Some days things go well and other days are just crap!. Today was one of those crap days with a capital 'C', Sue and I had packed to leave early and head north with Dave to catch the ferry from Povenir to Punta Arenas Because Dave could only travel at a steady 55mph, Johannes, Jude and Chris could have a lie in and still catch us up at the ferry port.
Here's BOB on the centre stand just before loading up.
I normally pack the bike parked on the side stand as it's easier to manoeuver once fully loaded, it wasn't until all the bags were on that Sue noticed a patch of fluid underneath the rear shock absorber. I optimistically said it was water run off from the rain the night before but on closer inspection it turned out to be hydraulic fluid...a few expletives later and we were looking at the possibility of riding back to Buenos Aires on a blown shock. We knew the leak had only just started but had no idea how long it would be before the cylinder was completely empty and we would be riding on just a spring with no damping. For the less technically informed this meant that once the spring on the shock was compressed there would be nothing to slow it's progress returning to it's normal state and keeping the rear wheel in contact with the road, in short we would be riding the equivalent of a pogo stick just like Ingo and Cecilia had been doing. There was no chance of getting the shock repaired anywhere south of Santiago and waiting for a new one to be shipped down was not an option so we had no choice but set off and hope the leak was a slow one. We still had over a hundred kilometers of dirt road to cover but fortunately it was going come sooner rather than later...
After a couple of hundred kilometers we stopped for fuel and the shock was still dripping fluid so it hadn't emptied completely but the back end was noticeably 'springier'.
Seriously 'windswept' trees.
Sue and BOB resting on the shores of the Magellan Strait.
We arrived at the ferry port in Povenir 500km after leaving Ushuaia, by now the rear shock had lost all of the hydraulic fluid and every dip in the road or speed bump would set us bouncing until BOB settled down or I applied the breaks to stop the oscillating. I was surprised we had made such good time and that we had kept ahead of the following group, we still had a few hours before the ferry sailed so we planted ourselves in a cafe and waited for Johannes, Jude and Chris to arrive.
Waiting to board the Povenir to Punta Arenas ferry.
These southerners have no staying power.
Loaded up and strapped down. During the voyage the seas got a bit choppy but the bikes remained firmly anchored to the deck. Someone obviously fared worse than the rest of us and decided to throw up right next to BOB...Thanks.
Punta Arenas, Chile.
Whilst we were in Punta Arenas, Chris and I had a look round the place in the hope of finding someone who could repair the rear shock. We got to meet Horatio, who runs 'PatagoniaRiders' a motorcycle hire company that rents BMW GS bikes for people who want to see this part of the country on two wheels. Sadly, we had no luck with the shock, Horatio reckoned we could get the the seal replaced in Santiago or Buenos Aires, Sue and I didn't fancy riding back to Santiago so resigned ourselves to having a bouncy ride to the Argentinian capital.
Horatio and Johannes.
But we did get the bikes cleaned before leaving for Puerta Natales.
Memories of home!
On the beach it's a free for all.
Penguins pair for life or until one or the other gets eaten by a seal.
The next morning we all left for Puerta Natales and met Pablo Escobar from Osorno in Chile. Pablo shares his name with the more famous Columbian drug baron (now deceased) but he assured us he wasn't related in any way!. Pablo was on his way home after a road trip to Ushuaia and had booked a berth on the same ferry sailing as the rest of us, he was as friendly and helpful as the other riders we had met on the road and told us about another motorcycle hire company in town that may be able to help in sorting out the shock, so whilst the rest had something to eat, Pablo and I went off to MotoAventura. Bad news again, they were unable to help but did suggest we may get some help if we call in at their main office in Osorno in a few days time. So it was back on the pogo stick again.
Pablo Escobar.
On the way to Puerto Natales we called in to see the Magellan penguin colony at Otway Sound. The colony consists of around 5,000 birds that occupy this part of the Magellan strait for seven months of the year. Every year they travel thousands of miles from southern Brazil and the Falklands to nest and rear their young. They leave the nests in the morning for an eight hour round trip out into the sound to feed returning in the afternoon to care for the chicks.
These penguins have adopted the strange British custom of 'queuing.'
