Dec. 29, 2017

Buenos tardes,

Viento. That’s your Spanish word of the day. You think you know what it means, but you don’t. Patagonia wind should probably have its own term anyhow – it’s serious bidness.

It was sprinkling this morning when I hit the road, which cooled things down quite a bit. It didn’t get over 17 all day I don’t think.

This time I was riding away from the rain and I was just fine with that. In the rear view I spotted a rainbow so naturally I stopped for a picture.

The terrain today continued to remind of the southwest, but oxidized copper greens gave way to pale reds and pinks. Absolutely amazing. It eventually became generic dirt colored, but hey, good start.

Beautiful pavement all day, too. Pockmarked in some spots, but otherwise nicely maintained. Wouldn’t matter after too long, though.

Quick top off of fuel in Perito Moreno and… back to the road.

I didn’t take a ton of pictures today because… most of my day was spent NOT simply falling over. The wind is seriously insane. It’s a constant billion miles an hour with gusts of a zillion (factual numbers!). The entire road needs to be used at times. You never can quite tell the direction either. Just vaguely from the right.

I’ve ridden the Great Plains. I’ve experienced wind. This wind is the “hold my beer, I’ve got this” type. Always trying to wind harder. I put a short time lapse down below, but it doesn’t even touch the insanity that is happening outside.

I’m cruising along, sort of leaned right to go straight with fits of “holy hell, I don’t even know what straight is” when I see a guanaco warning sign. No pic, too windy to stop and not get blown over.

Guanacos all over. A few pics on my actual camera, but no iPhone shots. So neat to see in person. They’re just… chillin’. Doing their thing. Looking like llama camels. Threatening to bounce into the road. “You stay there, dude,” I warned telepathically. Seemed to work.

I saw a sign for wind. Mercifully it was calm at that minute so I stopped. I swear they were drawn more bent over as I went. Did I mention it was windy?

My plan was to stop in Baja Caracoles for more fuel, so naturally I followed that plan. The gas station is a pump in front of a fence, next to… someone’s house? I have no idea. While I was waiting (oh, right… everything is full serve down here) a couple from Brazil pulled up, both on R1200GSAs. Really nice people.

We complained about the wind, and the wife went off to find someone. The hostel next door informed her that there was no fuel to be had. Well, that’s not good. I’m down to ~180km of range and the next station is 230km out. Time to boring up my ride.

Back on the road the wind was calm for a while, which helped. I slowed to 80kph and “earned” much needed range. At the next marker I’d put enough in the tank that I was gonna make it. If only barely.

And then the road turned, the wind got even worse (I’m serious, 15 degree lean right was sort of straight). I had to slow to 60kph (miserable) to preserve what fuel I could. I passed a guanaco that looked at me with an expression that seemed to say, “you’re dumb, bro” – for some reason I’ve decided they sound like surfers.

Fuel that was now being consumed at an alarming rate. There’s no way this could last, right? It had to give.

Nope! The wind didn’t have to play by your rules. The road, however, was happy to turn. The wind at my back again and I could add to my reserve AND do 110! The moto gods decided to reward me. Beautiful.

Rolled into town and up to the station with about 6km range left. I made it! A full tank of fuel, more chatting with my Brazilian friends, and it was time for food. I saw a pizza place off the main drag and stopped.

Tiny. Straw and clay oven. Super nice old lady. Amazing empanadas. Two of those and a Fanta (not a soda guy, but they didn’t have waters) later and I’d spend the best $4.50US ever.

My hotel was only 700 meters away, and I saw no need to explore this sleepy little village. Too beat from the wind. Still feels like I’m on a boat.

Oh, something I didn’t expect, but was super excited about… everyone talks about the guanacos, but nobody mentions the… RHEAS! So awesome! Saw quite a few, including some babies, just outside of town. No pics, sadly, so I stole one from the internet. I didn’t take it. So exciting to see!

Anyhow, time for a beer.

