, provide some much needed heat so after that we made a quick dash back.





We had not had mobile phone reception for the few days in the park so on our return as soon as I got mobile coverage I got numerous text messages saying I had missed numerous calls and thus figured something must be up and true as Bob when I checked my email I received the great news that my sister had gotten engaged over the weekend. Congratulations to Dawn and Peter, I look forward to the wedding next year!

That night we spent another night at a fantastic hotel on the port courtesy of Tamara in Puerto Natales. After all the nights in the tents these hotel stays were unbelievable! We had big double beds with fluffy cushions, pillows, fancy baths, TV and under floor heating. There is no way that we could ever afford hotels of this quality but once again the kindness and generosity of our fellow human beings afforded us this great pleasure.

Chilean Oktoberfest
Once we had returned from our hike we had planned to wash, restock and head off on the bikes the next day, Saturday, but then we were invited by the South African expats we had met at Waldo's braai to join them at the local Oktoberfest just outside of Santiago, so our pending departure was postponed by a day. That Saturday could have been any Saturday back in Jo´burg, that morning the sky was clear and the air crisp when we all met at Leratu´s house. Having an Englishman in our party we were more or less on time but the rest still being on African time, or newly adopted even less punctual South American time, were almost an hour late but that just meant more time to stand in the tree lined streets and chit chat.





The the ride there and the Oktoberfest itself could have been mistaken for one in Jo´burg so I won't go into any more detail other than to say we had another great time just being South African's of different backgrounds celebrating a great sunny day doing something many South African's enjoy, drinking beer!

CYCLING: Rolling into Santiago

We were happy to be out of the desert but sad to wave good-bye to this section of our journey. The desert is harsh but beautiful and because it is so sparsely populated it makes for little traffic and easy pitch-up and camp camping.

The last 500km were a lot tougher than expected making it all that much more exciting to arrive in Santiago!

Km470 to Km360: Tyre Problems
We started off a little later than usual as we had forgotten to collect our washing the evening before so had to wait for the laundrette to open in the morning. It was a beautiful morning so we had great views down the coast as we headed out of town. Just south of La Serena there are some really amazing white beaches and resorts so we had plenty to look at as we cruised down the road on the hard shoulder of the now double lane toll road.



The actual road south of La Serena is a world apart from the single lane with crumbling hard shoulder Panamerican highway even just 1km north of La Serena but then again it wasn't tolled up north so does explain the difference. The vegetation is now becoming more and more green but its still arid with cactus like vegetation and with the odd farm dotted here and there.



At this stage I was holding thumbs that my back wheel would get me to Santiago so hearing a rustling packet like sound come from my back wheel as we headed down one of the hills was not very comforting! After closer inspection we discovered that my back tyre had actually worn through to the tube and there was now a hole in the exposed tube. Luckily Mark had bought a spare tyre in La Serena as the tread on his back tyre is looking a little thin so within 15 min we were back on the road.

We pushed on later into the afternoon than usual to make up for the later start which proved quite tough. We were now heading south west which is where the prevailing winds usual come from but we had made the incorrect assumption that as we were heading back towards the coast we'd been going downhill. As we have learned many a times over we should never assume anything! After fighting gale force like winds uphill for 2 hours we were approaching the horizon but we could see a scary looking front coming over the hill so we decided to look for a place to camp. Much of the land is now fenced off so fighting the wind we setup camp in a depression between the highway and a farmers fence hopping that the ominous front didn't come to anything.



Km360 to Km280: 3 Wind farms
The minute we woke up that morning the wind was already pumping. As we packed up our tents and cycled up and over the hill we hoped it would die down a little. The scenery was that of magnificent rolling hills passing a couple of kilometers off the coast then in again.

The vegetation is now very green reminding me a lot of the Eastern Cape of South which is of no surprise really as we are on west coast at a very similar latitude. Unfortunately we found it hard to enjoy the scenery as the wind just blew harder and harder as the day went on. I woke up feeling a little queezy and weak so this was the last thing I needed.

I even momentarily lost my sense of humour to the wind at one stage as I was trying to hide so close behind Mark that a gust of wind caused me to swerve catching his tyre sending me falling to the ground. We were going at snails pace so it was no biggy but I was just so fed up with the stupid wind and did not have an once of energy to catch myself from falling thus throwing the bike down in a fit. Trying to pretend all was good I jumped straight back on my bike but now of course the handle bar was misaligned from the wheel so had to stop and straighten it thus falling way behind Mark loosing my only shelter from the wind.

