 the finale....482km/ 300 miles cycling, 240km/ 150 miles paddling in 16 days. The expedition was simple: Ride as much iconic single track as we could find, paddle some big ass rivers to complete one big loop covering as much of cold & wet, yet beautiful, Alaska as possible. AK is no joke, it’s wild, remote and incredibly difficult to access in the event of an emergency, hence the reason to spend so much time preparing for the Expedition and to plan exactly what we were after. So, the theme was set; RAIN........  Day 13 60km/ 37 Miles Tiekele to Baird Camp. The morning rain ritual continued, it was certainly no longer surprising. The wind had kicked up and we were facing another strong head wind a sign it was going to be a long day. We started paddling taking moments to stare up at the mountains, take in the glaciers and beautiful waterfalls we passed and I picked out lines that would be amazing running, with the only trouble being the impenetrable bush and undergrowth AK has. A short time after we started we realised Liz was not really getting very far with the headwind resistance, so we tied our rafts together and paddled along the slow-moving river, this was the only way to stop her from literally blowing backwards in certain stretches of river. We stopped often in the morning thanks to me choosing the wrong braids to paddle down. Eventually they would run out of water and we’d have to drag our boats across an embankment or two to find the river again. There were old fish wheels washed up on banks and silt everywhere. The river levels had dropped and were continuing to drop every day we were out. Both the Chitina and Copper Rivers are glacier fed rivers, meaning because it was late fall the glaciers were not melting a great deal, this in turn meant we were running out of water. The river delta can be up to 11km wide in sections so when the water recedes leaving it “Braided“. The good news from this was the fishing boats had stopped running up and down the river :) The heavens opened through the day and we were followed by a consistent down pour all day. I continued to tow Liz and thankfully she continued to paddle. Relief, the sun came out briefly bringing a rainbow so we took this as a sign to have lunch. We beached ourselves on a small sand bar and tucked into our wraps. We heard a plane and looked high in the sky to see the white Cessna flying by again. We continued on our way down the river enjoying the brief glimpses of sunshine between the deluges of rain. We had paddled for over 7 hours when we rounded the bend of our campsite, another site marked by the rafting guides for us. Along with the pounding rain the temperature had dropped and it was pretty damn cold. We managed to beach on the downstream side of a river flowing out and start the hunt for a camp. The “beach“ was a mud pit. There was nowhere clear that we could set up so it was looking like we were going to have to run the final rapids today on tired and sore bodies. We had another scout around but could barely see for the rain. We spotted on the other side of the river what turned out to be Baird Fishing Camp. A native fisheries camp. Damn, we had to get back in the boats and paddle through an enormous eddy to get to the other side with our exhausted arms and shoulders. We emptied our bodies tanks and gave it our 100%, paddling as hard as we could…. but we missed it. We were paddling across the river watching the village disappear. Eventually we landed on the beach on the other side and dragged our boats back up to the take out point ( a take out point is an area that allows you to drag your boat out of the water)  To our surprise the camp had closed up for the season and all the huts were empty and closed. There were beds in them all and a big storage shed with boats in them. The best part was the sun decided to finally come out (it’s the small moments that can make the day!). We hung all our things (including a sopping wet tent) in the storage shed to dry overnight and Liz found the best cabin and started preparing dinner and filtering water and we mulled over the adventures of the last 3 days. The scenery really is mind blowing, every turn is beautiful and shows you a different aspect of AK. As the sun was setting Baird glacier finally came into view back on the other side of the river and we tucked into our sleeping bags full and content, comfortably sleeping inside. Tomorrow will be the last day on the river.  Day 14 27km/17 Miles paddle 12 Miles ride Another restful night thanks to being in some sweet accommodation but both of our bodies are feeling the effects of paddling today, my shoulders and arms were so tired. The sun was shining this morning and there was even a rainbow to send us on our way as we made an early start, happy our gear had dried out overnight. Today we had one more set of infamous rapids to negotiate. We paddled into the next bumpy part of water but the boats did a lot of the work for us. The rainbow had turned into a double rainbow behind us and I think most stunning scenery of the entire trip surrounded us. There were 2 glaciers, huge waterfalls and beautiful mountain peaks surrounding , it felt like we had this whole amazing place to ourselves, we hadn’t seen another person in 4 days, it really was perfect. We could hear the rapids approaching and we had already decided to scout them before running them, even after reading a few reports suggesting it was more dangerous to scout than just run them because of the bears. We approached the bank making as much noise as we could. Although my loud is apparently not loud according to some ;) I took one step on land and all I could see was bear prints. I am not kidding the ground was covered. Bear shit (some of it still steaming!) and bear tracks everywhere, I mean BIG tracks. We grabbed our bear spray and headed over the rocks to get a better view of the rapids. It was unnerving to say the least. We continued to sing loudly and make as much noise as possible as we selected the route through the rapids. We got back to the boats pretty damn quickly and pushed off without seeing a single bear (thankfully). I went through the rapids first followed by Liz and we didn’t run into any problems. That was it, we were into the home straight. We entered “Miles Lake“ which is where the ice floe from Miles glacier slowly makes it’s way out to sea. INCREDIBLE paddling through ice floe and mini ice bergs, it was extrodinary. Definitely one of the best things I have ever done. Its so cool to paddle next to a huge piece of ice and just take it all in. Every piece is so unique, the shapes and colours are all different. We also had a herd of seals bob up and swim along with us for about half an hour. They are such funny and inquisitive little animals. It was really fun to have them bobbing up and down right next to us.   There was a deeper channel to follow but it was nearly impossible to pick them out because it all looked the same. I bottomed out, literally, my butt hit the silt through my raft and I was stuck, bogged, not moving, going nowhere! I tried to free myself a few times with my paddle then decided I was burning way too much energy so I got out and walked. Even with the dry suit on the water was freezing. It was shin deep and I would occasionally sink down to my knees. I would get back in my raft and take 2 or 3 paddle strokes before getting bogged again. Liz being lighter managed to get a bit further than me but in the end, she had to get out and walk as well. We started heading for the major ice floe figuring it was deeper because the ice was managing to maneuver it’s ways down the river. This whole time we could see Million Dollar Bridge, our possible end. It took us 3 hours to go maybe 4 km. Eventually we found deeper water and paddled to the bridge where we took the boats out and went up to the view point for our now very late lunch. We sat staring at Childs Glacier right next to us and debated trying to paddle to our original planned take out 36 Mile Bridge. After some deliberation and not wanting to drag our boats, or ourselves, through who knows how much silt we decided we were done and would ride to the washed out 36 Mile Bridge and work it out from there. We unloaded the rafts and awkwardly attached all our gear to our bikes. This was always going to take some ingenuity because there was so much gear. It took us 2 hours to get it all on the bikes and get ridding. Luckily we had the aeropress handy for an extra cup of coffee. It was so nice to get the legs spinning again after having 4 days sitting in the rafts. Our bikes were well loaded and managed to carry: Kokopelli Nirvana packraft, 4 piece paddle, PFD, Dry suit, Repair kit, Tent, Sleeping bag, Food, Sleeping pad, Clothes, Stove, Fuel, and other odds and ends…..  