When we arrived at our accommodation in Puerto Natales the hotel didn't have the rooms we'd booked so we ended up looking for somewhere else, the ferry didn't sail for another three days which would give us time to visit Torres Del Paine National Park which was another sight on our list of 'must see' places. We had a serious problem booking accommodation in the park, firstly because of availability and secondly because of cost. In the end Sue, Dave and I found a decent camp site whilst Johannes, Jude and Chris opted for the more expensive yurts which are basically canvas igloos with all mod cons.
Upmarket camping for the seriously well off.
Camping Pehoe.
"Stop posing and give me a hand with the tent"
Camping economy style, for the seriously hard up!.
Torres Del Paine National Park is arguably one of the most beautiful National Parks in the world, on a good day the scenery is mind blowing. When we visited the park the weather was less than kind but nevertheless it was still impressive, what wasn't impressive was riding through the park on dirt roads with a blown rear shock!. I can hear you all saying how lucky we are to be doing this and we shouldn't complain but I'm the one trying to keep the bike in a straight line with Sue bouncing up and down on the back of the bike like a ruddy Jack in the box! It was something of a novelty putting up the tent for only the third time on our trip, the intention was to camp more often but the convenience of hotels and hostels won hands down every time even for hardened adventurers....Yeah right!
Our campsite had all the facilities we needed including a restaurant and that evening we had dinner with a German couple Marcus and Mirielle who were on their way down to Ushuaia on two motorbikes. We then retired to our tent to listen to the wind and rain. The next day started with light rain as we were packing up and before we returned to Puerta Natales we rode back into the park to visit the Salta Grande waterfall.
We rode south through the park avoiding the rain as best as we could, only stopping for lunch and a chance to warm up in one of the parks restaurants.
The Navimag ferry was not due to sail until 6:00 the following morning but all the passengers and vehicles had to be on board the previous evening at 8:00 so we spent the day hanging around waiting. Sue and Jude went to arrange the tickets whilst the blokes took the bikes for a well earned wash at the local gas station. We also met Mark and Nick a couple of Americans on their way home after riding to Ushuaia.
Gino, who we'd left in Santiago was supposed to be arriving on the ferry so we sat around at the port when the ferry docked in the hope of meeting up. It turned out he hadn't caught the ferry so the chances were no one would see him again on this trip.
Gino, who we'd left in Santiago was supposed to be arriving on the ferry so we sat around at the port when the ferry docked in the hope of meeting up. It turned out he hadn't caught the ferry so the chances were no one would see him again on this trip.
Here's a joke... Question: Why did the dog cross the road?
The ferry journey to Puerto Montt is advertised as a cruise, in reality it's just a roll on - roll off ferry with some cabins for rent. The fact that it sails for three days through the Chilean fjords means they can bump up the prices accordingly. For us it was a chance to save riding the thousand and odd miles up through Argentina on a blown shock.
The three day trip north was cold and wet for the most part, whilst navigating the fjords the wind remained relatively calm with the odd squall every now and then. This continued until a twelve hour sailing out into the Pacific Ocean across the Gulf of Penas when everyone's stomachs were tested to destruction! We were given fair warning by the Captain to take whatever anti sickness remedies we had before we hit open water and not surprisingly, few passengers took advantage of the sloppy spaghetti bolognese that evening.
This was one of those odd squalls, Chris looks like he's enjoying it!
On the morning of the second day we were woken at 5:45am so that anyone who wanted to could view the Pio XI glacier, the largest in South America. Pio XI is as big as the city of Santiago, Chile with a surface area of 1265 square kilometers, and grows 50 meters in height, length and density every day. This is a unique quality, all the other glaciers in Patagonia and in most areas of the world are losing extension, whereas Pio XI keeps growing everyday. At 5:45 in the morning there's not a lot to see but as the dawn light spread across the glacier you could at least get an idea of the scale of the thing. It wasn't as impressive as the Perito Moreno glacier and certainly not worth getting up at this ungodly hour.
Isn't this fun Sue? the blackness is stunning!
Oh! there it is. Right, seen it now...back to bed!
You can clearly see the difference between the salt water and the fresh water entering the fjord from the melting glacier...Interesting eh?
Navigating the 'narrows', not easy at speed. in bad conditions when the distance between the rocks is only 80 meters.