Just when I was thinking yes we're getting to some hill tops so maybe the wind would die down I saw what no one wants to see when on a 80kg bike, a huge wind farm. They weren't turning at all although the wind was pumping into our faces. I thought goodness what kind of gale do you need to turn those things and thank heavens we're not here to witness it because then I'd be sure to be going backwards. Once we got closer we found that the electricity distribution network was not complete so their blades were actually turned so that the generator would not rotate. We did later that day see another 2 wind farms one of which had plenty of rotating generators and guess which way they were facing, directly south of course, the very opposite direction to what we were going.



I was beginning to wonder if with all this wind there was perhaps additional strain on my already weak back wheel so when we were shooting down a hill and it suddenly felt as if someone had put on the brakes, and could again hearing a rustling packet like sound coming from my back wheel, I grew gravely concerned. Mark soon came flying past me saying he thought something might be leaking in my bag as there was liquid dripping from my bike! Oh no I thought it must be the hydraulic breaks that have gone but at least hopefully its not my spokes because when they start going they all go.

I quickly hopped off my bike and inspected. Boy was I relieved to find that the orange (which turned out to be a grapefruit) in a plastic packet which I had tied to my bike rack had got caught between the wheel and the bike rack. Somehow it had managed to work itself to the back of the rack, fall over the back and then get caught by my tyre thus wedging itself between the bike rack and my wheel! It was actually quite funny because I now had a squashed fruit and juice running all over everything but fortunately I was not really looking forward to eating it as I had discovered it was actually a grapefruit.



We landed up camping at a toll gate that night which was quite pleasant because we had toilet facilities and shelter from the wind. I was shattered and didn't actually feel like eating as I still did not feel great but we had agreed to get going at 4am the next day to try beat the wind so off we hurried to bed.

Km280 to Km179: Day Break Cycle
We got up at 4am actually quite excited at the thought of not having to cycle into the wind. For the first hour or so we cycled in the dark and the slowly it began to grow light. Cycling at day break, especially in such a beautiful place was a totally new experience.

There we're very few cars so everything was dead quite sans the bike and the cashing waves somewhere in the distance. You look around but you see nothing but black except for when you look ahead and all you can see are stars. In addition, my light was running low and Mark was cycling behind me so on the road in front of me all I could see was my shadow ticking consistently from side to side as if a pendulum. Slowly off to the our left we could just see the dark sky lighting up over the Andes. As if cued, the birds started chirping and cockerels started crowing all over the countryside. I then wondered do birds tweet all day just as much or do the noises of the day just drain them out?

As it grew lighter the stars slowly began to fade and the flowers lining the roadside slowly turned from grey to an array of yellows, pinks and purples. Over to our right looking down towards the ocean we could slowly start to define the difference between the ocean and the landscape. By full light the landscape was awash with colours and because it was still early all was tranquil.

In life we often find ourselves in places this magnificent but we rarely take the time to enjoy the gradual metamorphosis that takes place at every day break. One of the things about being on the bike that is so amazing is that we have almost 7hrs of time just to think, listen to music or Spanish tapes, or just sit back and enjoy your surroundings as it slowly passes by. So far we have seen an equatorial region turn to desert and now are slowly seeing it take on the characteristics of the divers tropics, all from the seat of our saddles.



By midday we were bushed so were relieved to find a toll road service stop. This one did have a restaurant but generally they just serve as a place for truckers to stop, rest, have a shower and move on which is a perfect spot for us allowing us to have a hot shower and a rest in the shade.This day while resting at the stop a lady, that had stopped to take a break, came over and gave us an icy could Coke! We always joke that we're going to make a shirt that says 'No more hoots just a cold Coke will do!', but it would need to be a whole lot shorter and in Spanish of course.

That evening just as I had gotten my appetite back Mark began to loose his. We cycled on for a our 2 hour and just as we were about to head inland for the last time we found a nice forest overlooking the ocean to camp in. Technically it was private land so we shouldn't have gone in the gate past the sign that said 'Privado something' but hey it was the perfect little forest to hide ourselves in for the night. The hundreds of stinging nettles however did have the last laugh!

Km179 to Km63: Blair Witch
At about 11pm that night just after I'd dozed off I woke up with a fright and could hear footsteps around my tent. I immediately called to Mark but there was no answer so I convinced myself that because there was no light shining around it must just be an animal. Just as I calmed down to a panic it returned and I could definitely hear that it only had 2 feet so I called out again and thankfully Mark replied saying that nature had called. By then my heart was racing and I was so wide awake that I didn't sleep much after that, not even after a calming mouthful of Sahne-Nuss chocolate which I now make sure I'm never short of.