Bikes fully loaded with Million dollar bridge in the background...  There was bear shit everywhere on the road. It was a little unnerving because the Alder trees were so thick on both sides of the road you could only see maybe 1 foot into them, so if there was a bear it would be stepping onto the road as soon as you could see it. We got cruising along at a reasonable pace because we were on a part of the old railway, so it was flat and compact. After only 19km we arrived at the washed out 36 Mile Bridge. We totally miss judged it thinking we had another 30+ km until we got here. It turned out we were on the wrong side and there was absolutely no way of crossing. There were 2 mini vans parked on our side and what appeared to be an airboat on the other. We decided to camp at the vans and asses our options. Both vans were open and in the back there was a shotgun and a HUGE revolver, I guess they had them for the bears. We decided that it looked like some sort of tour operation that used the airboat to ferry people back and forth from one side to the other. After dinner we loaded all of our stuff into one of the vans re-assessed the river and called it a night leaving the final decision for the morning.  Day 15 Air boat 58km/ 36 Mile ride to Cordova Relaxing against the van we sat quietly weighing up our options over breakfast. The river was moving too fast with to much debris for us to get across in time. The options were; ride back to Million Dollar Bridge load everything onto the boats again, float the river and take out at the 36 Mile Bridge, or sit and wait in hope for tourists to need a ride across, but knowing that it was the end of the tourist season this may not happen at all. We decided we would give them until 10am and if they didn`t show we’d start our ride back. Luckily the rain had held off so it wasn’t a bad morning for hanging about. Then it happened …. The airboat engine started right on 10. WOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO The driver came across and I met him on shore. The look on his face was priceless, remember the only way to get here is either paddle or ahhh paddle. I told him how we had messed up with our take out and was there any chance of a lift back across??? “Well of course jump on in“. Alaskan hospitality is some of the most friendly I have ever come across, they treat everyone like family, it’s so great to see in this world :) We were stoked not only did we get a free ride, but it was on a twin-engine swamp boat, another one of my must do’s in AK.  Then it was onto the final 36 Mile ride into Cordova. Wow the final leg. To say we were excited is an understatement. We stopped and talked to fish and game officers on the way in, moose hunt season had just opened. They recommended a place called Baja Taco for a feed in town, we knew where we were headed! We cruised most of the way into Cordova, excited for burrito’s and beer. Liz had spoken to one of the people who was going out on the airboat and it turned out her son owned a fishing boat in Cordova and she offered us a bunk to sleep in for the night on his boat. We arrived into Cordova, another one of Alaska’s beautiful fishing towns which apparently has insane winter skiing, and promptly found Baja Taco. After a feed and beer we went to the harbour master’s office and paid to have a much-needed hot shower, unfortunately, mine was cold but such is life. We were told there was a major storm headed our way so we went and found the boat, loaded our bikes on the deck and hung out until the son came by. After a visit from him to make sure everything was ok we went into town for dinner and some more beers. We went to the Reluctant Fisherman where the food was sensational. Watching the storm roll in from the comfort of a cozy restaurant, we were pretty happy knowing we had a roof over our heads for the night. We meandered back to the boat in the pouring rain and wind, boarded our boat and were gently rocked and rolled to sleep.   Day 16 Ferry - Hitchike to Anchorage A 3:30am alarm was rough but it had to happen as the ferry leaves at 5am. The 2km roll down in the rain was fresh but a nice wake up call. We grabbed our tickets, boarded the ferry, found a nice place at the bow and got comfortable. Liz tried to sleep on the floor for a while and I sipped on my coffee and read my book I picked up from the harbour masters the day before. The sunrise was spectacular over the sound. We steamed past the entry to Valdez and onward to Whittier. This completed the loop. We arrived in Whittier and guess what… It was raining…. We raced off the ferry in the hopes to beat all the cars to the tunnel thinking it would be our best chance of a lift, we arrived just in time. We rode straight up to the cargo van we had seen go past us and tapped on the window. Of course Alaskan hospitality prevailed and we were given a lift. It turned out we got a lift with the owners of the Reluctant Fisherman. They were such nice people and offered a ride all the way to Anchorage, saving us riding the worst part of the Seward Highway. They dropped us in Anchorage where we had set out from 16 days ago. We rolled in that last part so excited to have completed this epic epic expedition. Pushing through the many times we could have quit. ………..    Remember, if You can dream it YOU can achieve it.
A big shout out to all the people who helped us achieve this dream..
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 part 3...... 482km/ 300 miles cycling, 240km/ 150 miles paddling in 16 days. The expedition was simple: Ride as much iconic single track as we could find, paddle some big ass rivers to complete one big loop covering as much of cold & wet, yet beautiful, Alaska as possible. AK is no joke, it’s wild, remote and incredibly difficult to access in the event of an emergency, hence the reason to spend so much time preparing for the Expedition and to plan exactly what we were after. So, the theme was set; RAIN........ Day 9 - 48km/30 Miles McCarthy - Flight For our final ride leg were welcomed with blue skies and a fresh morning but with a hill to start we warmed up quickly. Its hard to describe the beauty of this ride so I will let the pictures do the talking again. We took a moment to relax and reflect on the past 8 days beside the river before we made the final crossing into McCarthy, where we were to begin stage 2. Keen to begin the River stage and because it was early and the sun was shining we thought it would be a good idea to see if we could fly into Jakes Bar a day early. Chatting with Wrangell Mountain Air we looked at the weather that was due to come in that night and the following morning and they agreed to fly us out a day early. We had some time to kill so headed back to the cafe for a couple of beers and a burger before riding down to the airstrip and collecting our boxes of rations and our rafts. We loaded up the 1949 Beaver plane and jumped in. I was truly beside myself with excitement. This was one of my must do things in AK; a bush flight to a remote place, it doesn’t get any better than this.  The coolest plane ever.....  Squeezed in with all the gear....  