Dec. 28, 2017

Howdy everybody!

Today was “short”. Only about a three hour ride. I say “only”, but it was an adventurous one.

It was hard to leave the lodge I’ve been staying in this morning. Really liked it there, obviously. But I must push on. Argentina was pulling me back.

The last few days have been cold, rainy, windy… not today. It was perfect when I left, just about 14c. That climbed to nearly 28c (!) as the day went on. Mucho calor. Just so you can follow along it’s nearly 82F out right now.

It’s so hot that I shed my jacket after dropping stuff at the hotel before heading back for lunch and fuel.

By the way, I’m writing this as I have lunch in a little cafe in Los Antiguos, Argentina. Just over the border from Chile. Staying here tonight as well.

Anyways, the road today sucked. So washboarded. Slow going most of the day. It sort of snaked along the lake, which is beautiful, before climbing onto the plains.

The scenery changed SO much! I nearly felt like I was in the Southwest back home. Amazing rock formations. Totally different that anything up to now.

I met a group from Brazil that was traveling north to my south. The Dragoes Do Vale Moto Clube! Really friendly. We swapped some intel. I got stuck in some gravel. They pushed me out and probably laughed at me.

The road looked better, but man it took a while for it to actually improve. Once it turned to beautiful, fast road the wind kicked up something fierce. Of course it did. Apparently the next few days will be brutal. Wahoo!!

Anyways, nothing major to report today. Other than lunch today is a giant piece of grilled chicken and some fries. Yum.

Edit, I lied! One last thing. Didn’t get an exit stamp in my passport from Chile, but everything else is good. I should be fine. We shall see next year.

Bye for now,
Ryan

Follow: https://share.garmin.com/rac

Edit: Dave… today was like the rough parts of Rim, including the cuts through the massive rocks, but with better scenery.

Also, the lake is now called Lake Buenos Aires. But just this end. The end in Argentina.

Dec. 27, 2017

Hola, amigos en internet!

Today did not require the use of an AK, thus making it a good day. Today was also a rest day. My initial plan was to be lazy today. I even nearly missed breakfast because I slept in.

Then I did some reading and waffled about exploring or laying in bed all day. Then a 20 minute nap just to be sure. Exploring won out in the end, though. At about noon. Which meant a slightly later start than would have been prudent, but it’s a rest day, dammit!

Parque Patagonia is about an hour away and I really wanted to see that, anyhow. I knew I’d regret not at least trying. There was something there I was excited to see.

No luggage to strap to the bike made for a quicker start. After gearing up I realized I’d have to ride down the footpath because of how they’d asked me to park. No way was I backing the pig up a grassy hill. Being a rebel, I rode the path. Yeah!

Then I smelled burning oil. Surely can’t be from me, right? I stopped near the office of the lodge and now I could see a little cloud wafting away. Crap.

Bike off. Off bike. Inspect. Sure enough, right side valve cover has a drip. Nothing on my pants, and it wasn’t there yesterday so… I can tell it’s been pulled off and repaired once. I guarantee the gasket was reused and the rough roads yesterday caused some issues.

Luckily there is a gas station (that’s being generous as it’s a pump and a shack) near so I bought some oil, checked the levels, made sure the bolts were all snug, and went exploring anyhow. Nothing to be done about it now.

The roads were good heading south on the Carretera Austral today. Had a blast riding along when I noticed a white KIA minivan ahead of me. Just like the family that helped me yesterday. Could it be? Yes, it could be! So neat. Many smiles, waves, and thumbs ups exchanged. Awesome!

Another thing I wasn’t prepared for was seeing another insanely blue body of water. This one a river. Rio Baker it’s called and just look! There has to be a dye source upstream. Has to be!

After that I overshot my turnoff by about 20km (oops) and had to turn around when I figured it out. I got the road number wrong. Whatever, it’s a rest day.