Happy to headed off early again, since I was wide awake anyway, we made our way out of the forest by 5am. It was again pitch dark and thus needing to cycle for at least an hour with our lights on. It's not the safest thing to do so we shouldn't make a habit of it mainly because in some cases you're flying so fast down a hill, thanks to no head wind, that you can barely see the road. Otherwise, its pretty safe because there's not much traffic and when there is you see and hear it coming from a mile away.

Mark was still not well so we had to take a few bathroom breaks along the way. Fortunately, the road, wind, and scenery conditions were perfect and we still made good ground. At one point we got to a rather long 2km tunnel which we were not permitted to cycle through so tunnel management kindly did not send us over the top road over the 'Cuesta' but rather took us safely through in their maintenance truck.



The other side of the tunnel opened up onto a beautiful valley. We joked saying it was like we'd just come through the door in Alice in Wonderland and had discovered a whole new world - this one free of desert sand and coastal wind! With little farms and vineyards dotted here and there I seriously felt like something fresh and wholesome to eat so we stopped at a quaint little roadside restaurant for lunch. I had a delicious 'farm lunch' with a fresh full salad including green beans for the first time since we had arrived on the continent but Mark just enjoyed some local cheese as he still was not feeling all that well. This area reminded me very much of the area near Hartebeespoort Dam just outside of Jo'burg with all its greenery and roadside stalls.



With Mark not feeling too well, at about the 60km from Santiago, putting us within reach for the next day's cycle, we pulled into the first available town. There were no hostels there so we just went over to a beautiful field of flowers and setup camp. I really enjoyed the afternoon lying in the sun under just the inner net of my tent amongst the flowers admiring the towering mountains in all directions. There's a train line running all through this area but I'm not sure it still works, if it does though it'll make for the most amazing train trip!



Km63 to Km0: We navigate our way into Santiago
We set off just after sunrise excited to get into the city. After a quick coffee and a banana sandwich break half way we started to hit the traffic and highways of the city. At first we tried to head directly to Waldo's house in central Santiago, via the highways, where we would be staying but after passing some rather hair raising interchanges we made our way off the highway strongly encouraged by the traffic officer who spotted us as we pulled off onto the service road.



After getting a little lost trying to navigate the back-roads we eventually found Waldo's apartment. Waldo's a friend of Mark's from South Africa who is now working out of Santiago but was away at the mine so had kindly left us with his apartment. His apartment was awesome to arrive at where we have since spent the first 2 days just relaxing and making good use of the kitchen and laundry!

Santiago is an amazingly modern, friendly and beautiful city sitting below the Andes where the locals go skiing of the weekend and the beach just is over an hour away in the opposite direction which we are soon to visit.



Over the next 2 weeks we will be visiting the coastal cities of Valparaiso and Viña del Mar directly west of the city for a few days, we will be getting another team member and will all be flying down south to do a hike around Torres del Paine for a week before heading off for Argentina, so lots to come in the next update!

If there's one thing this leg has tough me it is that we should always tackle every horizon with humility because there's always something unpredictable on the other side.

CYCLING: From the driest desert in the world to lush valleys

I wanted to get this post out ASAP as it includes our experiences as we transitioned from desert to lush valleys. I will be posting the final leg into Santiago soon!

Km1130 to Km1019: Sleeping at a slant
Leaving Taltal feeling like we'd been there for weeks and not even having been there 24hrs we waved a sad good-bye to the family that had taken us in and headed back inland only make our way to the next popular coastal town being Bahía Inglesa just over 250km away, around 2 and a half days by bike.



After all the excitement in Taltal we had postponed Mark's birthday dinner until we got to Bahía Inglesa so we were super excited to get there for our next proper meal. That night we did well to cycle up and off the coast and again well into the Atacama Desert. We had agreed to cycle basically until we ran out of day light then dash off the road and set-up camp. As dusk fell and it started to grow cold, in addition to the strong head wind, so we were forced to find the next suitable spot but unfortunately we were on quite a steep straight road so struggled a little to find a place to put the tent and stove where it wouldn't go rolling down the hill - needless to say I did spend most of the night climbing back up my tent floor!



Km1019 to Km927: Ghost towns
We woke up after a night on a surprisingly hard desert sand not far from the highway surrounded by mist as has often been the case. Two assumptions killed right like that; desert sand is not always soft and the Atacama Desert may be 'the driest desert' in the world but there's still plenty of mist to make you cold and damp!

We were looking forward to getting to the first town back on the coast, Chañaral, for a good lunch and a restock. However, when we did rolled into Chañaral, even though it was already 10am, there was not one person in the street to be seen let alone an open shop. Eventually we did find some food opposite the central bus station which too provided bored passengers with something great to stare at.