The flight was only 20 minutes but it was amazing, our pilot talked us all through the area we were flying over. Unfortunatly we learned that day they discovered the backpack of a missing hiker in the river we were about to float. It was a stark reminder of what we were up against in the wilds of Alaska. The plane landed with a bump and rolled to the end of the short landing strip where we unloaded the boxes and bikes and watched him take off again. I have never felt so alone as when the plane took off. It was perfect. The sun was still shinning and we made our way to the cabin; we were set. I wandered around and checked out the beach where we would launch from in the morning., it was incredibly serene. I was ecstatic to finally be on the river and in the true wilds of AK. Another early night but no surprises, we were woken by the heavy rain that came in sometime around midnight. It wasn’t going to let up!  Just about to start.....  READY...... Day 10 64km/40 Miles on the Chitina River Yet again we were lugging all of our gear in the rain, but with our dry suits on and a gentle push we were off. Time to put these Kokopelli packrafts to the test. Where does everything go you ask!? We had secured our bikes to the bow of the boats using a series of Tribe One Outdoor bungee cords (Tribe One do some amazing attatchment systems), and our packs were stuffed between our legs. The water was freezing and appeared to have risen over night which was no surprise given the deluge of rain. After about 30 minutes we needed to stop to re-temper the boats (this is when the air temperature in the boat tubes is more than the water temperature and your raft begins to deflate, requiring you to need to re-inflate a little). The water was moving fast and according to the Garmin we were cruising in some places at almost 12km/hr. We zig -zagged our way down the river enjoying the free ride whilst taking in the sight, the bald eagles and the occasional jumping fish! Negotiating our way around sand banks along with the different currents & water depths. It was at times hard to choose what side of the sand banks to go towards, being I couldn’t see over my bike on the bow, giving a limited view of what was right in front, resulting in me often ping ponging off the sandbank wall :) It was an amazing feeling to soak in the vast open spaces and the absolute wilderness we were in. There were some short rapids to negotiate but nothing to serious and with the constant rain we were glad to have pre-made lunch so we could just eat in the rafts and continue to make ground. The rafts were so capable it was impressive, all I had to do was point it in the right direction and go; through the more difficult and turbulent stretches all it took was a few extra paddle strokes to keep going. The regular floating driftwood was something we needed to keep an eye out for and avoid at all costs. We watched the rain and storm roll in behind us, floating backward at regular intervals to keep an eye on the impending squall and its distance from us. After 6 more hours in the water it was time to look for a campsite. This was the first time either of us had camped or even tried to find a camp on a float trip.  We settled on a very large sand bar which appeared to be sitting high out of the water. I hit the beach first and dragged my raft far up out of the water before returning to help Liz drag her boat up. It had been a long day on the water, 7 hours in total and the storm had now reached us, with the wind ripping through the giant valley surrounding us and not a tree in sight to tie down to, it was time to improvise. I got the tent set up and Liz jumped in to hold it down and get out of her dry suit while I wandered up and down the beach collecting as much oversized driftwood as I could to create a makeshift wind break to protect the tent. Next I collected big river rocks to stack around the vestibules of the tent to prevent the wind and sand from being blown under (and in) the tent. Most importantly, I dragged the boats further out of the water to make sure they were safe, we couldn’t have our transport drifting off in the night! Thanks to my dry suit on I wasn’t freezing to death and feeling satisfied with our setup for the evening it was time to rest. This did not stop us from having to have all her our wet weather gear ready to go just in case a squall rips the tent to shreds in the night. Normally we would never eat in the tent but given the circumstances it was either; eat in the tent and risk a bear attack or die of hypothermia. We chose bear attack and ate our wraps in the tent! The wind continued to pelt through and the rain never stopped but we were dry and warm in our little cocoon so we were happy. Day 1 was a success :)   Day 11 48km/30 Miles Chitina camp We were woken with the sound of water to the left which was interesting, considering the river was on our right? A quick scan out the tent door showed the water had risen 3 feet and there was a moat between us and our boats. We were on mini island! I jumped up pretty quickly and drag the boats further up the bank…. The stern was already in the water! Close call! It was another chilly start to the day but finally rain had stopped and looking like a nice morning to be out on the river. After our oats we readied our things, re-inflated the rafts, made sure everything was secure and launched off for day 2 on the river. We were cold but some swift paddling to get the blood pumping took care of that. Today’s goal was to make it to the confluence of the Chitina and Copper Rivers. We soaked in the views of the fireweed over the rolling hills which surrounded us, it was breathtaking. The different coloured sands in the cliff faces, the landslides and constant bubbling water made for a remarkable experience. The surroundings felt like they were constantly changing this stretch of the valley was almost desert like. For this part of the river the key was to stay away from the walls of the cliffs and out of the faster moving waters, while keeping an eye out for driftwood and any other debris. A little more on the Packraft: The T-zips within the rafts were amazing, you could store everything you wanted to keep dry in them. I pretty much had everything in there except lunch and a warm piece of clothing. My T-zip held : Tent, Tent Poles, Tent Pegs, Fuel for the stove, all other clothing, Wooly socks, spare food and an emergency fire kit. I kept the sattelite phone tucked into my dry suit and another emergency fire starting kit with it. The tough thing with the T-zip is once it’s zipped up you can’t undo it without part deflating the raft, sure makes you think when you do your packing!  The food for the raft section. I was re packaged and then stored in dry bags in the T-zip We wound our way down the river every now and then hitting a small stretch of turbulent water and always staying close to each other so we could call out if need be. It was a time consuming task trying to pick our way through some shallow waters and the braids, a few times we found ourselves out of water and dragging the boat back into a deeper channel to get moving again. We had been well advised to reach the confluence early before the wind kicked up. The strong winds occur because where the two rivers merge in a large delta is about 8-10km across so the winds just come up the valley and gain strength through here. Of course, we arrived close to the confluence late in the day and were instantly blown backwards. Even with the strong current on our side it was impossible to fight the winds. Admitting defeat, we paddled across the river and into a small protected bay which was surrounded by , time to scout a camp spot. There were no animal signs or bear prints around and just enough room to drag the boats out of the water and set the tent up. In other words, this spot was perfect. I quickly set up the tent on the flattest a part of the “beach“… we were going to be on a fair old slant tonight but beggars can’t be choosers. I managed to get a fire going so we could dry our things. I learnt to appreciate the small things, the simple act of being able to get a fire going and dry everything is an amazing feeling . That`s the thing with these expeditions, they get rid of all the bullshit we fill our lives with, strip it down to just the bare essentials of survival - Food, Water & Shelter. It`s what we live for. Simplicity…..  