The bad part about that is I was dipping towards half a tank of fuel, in the middle of nowhere and I wasn’t keen on being out too late. It certainly influenced my decision to head back when I did.

Certainly not before finding what I came to see – guanacos! So awesome to see this cousin of the lama in the wild. Took a ton of pics of what I assumed was a solitary dude chillin’ before I looked at the other side of the road. They’re everywhere. So neat. I watched them a while and decided it was time to head back. Sadly did not make it far enough to see the flamingos. Next time.

The ride back was uneventful, but fun. A bit of “mud” to make my boots look cool. A stop for fuel. A stop for fruit and bottled water. Back to the hotel.

Tomorrow I’m back to Argentina. The WiFi here is bad so I’ll probably have to say goodnight now.

-Ryan

Dec. 26, 2017

Patagonia… you can’t turn a corner without being stopped dead in your tracks. It’s like the entire region is constantly trying to 1-up itself. Absolutely amazing.

Going to keep this short tonight… I’m hungry and dinner is open.

You always see pictures of those perfect ribbons of pavement in Europe or whatever part of the world, but you never necessarily get to them. Today, I got to one. This perfect set of perfect curves set in what amounts to a blip of a “town” on the Carretera Austral (the road I’ve been following since leaving Trevelin). A fitting reward for the last pavement before a full day of ripio.

Today wasn’t going to let me off easy, though. Today was going to make sure I was thrown a challenge. Towards the beginning of the ripio the gravel started to get really deep, and the bike started to get really hard to aim. Eventually it became 6-10 inches deep and the heavy bike plus me and gear was just too much. I came to a halt on an uphill turn.

I used every trick in the book, but the rear tire just would not find purchase and the gravel kept sucking the bike in whatever direction it wanted. I was working my tail off for every inch, and I probably got 3 feet in 15 minutes. Meanwhile, cars and trucks are just going around. Nobody seemed concerned.

Finally a family pulled up and asked if I was ok. I was out of breath, feeling beaten, and trying to figure out what I was gonna do when they offered to push me. Just at the top of the rise it got better. So, I accepted, they pushed, and I was on my way yet again. I wish I’d asked their names or been able to stop again, but I lacked the confidence in the deep gravel to not have another problem. Thank you mystery family. I owe my continued trip to you.

After that, in spite of being a full day of gravel it just kept getting better. Lago General Carrera is one of the most amazing lakes I’ve ever laid eyes on. Not exaggerating. It needs to be a place you see before you die. I don’t possess the vocabulary to adequately describe how blue it is. Fed by glaciers and rain it has some of the purest water in the world (probably… certainly tasted good).

I reached Puerto Tranquilo on the shores of the lake early enough for lunch and to catch a boat to tour the Capillas de Mármol, or Marble Caves. Again, words escape me. Absolutely incredible. So incredible they almost feel fake.

After a thorough soaking by decent sized waves and wind-flung water (that’s how I know the lakes tastes good, FYI) it was a short jaunt to my lodging for the next two nights.

I thought the guy was joking when he showed me my cabin. It’s insane. Big bed that looks out over the lake. Loft if I choose. Giant bathroom. Nuts. Absolutely nuts.

Tomorrow is a rest day for me, and much needed. If the weather is good I plan on riding to Parque Patagonia, a private park they are hoping to make a national park. If not, I’m cool with being lazy as well. The bike needs some minding anyhow.

Ok, short turned to long. Have a great night.

Dec. 25, 2017

Merry Christmas, everybody! I hope you’re all enjoying the day with family and loved ones or whatever. Maybe you’re eating Chinese food… seeing a movie. Whatever it is, enjoy it.

Another long-ish one coming in 5, 4, 321…

Today was the absolute hardest riding on any bike I’ve ever done. Ever. In the most amazing way. I can’t adequately explain how amazed I am at what I rode through.

