South America
Carretera Austral – South to Puerto Rio Tranquilo
The last task in Futaleufu was to visit the nearby Argentine border and get clarification from the Chilean border folks as to exactly which Chilean borders would open in the south, come December 1 and then January 1. This was critical information and would determine both our route south and the...
Carretera Austral – The Road to Futaleufu
Begun in 1976 under the direction of then dictator, General Augusto Pinochet, Chile’s legendary Carretera Austral ( Route, or in Spanish “Ruta”, 7 ) is considered one of the country’s most ambitious infrastructure projects. Prior to its construction most of Chile’s Patagonian land transportation...
The Chilean Lakes District
From Los Angeles ( Chile ) the Lakes District was only a few hours drive south. Long, straight, smooth highways almost all the way made for an effortless drive, first to Villarrica, and then on to Pucon. Two of the gems in the Chilean Lakes District these two towns attract Chileans in droves. We...
Reunited With Our Rig
Vina Del Mar had been a great place to transition back in to Chilean life. Beautiful warm days, excellent shopping, and - I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention it - incredibly hospitable hotel staff. They simply could not do enough for us and all commented on how thrilled they were that tourism here...
Return to Chile
Please excuse the MacArthur-like analogy but, 1 year, 7 months and 14 days after beating a hasty retreat from Chile in the face of a global pandemic, finally we “have returned” ! Never in our wildest thoughts ( back in March 2020 ) did we expect we would be away that long. Fortunately, the time...
The Walls Close In – Exit From Chile
What a difference a week makes. In fact, really just a a couple of days.......Throughout the Covid 19 crisis to date both of us had remained resolute that we would carry on and see this through fully expecting to be asked to voluntarily self quarantine at some point where we were. I would not...
Salar de Uyuni and Beyond
The Salar de Uyuni is an otherworldly place. Stark white, for as far as the eye can see, this massive salt flat draws visitors from every corner of the globe and is unquestionably Bolivia's tourism crown jewel. Having seen it before in winter ( July ) we were dazzled ( quite literally ) as we...
Bienvenidos Bolivia !
From Rainbow Mountain it was only a few hours drive south to Puno and then on to Bolivia via scenic Lake Titicaca. Arriving in Puno with time to visit the Uros islands we hopped on a short “tour” of the Uros (floating ) islands. Home to an indigenous group that for centuries have lived on...
Camelids, Condors, Cusco and Colored Mountains – More of Peru
You never like to leave a city you enjoy, and while we could not get through Lima fast enough, Arequipa was another story. It’s beautiful Plaza de Armas, it’s smaller size, it’s snow -capped volcano backdrop and it’s unique sillar stone buildings make it a place one could easily linger longer. But...
Peru – Central Coast Route
Our cool, scenic respite in the Peruvian Cordillera was to be short-lived. From the stunning beauty around Huaraz, Highway 16 wound across a high mountain plateau before rapidly zig-zagging down to sea level and joining the main coastal highway heading south. Sadly, for the next few days, it...