Drying shoes by the fire...... Dinner was cooked over the fire and we even had a hot cup of tea, but there was a problem, the river water was rising. Over the last few hours we had been watching it rise and strip our beach away. Minute by minute it took over our little beach. We thought it a good idea to put sticks in the sand to mark the rising water level and we had one stick that indicated “time to move the tent“. We went to bed hoping to make it through the night without having to move the tent. Day 12 48km/30 Miles Camp Tiekel ( Wood Canyon ) Thankfully the river only rose about another 2feet so the tent was safe overnight. We had a restful sleep but were up early and keen to make it through the confluence before the wind picked up. Paddling the final few kilometers we came into the vast river delta where it seemed to so easy to get lost. The delta was enormous around 10km wide with mountains and ridgelines running in every direction. What another incredible start to the day. Surprisingly rain hadn’t started so we were in for a real treat. The biggest obstacle of the entire float lay just a few km downstream from us. Wood Canyon, it’s an enormous canyon only a few km long but with a bad reputation for flipping and swallowing large rafts (up to 14ft we heard). We were nervous to say the least. Thanks to fighting a head wind we arrived at the mouth of the canyon with arms were a little weary, neither of us have ever paddled 100+ km in 2 days before. The entrance to the canyon loomed in front of us. Pretty impressive really to see these cliff tops leering down, telling us to enter if we dare. The instructions were simple: Stay to the Middle. All the boils and eddies were on the side walls so if we kept to the center we would be fine. The boils would rise a foot or 2 right in front of you out of nowhere and then just disappear. If you happened to hit one there was a risk of being sucked down with it and popping up somewhere further down the river. Sounded straightforward right, stick to the middle… The minute we were drawn in, it was FAST. The water channels fed in from an incredibly wide mouth into this one small canyon. It was time to work. I paddled my heart out to stay off the walls and at every turn I would start paddling away from the opposite corner as soon as I could see it. Really, we were being dragged around more than paddling around. We got about half way down the canyon and the rapids were beginning to take their toll. We managed to beach, thanks to the help of an eddy, onto the single piece of accessible terrain through the entire canyon.  Pushing off... We rested a little got some sugary snacks into our systems and decided to tie together to get through the last stretch of water. Thankfully we had passed through the fast-moving rapids and now it was just about staying in the center and off the walls. We floated through and celebrated as we exited the canyon. This was definitely the scariest part of the entire journey so far. Shortly after exiting we untied and drifted with the current down to a small sand bank where we landed for lunch. Back on the river after lunch we thought we heard a plane…. Yep sure enough a small Cessna buzzed around the corner and flew so low over our heads we could see the people waving at us. We think it was our pilot from the other day as he told us he had a white Cessna. He also mentioned he would check up on us, so I guess this was it :) After another 8 hours on the water we washed up to our next campsite, this one even had a river flowing through it. It had been marked on a map from the other raft companies for us. It was a reasonably large beach area that had some protection from the elements by the trees growing on the banks. We unloaded and set up the tent in the most secluded spot so we could be out of the wind and rain that had yet again begun to fall again. I gathered fire wood again and spent the next 2 hours trying to get a driftwood fire going. I was finally successful and we dried out our things again. I was again overwhelmed by the immense pleasure of having a fire (and maybe the long effort to get it going!). After taking so long to get the wet drift wood fire going it was hard to leave it but it had been a hard day on the river and we were knackered.  Exhausted at the end of another long day.....  Surrounded by mountains. GET AFTER IT..............
 Alaska Expedition: PART TWO.... 482km/ 300 miles cycling, 240km/ 150 miles paddling in 16 days. The expedition was simple: Ride as much iconic single track as we could find, paddle some big ass rivers to complete one big loop covering as much of cold & wet, yet beautiful, Alaska as possible. AK is no joke, it’s wild, remote and incredibly difficult to access in the event of an emergency, hence the reason to spend so much time preparing for the Expedition and to plan exactly what we were after. So, the theme was set; RAIN........  Resurrection Pass Trail. Day 5 Hope - Whittier 53km/33 miles After a relatively good sleep it was up and at ‘em. We had the standard breakfast washed down with coffee. Yet again it was pouring with rain and incredibly windy so there is only one thing to do, get riding..... It was going to be another day of almost all road. We knew there was a short 16km trail at the end to get us to the tunnel. We had to climb Turnagain Pass, but that was no big deal. Heads down and hoods on and started riding into the elements, hopeful the miserable weather would die down as the day wore on. There really is not much you can do in this weather, so singing songs to myself was the best option. Occasionally the rain would let up enough so we could ride side by side and actually have a conversation. We hit the summit of Turnagain Pass and had a brief toilet break before heading down the other side. It was pretty damn cold so we just pushed on trying to snag a handful of nutmix now and again. Unfortunately, as we hit the descent and the wind changed. Our nice easy roll had turned into an all-out, pedal as hard as you can descent. If you stopped pedaling you would literally stop rolling within 10 meters! The rain had now turned into a deluge, you could barely make out the road for rain. It was slow going. Finally we made the turn off that meant only 16km to the tunnel and the visitor center at Portage Glacier. We got on the little single-track side trail that provided some protection from the wind. As we exited the trail at the other end into the visitor center we had to give it our all pedaling into the gusty winds. We got inside and as we stripped a few layers off the employee at the center told us that the winds were gusting at 104km/hr 65mph! Woah!  