The first days in Ushuaia and the start of our Pan American trip first leg: Ushuaia to Río Grande

We made it! We finally arrived in Ushuaia by plane in the morning of the 21.09.2023 - tired but very excited. When Chrissi looked out of the window all she could see was snow and ice: did we underestimate the spring at the end of the world? We were prepared with winter gear so no reason to worry - our bikes and luggage arrived safe and sound at the airport, where we then immediately began to assemble our bikes in the entrance hall. We've done the assembling part quite often on previous trips - but never with our new bikes and never with so many people watching: These smaller airports usually empty very fast after the arrival of a plane, but not in Ushuaia: there was a lot going on and we had our first really nice contact with Alejandro, the owner of the Ushuaia online magazine ushmag: He was waiting for the arrival of a plane and spotted us. We immediately had a lovely chat and he gave us loads of advice where to go and what to know as cyclists. 

Unpacking our bikes!

Cycling to our apartment - first meters

We managed to assemble our bikes and got ready to go outside for the first time: it was snowy and windy; the ground was covered in snow. Our gears weren't working and we had trouble having enough pressure in our tubeless tyres - not being sure whether it was the cold weather or just the heavy load of our luggage. After some adjustments we were able to take off and started cycling the first kilometers to our apartment, which turned out to be far out of town. After some time Francesco realized that his front wheel was missing pressure and he actually got a flat tyre in the middle of nowhere. He had to stop and pump a couple of times in the freezing winds of the Ushuaian bay. We finally stopped in a small shelter and found the solution: We had to take off the entire wheel and readjust the valve since the air was flowing out there.

We cycled onwards on steep dirt roads that were either very dusty or very muddy until we got to the apartment. The plan was to stay for one day to get our gear ready and sorted, including for a gear post on Instagram (see here) to then start our Pan American journey. 

our 'hood'

The night before our departure Chrissi suddenly got very sick: She got a gastroenteritis and could barely move. We had to leave the apartment and it wasn't possible to stay any longer as the apartment was booked. The ladies who managed the place were really lovely and helpful: They organized a taxi for us and another little truck for the bikes (it was still snowing and storming outside!). We booked another small room with a kitchenette in the center of Ushuaia and whilst Chrissi slowly got better, Francesco got sick with the same virus. We spent a week in total in Ushuaia and waited until we both felt better to start. We visited the nearby bike shop (Home Bike Ushuaia), where David and Nelson really helped us mounting Chrissi's new tubeless tyres - she had to change her old tyres to new ones since they wouldn't have lasted very long. Fausto, a friend of theirs, also joined in for a chat and we had a great time in the shop. If you are ever in need of a fine bike mechanic in Ushuaia, Home Bike is the place to go! We also had some time to discover the city - a very nice little town surrounded by a stunning chain of mountains. There is a Hard Rock Café and our favorite place: Tante Sara - a very German name. We discovered this café/restaurant and immediately fell in love with their bakery products - especially the lemon cake! That cake made it to our cycling supplies. 

Francesco and Nelson from Home Bike

Chrissi trying to eat soup again

Chrissi feeling better!

On the 27.09.2023 we finally started cycling: first without luggage to the end of the world, as it was a dead end and we would have to go back to Ushuaia anyways. It was an epic trip through the Tierra del Fuego National Park with stunning views of the surrounding mountains and nature. The sign an the very end of the famous Ruta 3 marked our starting point: Bahía Lapataia. 

KM 0 - Bahía Lapataia

The following day we actually packed our bikes completely and started on midday after doing the last bits of supply shopping and getting the Ushuaia-stamp in our passports. We took the famous picture at the wooden Ushuaia sign post and drove off! After about 5 kilometers we were stopped at a police checkpoint. They told us that they stopped pedestrians and cyclists, who have to to hand in their passport data to make sure the authorities know who leaves Ushuaia northwards just in case something happens to the travelers. 

Leaving Ushuaia

We headed straight into the Fuegian Andes, where we were greeted with breathtaking views. We have seen these mountain chains many times on cards or maps but to finally see them in real life was a truly special experience! They are not very tall mountains, but they have a big prominence from the valley floor, giving them a fairytale / Lord of the Rings look. The weather was awesome and the sun was shining so the snowy mountain tops were glowing like marshmellows. 

stunning Fuegian Andes!

Alejandro from Ushuaia magazine had told us of a motorcycle café where we could get one half of a seal in our passports, the missing bit can only be stamped in Alaska. Gonzalo, who drove half the seal to Alaska on his motorcycle, invited us to a shot of their locally distilled gin (very good!) and interviewed us (see here!). 

Gin with Gonzalo!

The famous motorcycle café

Evening approached and the temperature dropped rapidly, so we headed onwards towards the Paso Garibaldi. We assumed that we wouldn't be able to cycle the entire pass in the evening, so we found a small kind-of-flat patch of snow close the the Ruta 3 where we pitched our tent and enjoyed the views of the inner Andean valleys. 

First night sleeping in our tent on this trip!

The next morning we had breakfast (yesterday's sandwiches, Tante Sara's cake and some tea) and headed up the Paso Garibaldi. This marked the moment we would start leaving the Fuegian Andes. At the top of the pass there was a lookout point and a tourist bus. The passengers were all very interested in our trip and were very keen in getting one of our stickers 😊.

After crossing the pass we cycled Lago Escondido and had some delicious gnocchi at María's place (La Casona 2) - we were lucky as it was the 29th of the month: Gnocchi Day! That's tradition here in Argentina, she told us. 

María and us after lunch

We then continued to the town of Tolhuin. On our way we met the first person traveling by foot or bicycle: Ollie Treviso (Check out his mission!) - he is walking the complete length of the Andes to raise awareness for mental health. What a great challenge - all the best, Ollie!