Once out of the town and back cycling along the coast the scenery was quite beautiful. We had planned to pull into a little town for the night but as it was not quite summer yet they were all still shut for business. Looking for a place to stay we cycled down to a few coastal homes only to find them still locked and boarded up form the winter months, even the outdoor light fittings and taps had been removed. We figured no one would be coming home any time soon so took shelter from the wind for the night on someone's well sheltered balcony as it sure beats unpacking and packing up the tents.

Km927 to Km885: Jaw dropping Bahía Inglesa
It was a short cycle along this beautiful stretch of coast to the popular Bahía Inglesa (English Bay). Oddly most people, including us until now, believe that cycling down the coast would be easy but to be honest I'd rather cycle a mountainous inland stretch. Thankfully the wind was kind to us this day but generally you have strong winds on the coast and rarely does the road run along the flat coastline but rather just inland where you go up and over little rises all day. At least inland you can push yourself up the uphill then have a nice long flat section then a rest on the downhill plus generally the wind blows up hill giving you a little helping hand.

Although we were still in an arid region there were plenty of flowers lining the road. It had been misty all day so we figured the mist must collect on the roads then run off providing much needed water for this continuous string of flowers leading us down the coast and of course I'm pretty sure the wind of passing cars helps to spread the flowers.



Just as we arrived in the bay the mist began to clear and we could straight away see why this town was so poplar. The beach sand in the bay was fine and pure white and the water a gorgeous turquoise reminding me a lot of the British Cornwall coastline. Accommodation was pricey and almost completely unavailable which baffled us as it was still out of reason and a Sunday night. Later that that day we found out it was the first long weekend of summer so that explained it all.

After finding a little self-catering Cabaña we headed off for Mark's birthday dinner. Mark had just been on-line and had received some good news from home so we had plenty to celebrate making a great meal at the Done restaurant over looking the bay all that much better!



Km885 to Km769: Getting an Magnum ice-cream just for being South African!
This morning we woke up in a proper bed for a change, although shared, and enjoyed a good cup of coffee with Manjar (pronounced as if Mangar in Afrikaans) or Dulce de Leche as a substitute for milk. Manjar is very popular and is used on just about everything all over South America and is basically the product you get when a can of sweetened condensed milk is boiled. It is a bit like caramel in consistency, colour and taste but makes for a great spread on bread and a good milk and sugar substitute in coffee especially when fresh milk is hard to keep on a bike.

Under the current conditions, on average we are achieving 100km a day broken up over 3 sessions of about 2hrs each. Copiapó was 75km from where we were but the next town, Vallenar, was an additional 150km from there. So, we decided to see if we could make Copiapó by lunch then use the afternoon to see how much of the 150km we could kill hoping that just maybe we could make Vallenar by nightfall the next day.

Copiapó was up the valley from where we were on the coast and fortunately the wind was now in our favour as it just seems to love rushing up valleys. Although we were going uphill up the valley it was an easy cycle thanks to the wind and was made even more enjoyable by the rare surrounding of abundant vegetation including trees and vineyards.

By the time we wanted to stop for breakfast we had already clocked 50km so I thought it was only fitting to pull into the lodge on the side of the road advertising Bresler ice-creams (Ola in South Africa, Walls in the UK and Good Humour in the US) and get myself a little treat. When we pulled up the really friendly lodge manager asked us where we were from. In response to us saying we are South African he asked if we'd like an ice-cream so I enquired of the price but he just said 'gratis' you are South Africans! Chile qualified for the 2010 World Cup Football in South Africa the day before so I think we are going to be very popular from here on out.

The rest of the cycle into Copiapó was awesome as we started to hear birds and crickets all sounds we hadn't heard for a while cycling through the desert. There isn't too much to Copiapó itself though but it does have a lovely cycle path along the disused railway line running into it.

Over lunch in Copiapó I was just about to comment that I was amazed that my spokes on the back wheel had held out so far when I looked closer and saw one of them had snapped/rusted off. Then I notice that the back tyre had started to perish on the sides and was starting to split. The wheel would at least hold to La Serena, the next big city with bike shops, which is just over 300km from Copiapó but I'm not too sure the tyres was going to last. So planned to reassess in Vallenar around halfway so was just holding thumbs I didn't get stranded on the side of the road with a unusable back wheel!



The afternoon session coming out of the valley heading south toward Vallenar was a bit of a nightmare due to bad wind and a huge hill but we still managed to get within 106km of Vallenar. After a night in the desert, which should hopefully be one of our last, we hoped to make Vallenar before the next nightfall.