Primrose campground. It was freeeeezing but we were informed of a lodge that was about 300 meters away where we could get a hot drink and sit by the fire so back out into it we went to find the lodge. We got in and hung a bunch of clothes out infront of their fire to dry while we sipped on coffee and ate amazing cookies. We deliberated on whether we should keep going or head back to Anchorage. The weather forecast was looking terrible for the next 10 days. After a couple of hours warming up and consideration we decided to stick to the plan and get to Whittier. So we rolled out the remaining 2 km to get to the tunnel which we needed hitch hike through because they don`t allow bicycles through. We knew we had to hitchhike, but what we didn`t know was the tunnel was only 1 way, so they had certain hours the cars would go from either direction. We had arrived only a couple of minutes after the last car went from our direction, meaning we had an hour wait until it was our turn again. To make this even better, it would be the last time the tunnel would open heading our way before closing for the night. We messed that up. So we sat in the shelter of outhouse trying to keep warm hoping a car would come. After a 45 minute wait 1 truck showed up and offered us a ride. We quickly threw our things in the back of the truck before the tunnel opened again and we drove through. It just so happened the truck driver was doing a delivery to the one other hotel in town and the hotel owner happened to be in the truck as well. The driver insisted that he would get us a cheap room, mind you the hotel owner was not so willing. We arrived in the tiny fishing town of Whittier where the weather was even worse, not an uncommon thing in Whittier. The saying "It`s always shittier in Whittier" makes sense to me now! We went to the restaurant, also owned by the hotel owner, for some coffee and dinner. Eventually he folded and gave us a room for $50 normally $140, score! Finally in our room and after boiling hot showers we contemplated our next move. We debated for a number of hours but eventually decided, it`s Alaska, so who knows what tomorrow will bring, lets push on.  Whittier Boat Harbor.  Ferry Map- Whittier to Valdez. Day 6 Ferry to Valdez 7hours Making the most of the hot shower and eating the usual oats we departed our hotel room. The ferry left at 1 so we had time to dawdle around the small fishing town. It was still pouring rain and and all round miserable day, but when the clouds would lift it gave a small glimpse into the beautiful mountains that surround the town. The only way in and out was through the tunnel which actually passes under a glacier covered mountain. We settled in to some pretty comfy seats at the bow of the ship & prepared for the 7 hour journey. Time slipped by relatively quick on the ferry with calm waters small islands and plenty of birds to watch. Arriving in Valdez at 7 pm we went over to the burger shop, filled our faces with amazing burgers and headed to another newly made friends place. We had been given Sarah`s number in case we were looking for somewhere to crash. Sarah was great. It was like meeting up with an old friend. We had a few beers and shared a few tales before heading to bed sometime around midnight.  Headed into Valdez. Day 7- 127km/79 Miles Liz had some more errands to do this morning so it was a later start in the end. As we set off guess what happened, it started to rain :) This was going to be our biggest climb of the entire trip. Up and over Thompson Pass. The grade over the climb was pretty low so it was just a consistent grind up the 16km to the pass. Unfortunately, the cloud didn’t lift so we didn`t get the view of Valdez we had heard so much about, but the views we did get did not disappoint. There were glaciers everywhere and beautiful mountains surrounding the entire area. Valdez is a very beautiful place. Thankfully the descent was longer than the climb and there were no brutal headwinds to slow us down. We cruised our way through another picturesque valley on our way to mile 69. The rain came and went as we meandered along the roadside, stopping to look at the fall colours and take in the beautiful mountains along the wayWe stopped off at a stream to fill our water and rolled the last few km into the nights camp, which was actually the deck of a friend of Liz`s. They had winterised the cabin but there was a fire pit and a sweet deck for us to camp on. I got a fire going and we dried our gear out while admiring our peaceful surroundings.  Taking in the views to mile 69.  The sweet sweet downhill.  Prime real estate. Day 8 - 120km/75 miles Another day of road riding but these are the things that you have to do if you want to travel Alaska. A nice morning with some beautiful blue sky, surprisingly no rain and I even got the fire going again. The riding was really enjoyable through this area, the road shoulder was wide, there was little traffic and the road snaked it’s way through big valleys on the route back toward Anchorage. If we were to stay on this road it would take us all the way back, mind you, it would be over 300 miles of riding. We made the turnoff to Edgerton highway in good time, this was the turnoff that signaled only 94 miles until we start rafting. It was a wonderful feeling to make the turnoff with the rain still holding off, it gave us a spectacular view of a volcano off in the distance. As we cruised along the road we came across a herd of Yak`s. There was a Yak farm in Alaska! This was fast becoming the highlight of the day. Of course, there was a stop involved here and plenty of pictures taken. Shortly after we got our first look at the Copper River, the river we would be merging into in 5 days. It was wide, silty and braided. It was a wonderful sight and such a great feeling that we were nearly at the paddle leg of the journey. A quick stop in the ranger station in Chitina to make our salami wraps before pushing on toward the nights camp. Finally it was back onto the dirt road. The road to McCarthy is an old railway so it`s pretty flat but man is it bumpy. " BEAR.......... " I shouted as Liz almost rode her bike right into a very large black bear. Luckily, the bear went one way, faster than I had even imagined they could move and Liz spun the other way without even seeing the bear! The unexpecting bear had been foraging happily on the berries on the side of the road as we rounded the bend while Liz was looking at the colourful trees on the other side of the road. I am sure they missed each other by maybe 2 meters, if it had of run the other direction it would have run right over the top of Liz. This was to be our one and only bear sighting. After collecting our thoughts and my nerves, we continued on at a much noisier but slower pace. The afternoon drew on and of course, brought some rain with it. After consulting the map and an online mapping resource called iOverlander (an app I used throughout my Central/ South American bike tour) we found a small hut and decided to call it a day. We had some van dwellers come and camp in the same place which was brilliant because they came with wine and made some extra toast for us. After the bear encounter we made sure to store our food in the bathroom of the nearby outhouse, as far away from the tent as we could get it. We went to bed with the all to familiar sound of rain on the tent. Such a relaxing sound.  Cooking in an outhouse. Living the dream???? KEEP CHASING THE DREAM............. Part 3 coming soon
 What a wild ride. From the mundane to the insane. Alaska has it all. Alaska Expedition: PART ONE.... 482km/ 300 miles cycling, 240km/ 150 miles paddling in 16 days. The expedition was simple: Ride as much iconic single track as we could find, paddle some big ass rivers to complete one big loop covering as much of cold & wet, yet beautiful, Alaska as possible. AK is no joke, it’s wild, remote and incredibly difficult to access in the event of an emergency, hence the reason to spend so much time preparing for the Expedition and to plan exactly what we were after. So, the theme was set; RAIN........ Day 1- 35km/22 miles Resurrection Pass Day 1 started like most others had for this "summer" in Alaska, with rain. We were camped 5mi/8km out of Hope at the start of the Resurrection trail. After breakfast in the shelter of an outhouse awning we packed up between showers of rain and after the months of planning and preparation it was finally time to set off starting with a 20mile climb to the pass. It was a slow start with fully loaded bikes but we were in no real hurry. This wasn’t a race after all, just a long-sustained effort. We climbed and climbed in the pouring rain, feeling the cold on my face is one sensation that I love. We passed a couple of cyclists on fat bikes and some hikers on their way down. We reached a cabin and decided it was time for lunch, may as well take the opportunity to get out of the rain and dry off a little while we eat. We spent 40 minutes eating in Fox cabin, embracing the dry and peering out the window hoping to see some blue sky, but it was not to be :) After lunch it was onward and upward. We continued to ride through deep mud puddles and overgrowth. Lucky for us it seemed the cow parsnip, a photo synthetic poisonous plant, had started to wilt, thankfully losing its poison.   