Beautiful landscape

Ollie!

We spent one night in Tolhuin in a small room to get our sleeping bags and gear dry as Francesco spilled about one liter of tea in the tent at breakfast. We actually had a little lake of tea on our camping blanket 😂. Day 3 started very cold (4°C) and with a lot of wind. It was dark and foggy, which paired with the seemingly lifeless trees covered in moss, gave the ride a gloomy and eerie feel. The landscape is barren and unwelcoming, but beautiful in its own, rough way. It is still quite hilly so it reminded us a lot on the Scottish highlands, which we both cycled in the past. 

Trees covered in fur-like moss

Break out in the cold wind

We had strong headwind all day and froze off our fingers and toes - there is no such thing as a shelter or hut for wind/rain protection. We could barely ride faster than 12 km/h due to the wind. That can sometimes become pretty frustrating but since the communication is impossible (we could not hear each other at all) there is a lot of time to think. After leaving Tolhuin there are also no shops of any kind, so we rationed our snacks and food. Chrissi had bought a pannettone and was very happy with her purchase 😀. We saw several guanacos crossing the road and jumping over the fences - what a view! Apart from guanacos was saw kettle (cows and bulls), birds and a dead fox. 

Chrissi's love for panettone

We ended up in Camping Norte, which is a simple campsite (no showers or kitchen, but one outhouse) about 50 km south of the city of Rio Grande, owned by two wonderful people, don Mario and dona Blanca. They will appear again later in our travels 😊. Since we left Tolhuin, we had absolutely no phone reception which was a nice change but also a little scary we will find out one day later. 

The next day (our fourth cycling day) we were planning to cycle from the campsite to Río Grande, an easy and relatively flat 50 km stroll (we thought). We couldn't be more wrong.
When we got up in the morning the sun was shining through the trees and Francesco started to boil some water for breakfast. We ate a banana and grilled yesterday's cheese sandwiches over the cooker.

Camping Norte

 We then packed, said goodbye to Blanca and Mario and started off. We happened to be their first guests of the season, since they were planning on opening the campsite on the October 1st (we arrived on September 30th), and we're lucky to find them there. Before leaving, Blanca told us that there were no resupply options till the YPF petrol station right before Río Grande. We could spend the night at a motorcycle hostel ("Fin del Mundo"), where they'd also let us set up our tents in the garden.
We started and, just like yesterday, were faced with a cold northwest wind, which slowed us down considerably. It took us about 1 hour to cycle the first 9 km. But then the fun really started.
At about 11:00 the winds picked up and became so strong that we couldn't keep balance on our bikes; we kept toppling over every time a gust came, which was every few metres. And when we rode, it was no faster than 3-4 km/h.

wind protection 

We resorted to walk and, whenever we felt the wind had died down a bit, we'd get back on the bikes. Turns out: walking was just as difficult. We were walking along the road shoulder, which is covered in loose gravel. When gusts came, our bikes would slip on the gravel and move sideways; we had a lot of trouble keeping them upright.

no shelter anywhere!

We must have looked so pitiful that several cars stopped to ask if they could give us a ride. One guy even said he'd drive in front of us and offer wind protection till Río Grande 
We of course denied all such offers, since we were still hoping for a small window with less wind during which we could ride through to our destination.

Fast forward to 17:30 and we've only been able to cycle 25 km. Temperature is dropping rapidly, wind is becoming even more unstable and we see a huge dark storm approaching in our direction. We can ride or walk, so we decide to take shelter beside the rode and wait for the storm to pass. We realize we really only have two options: to set up camp right there or hitchhike to Río Grande. Cycling seems impossible, since it is still another 25 km away and we would need six hours or more for that distance under such conditions.

a hailstorm was about to start

We are too proud to hitchhike, so we decide to let the storm pass and then set up camp. When the storm came it brought hail, snow and freezing temperatures. After about 30 minutes it had passed and - surprise - the winds had become less intense. They were still fairly strong, but we could ride our bikes. We estimated that under those conditions we could reach Río Grande before nightfall (20:00), so we decided to go for it.
After a few minutes another pickup truck stopped in front of us - and of all people it was Mario and Blanca, from the campsite! They had decided to close the place for a further week, because the winds and weather were so bad. They told us the winds were so crazy that when the tides went up the whole coastal area of Río Grande had flooded, including the Motorcycle Hostel, which had to be evacuated. They offered to take us to Río Grande. We again refused, thinking we could still make it. We were wrong, again.
We managed to cycle about 7 km and then the winds picked up again and we were pushed off the road. No chance of continuing on the bike. We started pushing and realized we wouldn't make it anymore and that we would have to setup camp. The weather started looking menacing again.
At that very moment Mario reappeared on his pickup truck. He had been to Río Grande (where he and Blanca live) and decided to drive back to fetch us ("what you are doing is madness in this wind!"). We didn't say no. 

Mario saved us!

We had a wonderful chat as we drove the remaining 18 km to Río Grande. He dropped us off at the Hostel Argentino, a simple hostel with a warm bed and shower.
We are very grateful to Mario and Blanca. What kind souls! 
We decided to stay a day in Río Grande to plan the rest of our Tierra del Fuego crossing, since the unusually strong (head)winds are forecasted for at least another week. There are no more real resupply options till Porvenir (), which is more than 220 km away. At yesterday's pace it would take us almost 10 days to get there!  Stay tuned on Instagram - we will let you know (depending on the reception, of course). In the next blog post we will tell you more about the next leg to Porvenir/Punta Arenas! 

One last picture - we finally managed to catch a Guanaco on camera!

Guanaco!