Km769 to Km663: Reaching out to Vallenar
We woke just never sunrise and Mark dashed over to my tent for a some fruit and delicious Manjar rolls giving the cool desert mist and air time to warm up a bit. Setting off with a sugar rush we steamed through the 2 morning sessions leaving a nice easy 25km into Vallenar.

Vallenar is a small valley town as the name suggests (Valle meaning valley in English) but not as deep, thankfully, but not a pretty as Copiapó. The town however is friendly and although only has a few hostels they are of good quality. The restaurants and food are also generally of high quality otherwise there's not too much else to the town and it definitely wasn't going to have a bike shop that could help sort out my tyre which was not looking good but was still holding out.

Because we got there early we had some free time and free wifi so got to catch up with some good friends, Grant and Ange, about their recent trip to Italy which was great! Also enjoyed a delicious pizza at Joyo's which has not been matched in too many other countries I've been to world wide and definitely not in Ecuador, Peru of Bolivia!

Km663 to Km470: Optical illusions and Kayaking in La Serena
Having had a good rest in Vallenar we did well on the next day doing over 110km putting La Serena in good reach. That night we had one of our last sleeps in the desert and then headed off early coming to a huge pass which doubled back on itself several times coming down the plateaux towards La Serena which is back on the coast.


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Its quite a sight, but for some reason if you are coming down a steep hill and if the road ahead stop between 2 hills at a slightly less steep gradient than the one you're on it actually looks like an uphill. We have become quite accustomed to this optical illusion cruising through the foothills of the Andes and have learnt not to panic until you actually get there and start going uphill. As we came over the plateaux all we saw was a long road doubling back and forth on itself as it spiralled downwards the bottom but on the other side we could see what looked like the road rising practically vertically up into a valley further ahead! I was in shock and somewhat annoyed, why take the road all the way down the side of the mountain only to take it back up again and to boot I knew we were close to the coast so why the need?!

As we got further down the pass I noticed the cars backing up behind the trucks coming towards us but it looked they we're all on a steep downhill so why the backup? Ah I suddenly clicked it must be that bleerie optical illusion again because trucks only cause such a backup on uphills which meant we definitely would be continuing down on the other side towards the coast - to which I nearly jumped off my bike and did a little dance right there in the road!




Steff, who we'd met in Iquique had asked Boris's brother if he could host us in La Serena which fortunately he could. We had wanted to get there before he had class at 2pm but found out he actually lived 8km past La Serena (practically the same place) in a slightly quieter area called Coquimbo very much like a university town which was perfect for us but the extra distance put us just out of reach to get there before 2pm. When we eventually did arrive Victor had actually skipped class to receive us. Within moments of arriving we'd had a shower, been dished up a good lunch and had headed off to the university for an afternoon kayak around the bay!



Victor was very kind to us and took us around on our first day but then left us to do our own thing the next day as he had class this suited us perfectly because we had plenty of admin to do on our day off. We were now under 500km from Santiago so very excited to get going the next day especially because we had heard it gets quite green from here on out with plenty of vineyards to be seen along the way!

CYCLING: Into Chile we cross and tackle the north with haste

It's been 2 weeks since I last posted a blog because so much has been going on that I just have not had time on-line. I hope this is not too long but every day has brought a different experience!

Km1248 to Km1300: We over shoot Tacna then restock
We made it to our last town in Peru, Tacna, in good time and were just so excited that we landed up cycling through and out the other side over shooting the town centre by almost 20km! When we realised what we had done we had to decide either A keep cycling and go straight into Chile or B cycle back up the hill to the centre. Given that we still had Peruvian Soles to spend, some shopping to do and had planned the afternoon off we decided to go with C and caught a taxi back to the centre.

Back in town we stocked up on all the non fruit and veg stuff we could like a giant sack of mayo, an absolute must have when needing to compensate for the staleness of a 3 day old roll.
I then spent most of the rest of the day stuffing my face. We hadn't seen a city this big in a while so I made sure I ate everything I hadn't had in a while like 2 big fat hamburgers and a piece of lemon pie, a couple of beers and about 10 boxes of Lentejas (Smarties).

Km1300 from Lima to Km2070 from Santiago: We cruise into Chile and explore Arica
The next day we got up in no hurry for a change and headed off to the border 40km down the road stopping just outside to polish off some avos, delicious olives with chilly stuffing and some fruit as you can't take fresh produce into Chile.

At the Km1340 mark from Lima we bode farewell to Peru. It felt quite strange leaving Peru behind as it had been our home for almost 3 months knowing it'll be a while before I'm back.
At this stage we had cycled the full Peruvian coastline from top to bottom covering over 2400km, around the same length of the full South African coastline! Taking into account the bit we cycled coming out of Ecuador we had cycled just over 2800km to-date.