We reached the pass (how high) by midafternoon & reveled in a brief respite from the rain. It was now a beautiful undulating single track that would lead us over devil’s pass. We reached the final part of the pass right as Liz`s pedal fell off her bike, she had changed them the day before but something had gone wrong. We stopped and tried to put it back on but the thread was stripped. Being on the summit fully exposed, in the freezing cold and pouring rain was not the place to try repair the bike. We knew it was less than 2 km to Devils Pass cabin so Liz rolled down the trail with 1 pedal to the hut. It was around 5pm when we arrived and there was nobody occupying it so we hung all our things out to dry, Liz made coffee, while I set to work with a small flat head screw driver to clean out and create a new thread in the crank arm. After almost 2 hours of work the pedal was back on. We decided to make dinner and stay in the cabin. We finished dishes and settled into our sleeping bags. It had not stopped raining and the temperature was dropping fast. Lights out by 9:30, happy with our progress even though we had stopped short of the plan. 12:30pm "YOU GUYS NEED TO LEAVE" We were woken up after midnight with a loud bang on the door and a headlamp in our eyes. A lady was yelling "you have to leave, we have a reservation”. In a state of confusion, we were up and staring at this lady, who had 4 or 5 small children between the ages of 8-10 in tow. Frozen, dripping wet, shivering and hungry. Unbeknownst to us, you need to reserve many of the cabins throughout AK. In all our research and question asking we had not heard this from anybody. We packed our stuff as quickly as we could. The lady bundled the kids inside and got their bikes up on the deck. Liz and I were in total disbelief, it was still pouring with rain and we had no idea where to go. The lady just continued to tell us "You have to leave"; with no offer to just sleep in the corner of the cabin or anything. So, we loaded our bikes and put on our little headlamps and headed toward the next cabin where there was also dispersed camping. It was 4.5mi/7km and we arrived at 2:30am. This cabin displayed a large sign saying " Sleeping in the cabin without a reservation was illegal you can face a $5,000 fine and 6 months in jail”. I tried scouting the camping area, but couldn’t even find it in the pouring rain and fog. Liz was adamant, we would be staying in the cabin. We got in got changed got a fire going and went to sleep around 3am. What a start to the expedition.   Day 2- 106km/66miles Seward After a slow start, thanks to the night before’s events, we finally set off at 10:40am. We rolled down some fairly technical single track with Liz having a lot of trouble with her rear shock, in the end she had to lock it out. The sun was trying hard to come out and there was light drizzle, a much better day in general, mind you, thanks to our midnight relocation, we had ended up on a trail that was not where we had planned, thus adding an extra 20mi/32km+ onto the leg. The trail continued to improve and soon we were coasting along varying terrain and around picturesque lakes.  Hitting the road in the early afternoon it was almost a time trial into Seward. Again, it was freezing cold and raining but the views were stunning. As we entered Seward we were greeted with some blue skies and BIG MOUNTAINS.... My legs were feeling the effort of a fast pace for some 35mi/56km. All day we had been discussing the previous night, it was unbelievable this lady had managed to drag 4/5 kids through the dark, cold and rainy weather until midnight. The question we asked the most was "why didn't she stop earlier at any of the other cabins on the route”. We will never know. We arrived in Seward around 7pm, fortunate enough that Liz had some friends that lived there. We were welcomed in true Alaskan fashion. Beer, Salmon, hot shower and a place to sleep inside. We hosed off our bikes and literally ourselves after all the mud we had ridden through before venturing into the house. Our hosts, Mick & Mark, were amazing, so generous, full of support and local knowledge. They gave us plenty of advice on the next day’s trail and places to camp.   Day 3- 35km/22 miles Primrose campsite It was another late start after we tried to fix Liz`s rear shock and she ran some errands. We stopped in at the supermarket to get some supplies on the way out of town and then it was onto one of the trails we were most looking forward to - Lost Lake Trail. A steady climb of 7 miles to a beautiful summit that rolled on for a few kilometers and then descended Primrose trail. As you near the summit the views of Seward and the surrounding glaciers and mountains are spectacular. There were blueberry shrubs everywhere, so of course we ate a few, it was amazing. As we got up higher it was almost jacket worthy, this is when I realised I had left my nice warm jacket back in the house, hanging up to dry. I was so annoyed with myself, I never forget things and here we are almost at a point where I am going to need it and I don`t have it. Lucky for me Liz called Mark and he drove it to the bottom of the trail on the other side so I could collect it. Thank god for that. I’ll let the pictures do the talking for this section of trail- no words needed :) After a steeper and more technical descent we reached the campground right on dusk. I grabbed my jacket out of the bear box and Mark, the LEGEND, had stuffed 2 beers in the pockets, what a great gift! Mark, you’ll always have beer waiting for you at my place :) We set up the tent and were treated to a beautiful sunset on Primrose lake. Day 4- Primrose to Hope bridge 64km/40 miles We left camp after a nice breakfast of oats with mixed nuts and choc chips (of course!). Today was a day of road riding. We set off into the light drizzle and along the Seward highway. The mountains that surrounded us along the highway were just remarkable, enough to keep you from getting bored riding the highway. We crossed over Moose Pass completing the small loop we had done to get into Seward. The road was undulating, without many big hills to climb, following the valley nicely. The trees had already turned beautiful fall colours, it was spectacular to see the bright yellows and oranges but also a little ominous knowing that summer is now behind us. It continued to rain on and off all day at some points becoming pretty cold but nothing too serious. We eventually rolled in to the car park off the side of the highway that leads into Hope, thus completing the first leg of our expedition. We sat under the shelter of the toilet block and ate some cookies before gathering our things and settling under the overpass to camp. It was still raining very heavily and this would ensure a dry camp, protected from the wind. After going to collect and filter water it was time for dinner. We cleaned everything up and stored it well away from the tent in a place we hoped was protected from the bears, something that we had to keep in mind always.    I may not have competed in any Running races in the past 17 months i have however been on one hell of an adventure by bike. I have just completed my ride of 23,300k Taking me from North America through Central America & finally into South America where my dream destination of Patagonia was finally reached. I will never forget the Patagonian winds, they are real. Along the way i have gone from beaches to the highest Volcanoes. I have encountered Deserts to Glaciers to the most dense intense jungles in the world. I have covered 15 countries including Peru that boasts 28 of the 32 worlds eco systems i am pretty sure i have seen most of them now.  