The wreck of the MV Capitain Leonidas which ran aground in 1968 on Cotopaxi Bank, a notoriously dangerous spot. The ship was carrying a cargo of sugar from brazil. In an insurance scam that went wrong, the Greek captain sold the sugar and sought to scuttle the ship on a known hazard whereby he could then claim that the sugar had disolved in the water. Unfortunately for him the ship did not sink...Oops! The Chilean navy used her as target for practice shooting and still couldn't sink her which is why the hull and superstructure look so messed up.
This storm petrel was sheltering on deck from the wind (so why is it called a storm petrel?) it looks like something has run over it's feet but it's supposed to look like this.
Evening gloom.
The lower deck was filled with vehicles crammed with livestock in appalling conditions and after the first day the smell was enough to keep people firmly on the upper decks.
On the last day of the journey the skies cleared and we got to see Patagonia in all its splendour, the sun shone and everyone spent the last evening having a drink on deck watching another Pacific sunset. Most of the voyage had been spent chatting, reading or in my case swapping photos with the rest of the group and blogging, it hadn't been the 'cruise' that everyone expected but it had given us a break from riding and made the trip up from Ushuaia less tedious.
Sadly for Sue and I, today would be the last day together with Johannes, Jude and Chris. Once we reached Osorno, 100 kilometers north of Puerto Montt, they would head across to Buenos Aires whereas Sue, Dave and I would take a slightly longer route via Peninsular Valdez over on the Atlantic coast.
Puerto Montt harbour.
This is a proper cruise liner (no smell of cow shit on this baby!)
Disembarking.
Pablo (no drugs on board) Escobar!
Our last 100km ride together.
The ride up to Osorno took us around an hour as we escorted Dave and 'Maisie' at a leisurely pace while the rest of the group rode ahead and arrived fifteen minutes earlier. We are now used to travelling with Dave at a slower pace to avoid putting too much strain on the old girl and with our blown rear shock we're a right pair of invalid bikes!
Volcano Osorno, the Mount Fuji of South America.
When we arrived at the outskirts of the city Pablo escorted us to a restaurant for lunch and then left to make his way home, Dave and I took a short detour to try and resolve the broken shock issue and the rest had a drink whilst they waited for us to return. Fortunately I didn't hold out much hope of getting the shock fixed as when we got to MotoAventura they were next to useless, they did try and sell us some oil though at US$30 a litre!
So that was that, the next chance of any kind of repair would be Buenos Aires...Boing! Boing!
Last supper lunch.
Mark and Nick setting off on their way home.
More distant volcanoes.
View Larger Map
After a tearful farewell we left Johannes Jude and Chris and headed for the border with Argentina It would be strange not being part of the 'Cosmoto' group anymore but the friendships we had formed with all our travelling companions over the past months would be a constant reminder of the unique bond that develops between 'smelly bikers' on the road!. There has been much talk of us all meeting up in the future to tackle another continent so we may get to ride together again one day.....
And now we are three, and I will see you again...but not yet...not yet! - Gladiator.(2000) sort of!
Back to the road, back to shadowing Dave and Maisie and back to the border we had crossed almost a month ago.
The familiar sight of Dave doing 50.
The Chilean side of the border passed without problems and the ride through no mans land past the lakes on the way to Villa la Angostura was as picturesque as last time but as we rode up to the Argentinian border we were confronted by half a mile of parked cars waiting to pass the first check point. We rode straight to the front and pushed in to the usual honks of disapproval, after playing the dumb tourist card the check point guard signed us in and we were good to go.
Looks OK from here.
Everything changed over the next 200 yards, as we reached the parking area there was a queue as though they were giving away free money. Even the border officials were taking photographs of the lines of people, the guy at the restaurant said he had never seen it this bad, he said something about the end of summer holidays as well as a Friday night. We took turns at standing in line and drinking coffee in 'no mans land', it was 5:00pm when we first took our place in the queue and it was gone 6:30 before we entered Argentina.
Welcome to Argentina...eventually.
We're good at queueing us Brits!
We stopped that night in San Carlos de Bariloche before the 1000km ride across country to Peninsula Valdez. The next three days would find out if us and the rear shock were up to the rest of the trip.
View Larger Map
finish the blog you lazy git!!
ReplyDeletePlease Graham, the suspense is killing me. How long did the shock last? What was Brazil like? Will you and the lovely Sue head for Africa next? Don't leave us all wondering! Write more Please!
ReplyDelete