Crossing into Chile at the Km2090 mark to Santiago, so were now counting down, the changes could almost immediately be seen; for a start the people looked a lot more European and the majority of vehicles went from buses and trucks to private 4x4s. The landscape and road conditions didn't really change all that much.



One of the first things we saw on the outskirts of Arica, the first town just 20km across the border, which we hadn't really seen in Ecuador, Peru or Bolivia was what looked like a desperate heroine addict flagging down passing trucks looking to offer a service of sorts. Its amazing how more capitalist societies seem to produce more totally down and out desperate people. In the more the socialist places we had been, where people weren't super wealthy, the poor just seen to blend in and be helped out by their fellow citizens with a little to no classism.

Arica is a nice little coastal town with everything you'd be looking for from beaches and a market to McDonald's which were all closed as it was a Sunday bar McDonald's, so guess where I spent my first day in Chile! It had free wifi so I was there a while up loading photos and doing some much needed admin. While sitting there it was great to observe the dynamic of the society here. When people came in they often looked very wealthy but did not shy away from greeting McDonald's staff with a hug and a kiss. Even the cleaner got a big hug from the majority of visitors.

The people in Arica overall seemed very friendly except for the annoying hostel owner who freaked out when she saw our bikes in our room, thank heavens she didn't see the oil mark Mark had left on the duvet when fixing his first puncture since leaving Ecuador.

I had the best roast chicken I'd had in a while later that evening and although it was a bit more pricey than Peru it was worth it because not only was it good chicken but it came with salad rolls etc. and the lady serving it was just so friendly. The lady even came over warning us not to leave valuables lying around, which we've became quite blaze about, and then proceeded to give us a lesson about what each of the Chilean Peso notes look like and which ones were more valuable (I would have thought that bit was obvious).

Km2070 to Km1869: Canyons
Mark had read in his guide book about 4 deep valleys between Arica and our next beach destination, Iquique, about 300km away. There is no coastal road between them so we had to head inland then back to the coast and to get valleys you need altitude, otherwise they be below sea level, so given we were at sea level we knew we had some climbing to do.

Refreshed we set off early and started climbing almost immediately as we got out of Arica getting to the top of a 1200m high plateaux and then plunging down the other side into what looked more like a canyon than a valley, getting to the bottom just in time for a good breakfast. We stopped under a beautiful thorn tree, which was rare as we were cycling through a very dry desert region, which looked much like the thorn trees we have in the bush in South Africa.


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After breakfast as we were packing up and moving away a lady popped out from behind the tree carrying a long stick and a little step. She then put the step down, stood on it and then proceeded to hit the branches of the tree. At first we were wondering what on earth she was doing but then spotted a cloud of dust moving up the valley under which were a huge heard of sheep making their way through the scrub land. Once under the tree a feeding frenzy ensued as they began to enjoy the cashew nut looking fruits that had fallen from the tree. We had another long cycle up and out of the valley onto an even higher plateaux this time taking over 2hrs to climb. As we hit the top there was a truck stop restaurant just waiting for us with an icy cold drink and a good lunch.



Later that afternoon we continued on to Cuya which lay in the bottom of the next valley. Unfortunately, here in Chile there is not much to the small towns between major towns and there was little in Cuya besides a police road block and a restaurant. We landed up having to stay in a shed behind the 'house' of the man selling biscuits to passing buses while the bus and their luggage is reached. The shed was filthy and infested with mosquitoes, thanks to the cesspit behind it, so by the morning we wished we'd just pitched our tents elsewhere.



The next day provided an even harder climb out of the valley taking almost 3hrs in granny gear. We were heading for the next big town, Iquique, which we knew we would not make that day but pushed on as far as we could. As night began to fall we came across a slightly greener area with a little roadside restaurant which actually turned out to be on the edge of a national park. We camped that night behind the restaurant and were treated to a beautiful sunset before heading off to bed.



Km1669 to Km1767: Down into Iquique
We were now starting the day at 1200m above sea level so after a good nights sleep (thanks to my handy ear plugs) we set off early continuing along the plateaux. We knew thanks to google maps we did not have any more valleys to conquer so we had hoped most of the day would be downhill. Given that it was sunrise the air was still and the road started out dead flat so within 2 or so hours of leaving we had killed 50km of the 100km cycle. Once we started to descend, knowing we were heading towards the coast, we were expecting a strong wind in our faces due to the cold coastal air quickly moving up the escarpment towards the hot and elevated inland desert.