Along the way i have climbed Acotnango??? the highest volcano in Central America, climbed to 6,000MTR on Volcano Chimborazo been on a 3 day trek around Volcano Ruiz ( solo self supported ) Hiked to Machu Pichu, Hiked one of the greatest hikes in the world the Huayhuash circuit Peru. 110km ( Solo, self-supported ) taking 5 days crossing multiple 4,000+ mtr passes & one 5,100mtr pass. I have hiked up to Rainbow mountain Peru climbing to 5,400mtr???? I have also attempted to climb the second highest volcano in the world??? Ojos Del Salado from the Argentine side where there are no refugio`s or support within at least a 100km radius. There is no trail to follow to the summit & the chance of success is incredibly low due to the difficult terrain & weather conditions. Again this was self supported carrying enough food & fuel for 5 days. I was blown off the side of the volcano at 5,900-6,000mtr when a storm rolled in.  I have hiked around to see The Fitzroy mountain range & out to Glaciers & of course completed the 100km O circuit Torres Del Paine as a fast pack. Again being fully self-supported. On all of these hikes & climbs my packing list goes like this - 33 Litre Osprey pack, La Sportiva Helios or Akasha trail runners, Sportiva tech top & shorts, Sportiva cap, OR Helium HD rain jacket, iO Merino thermal top, beanie & pants, Cooking stove, Fuel, Food, tent, sleeping bag & Exped roll mat. This is pretty much all i have carried in my panniers the entire journey. For more detailed accounts on these hikes you can find my blogs & updates on my web page. It also has a number gear reviews as well as a lot of pictures ... Keep on chasing the dream .......
 It was a balmy -13c in Frisco, Colorado when we decided to go Fat-biking some beautiful single track. Matt had kindly loaned me his Fat-bike for this little excursion. Liz, Leigh & myself left the house around 8:30pm for a night ride in the woods. This was my first time on a Fat-bike & riding on snow. What an interesting feeling. Very different riding. I quickly learnt that you cannot stray from the trail at all or you will sink, go over the bars and eat snow. The best idea is to find a well packed trail and follow it. Not being as skilled as the girls I was definitely bringing up the back of the pack. It was a lot of fun to be out there and it required a lot of concentration to stay on the trail but that's the good thing about night riding, you tend to get tunnel vision when all you have is a headlamp to follow. The sound of the snow crunching and cracking under the weight of the wheels is amplified by the silence of the night. Another reason I love night time activities. Combined with the tunnel vision created by the headlamp, you feel as though you are the only one within a 100 mile radius.  Being a last minute decision to go ride nobody had had time to charge their headlamps so only a couple of miles in my headlamp began to blink, warning me it was on its way out.. As soon as I caught the girls who were waiting for me atop a small rise I told them my lamp was going flat, turns out both of theirs had started to blink also. What makes Fat-biking in the dark more fun you ask??? Your headlamp going flat...... We turned around cutting the ride short & hightailed it back to the trail head. Again bringing up the rear with the dogs I was left to watch the girls disappear into the dark as my headlamp finally gave up. I slowed down and could just make out the trail enough to get back to the trail head. None the less we had had a fun blast on the bikes in the dark and cold. Thankfully I had my io merino keeping me warm again ( I was beginning to notice a trend, check out there gear by following the link http://iomerino.com ) We put the bikes in the garage and everyone went home with a big grin on their faces and plugged headlamps in to charge for the next Adventure :D KEEP CHASING THE DREAM >>>>>>>>>>   A Very Overdue UPDATE!!!!! Finally…...It`s been a long drive NORTH: We started off in Flagstaff Arizona over 6 weeks ago. We have zig zagged through the US hitting all the great riding places and managing a few short runs and packrafts. We cruised into Canada on the best day of the year, Canada Day :) driving straight to Squamish to hit some serious trails. The mountain biking in Canada is the best riding i have ever done. I remember riding in Whistler 2 years ago when i first set of on this trip never knowing where it would lead. Riding in British Colombia is STEEEEEP but man oh man its fun. We barely got through before some serious fires broke out behind us. I hope it is all under control now. This took me into the Yukon…. I don’t even know how to describe the Yukon. It’s BIG like really BIG. So much open space and beautiful countryside. A potential place to revisit for sure and perhaps one day lay down some roots, all be it fiborous ones hahaha. We also paddled in the mighty Yukon river another thing I would like to revisit. We had a very close encounter with a black bear cub. It was standing looking at us from about 5-6 metres away. We were on bikes and came to a sudden stop when we spotted it. After a quick survey of the surrounding area and not spotting mumma bear we continued on :)  ALASKA: Then it was into my dream destination of AK. Again not sure how to describe this part of the trip. All of a sudden it was Glaciers followed by Moose followed by Bears hahaha. The moose in AK are enormous. I have been told many times be more scared of them than bears hahaha. So we have seen about 17 bears now including 3 grizzly bears. About 5 moose plenty of eagles and other birds. Follow the link for a detailed map of the drive :) https://goo.gl/maps/Hps2WWvKhS12 We drove into Palmer to visit a good friend of mine that I met while riding the Great divide all of those years ago. We got our first taste of what Alaskan mountains and backcountry can be like  Since then we have hit the glacier fed rivers at the literal end of the road in McCarthy. Another place I hope to revisit as a potential place to lay those fiborous roots ;) Stunning place to spend a few days taking white water rafting lessons in .5c temp water thank god I hired that dry suit :) I am currently in Valdez ( google it ) another amazing mountainous town of about 4000 people so a large town compared to most. This is a quick update and I will do a more thorough one on a few areas soon :) Keep chasing the DREAM.......
 I arrived in Denver late Wednesday evening where Liz collected me from the airport. We went to her friend’s place to stay for a few nights where we cleaned & re-glued skins, waxed skis & collected the final essentials for living in the van in winter. After a few days in the sunny front range of Colorado it was time to hit the road.  We drove down the famous i70 headed towards a place called Butler Gulch. We stopped off for a couple of snacks to make tomorrow`s breakfast easy. Nothing quite like a service station burrito to start the day, served cold of course. We parked in the Butler/Jones Gulch car park right on dusk. Snow was falling so we went for a short walk up the trail with Cody Oats World Traveler. Liz wanted to show me where we would be heading in the morning & also we needed to stretch the legs after a couple of days of inactivity. After a pretty warm night in the van we woke up to a number of cars in the carpark. Liz taught me how to attach the skins to my skis & we were off. I had been looking forward to this for quite some time & was feeling pretty good about hitting the snow. I managed to stay upright as we climbed our way out of the carpark & onto a single skin track. My first thought was "wow these things are sticky & I can go uphill!”  