Back in Buenos Aires (BA) post a zippy 18 hour bus ride, it felt like we’d been dealt a second chance card. We had cheated ourselves on the previous breathtakingly scanty visit, eager to be at the world’s edge. Due to the onset of snow we hadn’t seen the city’s centrepiece, namely its colonial architectural elegance nor been enveloped by the ginormous jacaranda trees. November is one of the best times of year to be in the capital, not least for the splendour of the jacaranda’s blue trumpet shaped flowers, fluttering down on you like silky rain.
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18-24 April 2014 – The only way is up!
Before peeling ourselves away from the Land of Fire, we set off for a last bite of the Ushuaian cherry, a final sip from the world’s end ‘cup’. We’d been invited to stay at an estancia for the weekend with Juan Pablo and his friends tucked away near the west coast on the border between Argentina and Chile. In departing Ushuaia, we were forced to slide over a slushy road covered in snow – wobbling like jelly for a time – although our bikes made it out of the capital unscathed and upright.
9-17 April 2014 – Adios Ushuaia
We almost changed our minds about visiting Harberton Estancia, a sheep farm. Glad we went ahead; we came upon the working ranch, which was founded by Thomas Bridges naming it after his wife’s home village, Devon in the southwest of England. Orphaned at thirteen, he was named Thomas Bridges having been found with a ‘T’ embroidered onto his T-shirt in 1856 under a bridge on Keppel Island on the Falklands. By 1871, Thomas was Head of the South American Missionary Society and with his family became the first white settlers to inhabit Ushuaia.
15 April 2014 – Tierra del Fuego movie
[By Jason]
We are still in Ushuaia but will be leaving in a few days to head north as the weather is really starting to turn now, and if we leave it much longer we’ll be marooned on this island until the Spring. No bad thing with the mountains to explore and great skiing in the nearby ski resort. Tierra del Fuego or Land of Fire is such a beautiful place; there is a raw beauty to this land, you really do feel like you are a pioneer at the Fin del Mundo – the End of the World. I have took the liberty of putting another short film together, I hope it will convey the raw, mysterious, wild, beautiful and sometimes hostile land that is Tierra del Fuego. It took me a couple of hours to edit – it’s not a Hollywood blockbuster, but I like it all the same and hope you will too.
I would advise that you click on HD at the bottom right of the movie window, as the quality is not that best due to that amount of compression I had to do to get it on to Vimeo, enjoy.
31 March-8 April 2014 – Ushuaia: El Fin del Mundo
There’s no sufficient superlative to depict the landscape, peripheral scenery and vistas from the Tierra del Fuego, the Land of Fire. Bounded on the north by the Martial mountain range and the south by the Beagle Channel, Ushuaia is the most southerly tip that can be reached by road. El Fin del Mundo, the End of the World. Home to a bustling port, a labyrinth of steep streets and locals who wouldn’t think twice to voluntarily stop their journey, pull over and offer you a ride home. The archipelago is where the Andes meet the southern ocean and is quite possibly the adventure hub of Argentina, come rain, snow or shine.
16–23 March 2014: The first week in South America – Port to Puerto Madryn
Land ahoy matey! 6,906 nautical miles sailed and we finally arrived at large to Uruguay’s capital Montevideo. Despite both of our bikes being subjected to a little petty theft whilst in Paranagua and Zarate from external dock staff, primarily coming onto the boat to discharge cargo, we were still brimming with that just-rolled-off-the-ferry feeling.
5 Jan 2014 – The camera loves you, darling.
[By Jason]
Well we are now officially homeless and I can honestly say I couldn’t be happier. We have now got our stuff packed in storage the house has been returned to our landlord. The bikes are prepped, packed and ready to go. Thankfully my sister is putting us up for a week, which means we won’t need to be eating out of rubbish bins or sleeping in shop doorways for the next week before we head down to Antwerp. So with all our affairs in order, we have some down time, which means I’ve time to talk about the camera equipment I’ll be taking to film our epic trip.