The morning started off raining, so that’s good. Asphalt gave way to ripio pretty much right away, which is fine except this particular stretch is pretty gnarly. Washboard, mixed with gravel of varying depths, mixed with pounding rain, mixed with massive potholes, mixed with the occasional boulder in the road. Toss is some massive holes from waterfalls for good measure.

In Oregon there are similar roads (not really, but they have the same rain filled potholes), but those still afford you latitude with picking a line. The ripio this morning did not afford you that luxury – picking a line was more about which holes looked least offensive and grabbing some throttle, hoping to skate them as best as one could. It wasn’t awful, but certainly tiring.

Because of the road being cut (waterfalls were literally wiping out sections it looked like) there was a boat that dumped you a few KM south. A surprisingly pleasant ride all told.

After that is where it began to get intense and truly test my riding ability, and my mental fortitude. I suppose in some ways my stupidity as well.

As the road started to rise into the mountains the rain got worse. As the rain got worse the wind started gusting. As the wind started gusting the temperature started dropping. That all sounds pretty bad, but still doesn’t factor in the sections of road that were a few feet wide because the rest was gone (seriously, not sure how some cars made it, which could be my brain making it worse).

As the road kept deteriorating and the wind and rain kept getting worse the surface started to become a complete network of exposed bedrock and boulders. Now, as you know a rock that is wet is a slippery rock indeed. Bad enough in a straight line, but add turns and you are in for some pucker moments.

I often ride by reading the tree line. It gives me an idea of what turns are going to do and how tight they may be. As I approach a turn, dealing with all this crap, AND climbing at a nearly inappropriate angle my brain gets confused. The tree line comes… back… at me? Uh oh. It’s a hairpin. A very steep, very slick, 1st gear hairpin. On a 2 way road that I was going to need all of. Visibility due to vegetation and steepness through said curve? About a meter.

So I make it through the hairpin. Only to find another. And another. And another. And… you get the idea. Those hairpins were my true test today. They really did take all of my skills to get through. All I could think about was how done I’d be if I dumped the bike. I mentally questioned my own ability. I made it.

As mentioned, this post doesn’t even come close to describing or explaining how hard it was nor how close I came to wanting to give up and turn around. Like I said, hardest riding I’ve ever done.

After that was mostly sunny. Beautiful scenery. Waterfalls everywhere. Sadly, no lunch. Everything is closed for Christmas. Looks like a hotel sandwich for dinner it is! Could be worse probably.

Before I go, one last thing… I had a bottle of peach juice in a pannier. Either the insane jostling or the altitude and pressure popped it open. So, I now have some peach scented gear. Oops.

Ryan

Follow: https://share.garmin.com/rac

Dec. 24, 2017

First, Merry Christmas Eve from Chile!

This is going to be long, so I hope some read this.

Today was hard. Not because I’m missing my family, which I am (by obligation… right?), but for another reason as well.

The picture you see of the bike on its side was as hard as I thought today would get. On a normal day it probably would be. I’ll explain, but first how I arrived at that particular predicament…

I’d been riding mainly ripio (gravel) for hours. The weather has been cool and misty/raining all day. Humming along between a walking pace and ~100kph. My own mini Dakar. It was awesome! The crossing back into Chile was flawless, and all the guards thought I was a rockstar (obviously correct).

So I’m riding along this river that is a color blue I can’t even describe. It’s amazing. The scenery is changing to this kind of jungle. Epic. Of course I want a good place for a picture, but not just anywhere. I have to figure out how to get to the beach, obviously. Ah! A very rough “road”.

I take the road down and it turns to sand. I go as far as I dare and take the other images I’m posting here. Side note, I found the timer on my iPhone.

Spend a bit of time, get turned around carefully as it’s soft sand. Head back out the road, slow for some stupid reason going back to the main, bike sinks, stalls, and there you have it. A very slow walk-off home run.

