| start date | activity | country | place | from - to | days | km | km/ day | comment |
30.04.2013 |
organising |
Chile |
Santiago |
3 |
44 |
15 |
shopping, fixing, sending parcels |
|
03.05.2013 |
scooter |
Santiago - Vina del Mar |
2 |
147 |
73 |
|||
05.05.2013 |
walking |
2 |
25 |
12 |
looking for sailing boat |
|||
07.05.2013 |
scooter |
Vina del Mar - La Serena |
5 |
425 |
85 |
|||
12.05.2013 |
resting |
La Serena |
1 |
0 |
0 |
Sunday - can't pick up my bicycle |
||
13.05.2013 |
cycling |
Panamericana |
La Serena - Antofagasta |
7 |
910 |
130 |
||
20.05.2013 |
resting |
Antofagasta |
1 |
0 |
0 |
|||
Total
| 21 |
1551 |
74 |
|||||
Jungle around. Danger is surrounding me, I have to be careful, I have to know where and when is safe to go. There are places where is better not to be after the dusk. It is a kingdom of concrete - urban jungle. This time I'm in the capital of Chile.
Santiago was my logistic center. I was sending here the excess baggage, I was ordering online the lost stuff, I was keeping equipment for the next stages. It is no wonder that for five days staying here it had been busy time - a lot of organising. In addition to the preparation of seven parcels (141 kg) for different places in the north - I was shopping, fixing stuff, updating and translating the website, burning DVD, reorganizating GPS, etc.
Fortunately, with the help of friends Alejandro and Ignacio, it went much more smoothly. The only problem was that Ignacio lives on the 12th floor and I couldn't use the lift (engine). Similarly with the shopping malls which have multiple levels, and so far I haven't used any form of motor and will be continuing the process in 100% if possible. The shopping security guards looked at me like as on idiot and couldn't understand why I can't use an elevator or escalator to get to the higher floors - they didn't open fire doors for me.
I was wondering how can I make my journey more interesting and variety. Skateboard got out from the list due to too many steep downhills. Even the largest sizes of skaterollers were too tight for me. For dozens of stores I visited in only one they had something original - scooter mutation. Traditional run by pushing by foot and then the movements of the hip-leg to speed up. It was too funny - I didn't buy it.
After an hour I returned to the store, bargained the price and left riding the tricycle. The first target was Vina del Mar. The beginning was good, it was flat. On uphills I had to go out and push it. However, the running downhill was scary. I had the brake, but I realized that it changes the shape of the front wheel from round to pentagon. I had to use legs to slow down. After two days I reached the shore, but for the price of sore muscles in the legs and arms (I had no suspensions).
I have been looking online for sailboats for a long time, now was the time to inquire in person. Unfortunately, yacht clubs in Concon, Vina del Mar and Valparaiso are not open minded to backpackers - but at least I could leave the ad.
I walked to explore the hills of Valparaiso. Tourist districts are beautiful, supposedly safe during the day, but a little fake. So I went my way to see the poor neighborhoods. Instead of picturesque houses I have seen crumbling buildings, garbage got out on the streets, the air had a hostile silence. Look of locals was saying: "What are you looking for here gringo?"
I didn't feel comfortable, but still continued into a labyrinth of steep little alleys. No one attacked me, it was fine. And then suddenly jumped out of nowhere, aggressive dog - he approached, I screamed, what a little puzzled him, but the distance between us was shrinking down to only three meters, two, one, attack in a seconds... from the window above a woman said just one word and the dog had gone. I also quickly despaired and returned to the recommended districts with the police and shops for tourists. No dogs or cats.
After two days I doubted the boat, because if someone would sail north, which apparently does not happen in the winter, it would have to agree to take me on board and still do it without the engine. So I moved on. Then I realized that I sent the bike 400 km away. On the map it was a small piece. It was necessary to make good daily distance on the scooter. The road quickly left the coast and ran into the mountainous terrain. I found that I have to make a little better progress on the descents. On the bicycle I was able to reach speed of 61 km/h, but
I didn't anticipate that I can running down on the tricycle faster than 40 km/h. Adrenaline was raging when I passed the point of no return, when there was too late to stop - ride to the bottom of the hill or painful fall.