Not too much further down the road our hypotheses was confirmed by two Belgiums going the other way. This couple has travelled this coastline numerous times over their lives so the they had plenty of route tips etc. to share with us as well as the knowledge that you should be cycling south to north due to prevailing winds. It's quite strange how you can come across complete strangers in the middle of a desert but suddenly have much to share then a few moments later happily cycle on. Looking at their bikes we had much in common but you could definitely see they were veterans and were far more relaxed about the whole thing suggesting extra loops here and there just because it provided some good scenery - at this moment in time we have one objective - get to Santiago! They summed it up perfectly: we just need a few more lives to do all that we want to do - if you ever feel you've achieved what you've wanted to achieve in life you've stopped dreaming!



We pressed on after a short breakfast to avoid the midday wind so fortunately by the time we did come face to face with it the gradient was steep enough to counter act its affects allowing us to come cruise down into Iquique by lunch time. A very kind couchsurfer, Jamin, took us in at late notice. Jamin was very interesting and at had a rather large collection of vintage tv games, Star Wars posters and many figurines. Another couchsurfer, Anahi, had invited us out for drinks so off we went. There was a big soccer game on that night so we joined her and her friends at the bar on the beach front. The locals here go mad for soccer so it was good to see a bit of the enthusiasm and the Iquique night life but overall its not much different from any developed beach city like Durban, New Quay, LA, you name it.

Day off:
We had planned the next day off to find a few things like a map of Chile, bike puncture kit and a new battery for my camera. Everyone recommended Zofris which turned out to be a massive duty free shopping zone but as within an airport you could only really get cameras, perfume, etc so as you can imagine we waisted a whole day not finding anything we needed. That eve we decided to drown our sorrows by eating a giant pizza then head off to bed and get the hell out of Iquique first thing in the morning.

On the way home from pizza Mark suggested we pop into the tourist office, frustrated by wasting a day, I was straight away like it'll be closed and if not just have a map of Iquique town square not the whole of Chile just like every tourist office. Fortunately it was on our way home and it was still open. When asking for the map we told them our story also said we were from South Africa and which resulted in a rather stunned 'really?'. Turns out the that Steff Botha, the girl that helped us, was originally from Joburg and had moved to Iquique to be with her Chilean boyfriend Boris, a sailor, she'd met in Cape Town.

We then landed up being treated to a coffee and a lemon pie by Boris and Steff ending a rather unsuccessful day with a smile and 2 new friends. We will definitely be keeping in contact with them. Steff's mother is actually originally Chilean but now runs the Chilean society in Joburg so we hope to meet her on our return home!



One of the most noticeable things having been in Chile now for about a week or so is that every home and car was flying the Chilean flag. Wow we thought this must be like the most patriotic country ever especially not having seen very many flags flying in Ecuador, Peru or Bolivia. As we cycled through town after town we have noticed even in restaurants and peoples homes there are Chilean coloured decorations everywhere. We began to wonder if there had perhaps been some big soccer event that inspired everyone to put out their flags but the news didn't seem to suggest anything. When taking a picture with Steff and Boris the girl taking the photo wanted to take it again because the flag in the background had been cut out a bit so I was like what on earth is with all these flags?! Steff started laughing and said she had had the same thought when she arrived around the same time the year before because apparently it had been the National Chilean Day 10 days prior and everyone had just not bothered to take down their decorations.

Km1767 to Km1665: Sleeping on a beach
Getting out of Iquique was a little hair raising as the road down the coast is narrow as it is nestled between the beach and the towering inland mountains busy with traffic as it is the same road that leads to the airport. Once past the airport the traffic settled and the skies began to clear a bit. About 70km out of Iquique the coastline becomes quite magnificent and I was just looking forward to 5:30pm so we could select a camping spot and watch the sun go down over the ocean while we cooked our dinner.



Just before we were due to find a place to camp we stopped to restock with water buying it from a elderly lady in a beautiful little town called Rio Seco, where she had lived all her life. We got chatting a bit and she just gave off such positive energy and a beautiful smile. That moment really did make my day ending with a quick dip in the rather chilly ocean and a great night camping on the beach falling a sleep to the sound of crashing waves.

Km1665 to Km1450: More beautiful coastline
The next day we arrived in Tocapillo cycling through a long dark scary tunnel to get there but it sure beat going over the top! Tocapillo has a few old wooden buildings but many structures in this town including the roads have been damaged by a strong earthquake in 2007. The people in the town were generally friendly and the hostel owner even took the time to stop and tell us all about the coastline. The next morning we were amazed to be given a wake up call at 6am, the time we had mentioned we had wanted to head off, and served a good breakfast before being sent on our merry way.