About 20 minutes of lifting, digging to firmer ground, bouncing, blah later I’m back onto the main road. Zero cars pass until less than a minute after I’ve sorted it out and am standing in the middle of the road sweating. Oh, I’ve also mostly stripped my kit off because I’m overheating at this point. Who the hell thought riding solo was a good idea? What an idiot. Hah.

I honestly thought that was as hard as my day would get. Again, I was wrong.

You may have heard of a small place in Chile called Villa Santa Lucia if you’ve been watching the world news (https://www.theguardian.com/…/chile-deadly-mudslide-destroy…). About a week ago a massive mudslide wiped the whole village out. Gone. 5 dead and 15 missing that I know of. I’d heard about it from the locals who assured me the bypass was in and I could pass. Nothing prepared me for actually seeing the destruction first hand.

At the time I was so focused on getting through the military checkpoints that were every 500 meters that I wasn’t really processing things. The sheer amount of mud and nothing was so vast. I saw a truck ripped in half. Emergency, police, military… everywhere.

As I finally found the road and kept riding I replayed everything in my mind and I’ll be honest, I cried riding down the road in my helmet. I’ve seen plenty of bad things, but seeing this hit me pretty hard. Still rough now.

I felt like I needed to share this because it really reminded me how lucky I (and you) really are. No matter how hard it gets we have it easy in comparison. So this Christmas make sure reach out to your loved ones and remember what really is important. You never know when it all ends.

I found this if you’re so inclined to donate – [link removed]

From Chile… Ryan

Some background: In December ’17 & January ’18 I spent 20 days exploring Patagonia on a motorcycle solo. The trip was full of adventures, interesting people, challenging experiences, and growth. At least I think there was growth.

I wrote about the trip on my Facebook page, which I don’t generally make public. The plan is go transfer the posts here over the next few days/weeks. I’ll probably combine some of them, and leave the longer ones to stand alone.

It was a hastily planned trip in many ways, and that reflected in my attitude leading up to my departure. I often go into these sorts of things with the best intentions, but end up scrambling at the last minute. This is a good place to provide you with a lesson – don’t be me, plan ahead better.

What I mean by saying this was hastily planned is this; most people would probably take longer than three months to plan a trip like this, where I made the decision to go in August – a mere 3.5 months before departure. It led to some ‘small’ scrambles, but in the end everything worked out.

Researching rental companies for this trip led me to Ride Adventures (www.rideadv.com [I probably won’t link to many companies here, but Eric is awesome, and you should all do business with him]). They do fully both fully supported tours, and self-guided tours around the world. I can’t say enough good things about ’em.

Initially, I was just going to try to rent a bike, and figure the rest out on my own, but RideADV’s itinerary, hotel bookings, and everything else they provide convinced me it was the right way to go. Having the burden of logistics removed was huge, and let me concentrate on other things. Now all I had to do was show up, and get from place to place every day while exploring whatever in between.

In order to not bore you completely, I’m going to start this at the ‘1 month to go’ mark, still fairly long, but probably worth it in the long run. The first entry (this one) will cover up until I collect the bike in Pucon, Chile. Enjoy.

Nov. 21, 2017

28 days.

The ‘one month’ mark snuck up on me much faster than I thought it would. I realize I’m less prepared than I’d like to be at this point, but I must forge on. The race to adventure is gathering steam. My heartbeat quickens and my mind races when I realize how close I am.

So much to do before the clock strikes zero and I reach the point of no return.

Wilderness is not a luxury, but a necessity of the human spirit.

Dec. 7, 2017

11 days.

Less than two weeks. The timer is ticking down rapidly and I have so much to do before it hits zero. I sense some long hours in my future. Every one worth the payoff, I’m sure.

Today I willingly let someone stab me with needles. It’s vaccine day. My least favorite day.

Adventure is worthwhile in itself.

Dec. 11, 2017

7 days.

The proverbial light at the end of the tunnel is close now.

One of those Monday’s that everyone is always complaining about. The sort of Monday that you need a break from.

Today is Star Wars night at The Pond! Awesome.