As if that wasn't enough, I hit the highway. I'm not crazy, but I didn't really have any alternative. This was the famous Panamericana - the road running through both Americas. And, unfortunately, there was an issue that I didn't predict - highway contractor decided to save money on the roller operator salary. And for me that meant jumping with small rubber wheels on the highway shoulder... or smooth roll on the main lane. Shoulder was sometimes unacceptable, so I was turning back and when it was empty, I moved to action on the main road. It worked out, but the stress was too high.
Once I have devised a plan of detours, suddenly after 60 km the shoulder has improved. Morale jumped up, the drivers were greeting me, I had my safe lane. I enjoyed driving on the highway - probably something wrong with me.
Only those downhills - I was afraid of them, but it also gave me more adrenaline - one 5 km run I made in 12 minutes, with no chance to slow down before the turns, it was a blast!
One day I have done more then predicted. A good tail wind and I was carrying away like a wild limping trout - solid leg push, then the strong rhythmic hip movements, leg again and I was going forward. Even in the light climbs up I was speeding like crazy. On downhills I confidently maneuvered between the holes and laying stones. And all of this in order to spend the evening with electricity and the company. I had no lunch brake, rode into a big strange city after the dark - but I didn't think that I can make on scooter 115 km in one day!
In La Serena I had to rest, because I could pick up my bike only after the weekend. So we talked at the hostel, improved our Spanish, ate the meat from the grill and sipped a great cheap Chilean wine. Goodbye to the scooter, my traveling companion for the last week. We covered together the distance similar to from Barcelona to Madrid.
Panamericana got narrower, two-way, dangerous. Trucks were passing too fast, too close. In the forest I'm a safer, and I decide what movements to commit - here my life depends on the concentration of the drivers. And I see them a lot, too many. So I speeded up as I am back in good shape and the bike behaved defectless - the slowest day was 121 km. Once I was cycling late at night in the moonlight - I felt that the whole road was just for me. I wanted to finish this stage full of human contacts as soon I could.
My standard walking or cycling day on the trip, with no towns, usually looks like this:
- Wake up before sunrise, at this moment around 6:15 am
- Quick packing and hit the road without breakfast
- After about 1 to 2 hours walk/ride time for breakfast - proteins, nuts, dried fruits, energy bar
- Make the distance, admire the views, shot images
- Sometimes lunch break happens, something fast as bar, nuts, instant soup or food to buy
- Half an hour before camping I start panicing about the water, because earlier I'm too lazy to carry it
- As I have the water, I'm looking for a place to hide my tent. The decision to stop for a rest is the most enjoyable moment of the day. I love my sleeping bag and tent, or should I say, my bed and my home. Usually, once I set up the camping, it's already dark. Now after 6 pm
- Cooking dinner - dehydrated food
- Jumping into the sleeping bag and fill excel tables summarizing the day - I love it, it relaxes me. Usually with a chocolate bar.
- Depending on the strength - work out on the preparation of the website text, photos, maps, videos, translations. The closer to the end of the stage the more intense it is. In half of the cases I fell asleep in the middle of computer work. A bit of learning Spanish. Finally, some music. Already 10 pm, must wake up in 8 hours.
Special thanks for help and hospitality for Alejandro, Ignacio, Pola, Wladimir i Camila.
| Country | Days | Food | (how many) paid accom. | Permits Entry fees |
Guide hire | Equipment purchase, hire |
Equipment or other freight fees | *Transport | Other | Total |
| Chile | 21 | $496 | (3) $46 | $0 | $0 | $154 | $40 | $0 | $59 | $795 |
seat, tripod, fixing gears