We were heading for Antofagasta a large coastal industrial city but spent a night on the floor of restaurant floor in between. Dogs here are treated a bit like vermin. In Iquique we had witnessed a dog get run over and saw numerous others along the roadside. This restaurant too had a dog that was treated like k rodent but this guy wasn't giving up that easily and looked like he had been run over at least 2 of 3 times but was still going strong!

Km1450 to Km1370: Antofagasta
Not much to report on Antofagasta except that they do have a Chile Automobile Club branch but it provides misinformation! We had heard from the Belgian cyclists that we had met earlier that week that a new shorter road heading south had now been paved but we just need to confirm this and we still needed a map of Chile. Firstly the map provided I could have drawn better by hand and secondly the road is not paved all the way as was confirmed by them!



The city in general is clean and friendly but generally pricey and just about the only thing to see is the Big Ben replica donated to them the by UK, don't ask me why they'd want one of those, which now stands proudly in their town square.

Km1370 to Km1180: Mark's Birthday and desert skies
We had heard that the road down the coast to Paposo had all but disappeared so knew we needed to head inland then back down to Paposo on the coast. We could have continued on down the Panamerican highway but it heads far inland from Antofagasta through 300km of the Atacama Desert before heading back to the coast further down below Paposo. So we decided try the new road that was also inland but not as far, heads past the La Silla Paranal Observatory and then pops out back on the coast at Paposo.

We knew we'd be spending a night in the desert near the observatory so we planned all our food and water and off we went. The road was newly paved and we saw maybe 2 cars all day which we thought was odd as it was a far more direct route towards Santiago. After a long day in the heat seeing little to no signs of civilisation all day we picked a spot at set-up camp. That stars were awesome that night and it was so peaceful out in the middle of nowhere.





The next day was Mark's Birthday so I hoped we'd have some kind of communication with the rest of the world when we got to Paposo so he could get his Birthday wishes but when we arrived the town it was far smaller than expected and did not have celphone reception nor an internet cafe. Also along the way we discovered the reason for the lack of traffic was that the road was not yet finished so we had a rather hairy 15km downhill section on a dirt road but thankfully no mishaps. That evening we bathed in the rather chilly sea and camped just on the shore with a beautiful sunset over the ocean.



Km1180 to Km1130: Taltal and the most generous family in the world
We only had 50km to Taltal just up the coast so we headed off early with the a plan to have our kit washed, do Internet admin then have a nice dinner in celebration of Mark's Birthday a day prior. However, things rarely turn out to plan.



The guide books had little or nothing to say about Taltal but all we know is that it was bigger than Paposo. After another surprise unpaved section of the road we started coming into what looked like an urban area. First we saw some really pretty and well maintained beaches then a cycle path leading up and over the hill to Taltal. Coming into town it just had a great feel to it, very clean, nice little shops and town squares and kids play parks dotted here and there.

We immediately started our searching for a laundromat which we could not see straight away so started to ask around. I saw a lady pushing a pram and asked her to point us in the right direction. She politely told us there weren't any but if we came round to her place in 30 min she'd help us our so we exchanged details and off we went to kill time having a cup of coffee.
We gave it at least an hour, as we are in South America and timing means very little, then headed over to the house. Marina wasn't back yet when we got there but soon after our arrival her husband, Robert, arrived home asking what we were doing waiting there. The family was also hosting a volunteer from the USA, Michael, so everyone just assumed we must be friends of his but of course we'd never met Michael and he was out teaching English at the local school.

It was hard to explain to Robert how we came to be waiting at his house but fortunately Marina arrived back just in the nick of time. After some explaining we were invited in and practically asked to have a shower so I don't think our sea bathing the night before was very effective.
Marina then put our washing on while Robert prepared lunch. Next thing Michael came home and we were too invited to have lunch and oh boy the fish, beans, avo and red wine were all very filling and delicious!



By the end of lunch Mark and I were feeling quite tipsy. Robert then insisted he take us to see there beautiful family farm just up in the hills where he's growing olive and lemon trees! Off we went in his 4x4 and into some very arid but with little cactuses dotted here and there. His daughter came along for the ride too showing us the playhouse her dad had built hear on the farm.



Later that eve were invited to stay on mattresses on the kitchen floor as the beds were all full which was incredibly generous and far more comfy than the average restaurant floor sans mattress. Later that night his brother and friends came round and we enjoyed another feast! Needless to say Mark's Birthday dinner has been postponed to the next town with a good restaurant but I don't think we could have asked for a better and more crazy day if we had tried! This morning Marina came through and gave us coffee and a delicious breakfast before sending us off. I hope to one day pay this awesome generosity forward but am secure in the knowledge that only good things can come to this amazing family!



If we as South African's can show just an ounce of the hospitality this family showed to us to our visitors it would go a long way to making it the best country to visit!