Adventure. Excitement. A Jedi craves not these things…

Dec. 15, 2017

3 days.

Well, I guess it’s time to buckle down and actually get things in order. I’m sort of mostly ready. Mostly.

That will mostly have to wait until tomorrow… today is Star Wars day.

Tracker link: https://share.garmin.com/rac

Adventure without risk is Disneyland.

Dec. 17, 2017

1 day.

Holy crap. Finally test packed last night. Realized I’m missing some small things. Errands being ran.

Tracker link: https://share.garmin.com/rac

Life is either a great adventure or nothing.

Dec. 18, 2017

0 days.

The final countdown has begun. Work has gone so slow today. Each minute feels like an hour. Plenty to do before heading to the airport.

Tracker link: https://share.garmin.com/rac

Adventure and exploration are in my blood.

Safety Third, my friends.

Dec. 18, 2017

My whole world for the next three weeks.

Feeling thankful for Touratech, inReach, Giant Loop, and Kriega.

Here we go!

Dec. 18, 2017

11 minutes in and the adventure has already started. Flight to Mexico City is cancelled. Gotta find a new way home, pizza boy.

Dec. 19, 2017

(checking into the Sheraton Los Angeles Airport)

Ok, so… cheaper than an Uber home and back. Looks like I’ll be trying again in the morning. Cheers!

Dec. 19, 2017

(back at LAX)

Round two… now with 100% more rebooking. Go!

Dec. 19, 2017

(now in Miami)

Had to go sideways first. Get to spend a few hours in Miami before finally flying to Santiago. Nothing’s gonna stop me this time… right?

Dec. 19, 2017

An update in case anyone is still following along… at this point it’s just amusing I suppose.

Was on the plane. Plane pulled away from the gate. Surprise: mechanical problem. Back to the gate… waiting. Oh, we can’t leave now so off the plane.

Good news: they have another plane! Bad news: flight crew maxed out their hours.

Verdict: cancelled.

That’s the second cancelled flight thus far. Now I don’t leave until Wednesday morning. As long as I get to Chile before my very early flight Thursday I guess it’s fine. That’s the flight I really can’t miss.

Time to find out what the airline plans on doing with us all.

Dec. 20, 2017

(finally in Santiago!)

Great success! Finally.

Additional comments from the present (Aug. 20, 2019): Just getting to Chile proved to be an adventure. Two cancelled flights, and an extra day of travel meant I didn’t get any time in Santiago to explore. The trip had been planned with one extra day, which now became no days. Had enough time to get dinner, have a quick sleep, and go back to the airport for my flight to Pucon. Bit of a bummer, but very glad I had that cushion.

Dec. 21, 2017

A totally flawless flight and a taxi ride to grab a lunch beer in Pucón. This place is amazingly beautiful. Right on Lake Villarrica. The volcano and snow capped mountains surrounding everything add to it.

Pick up the bike tomorrow (finally): https://share.garmin.com/rac

P.S. stray dogs everywhere… can I bring them all home?

Additional comments from the present (Aug. 20, 2019): Pucon was pretty darn awesome. It’s quite a decent taxi trip from the airport, which was great. It gave me the opportunity to just look around, which I really enjoyed. 

Due to my flight being insanely early I couldn’t check into my hotel, which worked perfectly. I was able to leave my luggage, and go walking around. Spent some time just sitting in a park. Went for lunch. Just wandered. Pucon is great. It is a bit weird looking up at a steaming volcano, though. Weird & magical.

In the later afternoon I found a place to grab a beer, and ceviche. Salmon ceviche, actually. Salmon pulled from the river that morning. It was amazing. Then I went for dinner at a place called La Maga. The best steak I’ve ever had in my life. I suggest you go. Totally worth it. Might have found a bar after. It was a fun night, for sure.

An amusing observation about Chile is the music. It’s all American music. In fact, the first song I heard when I got off the plane was a Save Ferris song. So odd…