We did a bit of climbing with intermittent stops to cool down a bit. After an hour or so we stopped to get my first lesson in avalanches. I learnt about pitch angles & things to be aware of. Runout zones, tree lines, concave/convex areas. Then we continued up to a small almost summit. Right before we cleared the tree line we stopped and transitioned for the downhill. We put on our Buffs to prepare for the onslaught of wind and snow drift. Liz gave me brief instructions to follow her line and meet her once she stopped about 200mtr below me. I left my skins on to slow me down through this first stretch of deep powder. I made half of one turn before falling flat on my face & eating a lot of snow. Hahahhah It took me quite some time to get myself out of the hole, it`s a lot harder than it looks. After I extricated myself I then had to extract all the snow from inside my jacket and under my Buff. I went down a few more meters before falling over again. "Oh well this is learning to ski after all.” Liz led down a few more stretches & I followed along in my bumbly hopeless fashion but slowly falling less & feeling like I had some idea of what was going on.  After the first & steepest part of the run, we decided to take my skins off. This made a huge difference as I now turned easier & glided nicely through the snow. I was also managing to somehow link a few turns & stay upright but man my feet & quads were hurting. I stopped a few times to rest before we hit a thin section of single track where I practiced my snow plow. The familiar sound of ice under ski/snowboard was still as fresh in my mind from when I learnt to snowboard some 14 years ago. I haven't hit the slopes in over 8 years and never on skis but that sound strikes fear into you as soon as you hear it. I managed to stay upright as we went through a nice little rolling section on the way back to the van. There was a short uphill where I learned to side step to the top, then it was a short ride to the bottom. I got a few more tips on how to use edges before finally getting back to the carpark at 3:30 pm. What a fun first day out. My quads and feet were pretty sore and I had only eaten it a few times & was feeling a little more steady on my feet.   Staring out the stern windows of the Spirit of Tasmania ferry on my Bass Strait crossing I wonder where my previous 5 weeks have gone. What a hectic time it has been. Returning home after almost 2 years away has presented a number of challenges. Selling a house, changing banks, collecting papers for the ATO and doing taxes, let alone trying to meet up with friends and attend running events in the Victorian high country. I also managed to squeeze in a ride from Melbourne to Sydney over 12 days and 1,300km raising much needed money for Parkinson's research.. The feeling returning home was most definitely a mixed one. For me I was not quite ready to return but had to for those various reasons. That familiar feeling of not fitting in was alive and well. I have experienced this feeling before upon my return from the middle east after travelling for an extended period, even after travelling around Australia for 2 years brought on the same feeling. Suffering with Post Adventure Depression is always a struggle and I know it well. It does help to look to the future and plan future adventures but this time I really want to try soak in what I have just achieved. You always get the "What's Next" question and I don't blame people for that, I guess it's part and parcel of the things I do. People get bored and most people cannot comprehend what it is that you have done so it's a good way to keep conversation moving. :) It`s a good thing I do these things to satisfy myself. I am looking forward to getting to Tasmania where I can spend some time with my family and time in the true wilds of Australia reflecting on my 23,300km cycle trip. On a side note, if you want an amazing wilderness experience, get down to Tasmania. I traveled all the way to Patagonia for what I thought would be wild and remote, and it was anything but. I should have saved the money and gone to Tassie hahaha Call me if you want a tour guide ;) I digress, I have tried to write this a number of times but always get side tracked. I am also unsure why I feel the need to write this but I figure it gives people an insight into what goes on inside my head after an all consuming Adventure.  Looking to the Future, I am flying back to the US and making a road trip to Alaska; running, riding bikes and pack-rafting my way there. Blogging and taking pictures along the way to get people involved and hopefully inspire a few people to get outdoors and live life to the fullest. I feel my goal in all of this has shifted. I just want to send the message to people that ANYONE can do it. "You can too" seems to fit in as a nice motto. Along the way I will continue to raise money and awareness for Parkinson's research. I believe we CAN find a cure in our lifetime. This is a cause that is close to my heart and one that I believe in 100%. In Alaska I have a long bike-pack, pack-raft expedition planned. This is probably going to be the most difficult expedition I will have ever undertaken due to the remote nature of Alaska. The trip will involve riding "trails," running a few summits, and rafting some inlets and possibly glaciers. I am really excited about Alaska. It's so remote and untouched. I am thrilled to be able to go there and share my experiences with everyone else. Whilst in Tasmania I have at least one short expedition planned. I am really excited to do something in my homeland once again and prove that you don't have to travel halfway around the world to have an amazing wilderness experience .... Anyway I could ramble on all day but Just remember YOU CAN TOO..... Keep living the dream Shane P.S If you ever have any questions or want to say hi you can send me an email @ shanehut10@gmail or on FB messenger ;)   We managed to bluff our way through the Peruvian border when the border guards told us we were not supposed to be exiting there. After making our way through no man's land we came across the Bolivian border guard station. For Matt, being an American meant he had to pay a $160 visa. We decided this was too much for such a short time in Bolivia so we went around the guard station & straight into Bolivia. Once we were far enough away we stopped to drink some soft drink & eat our snacks., looking over lake Titicaca. We continued to roll around Lake Titicaca. We had gained a great vantage point by climbing high on the road. Once we crossed one of the inlets by wooden ferry with a truck we knew we were safe from border patrol it was time to relax & see what Bolivia had to offer..  We decided to go around La Paz as it was not high on our to do list. Nothing there except a big city & we had just come from Cusco no need to rush back to a city. Bolivia was intriguing. There were houses, big houses but no people. The few shops we found generally had nothing in them. Dust & empty shelves. This is where our living on wafer biscuits & coke started. The good thing about Bolivia was the ease of finding camping.. We camped in so many beautiful places. on the edge of Lake Titicaca, in the Atacama to the windy plains of Uyuni salt flats. We even managed to camp in a sheep herders shed with the sheep for a night.  We cycled some of the most quiet picturesque roads I have ever encountered. All you need to do is stay off the one paved road in Bolivia. We found a back way onto the Uyuni salt plains to avoid all the vehicles & Uyuni town site itself. No need to get involved with the hundreds of jeeps making the same trip across. The crunching & cracking sounds the salt made was such an experience. It was really a world of its own. We cycled the 50km out to the island that I never knew existed & camped in the lee side of the wind.... The star filled sky was incredible but it was sooooo cold out of the tent that you couldn`t stand out there for too long.  We crossed over the salt plains the next day & onto what would be the hardest 300km of the entire 23,300km ride. We got onto what is called the Lagunas Route. It folows a bunch of Lagunas ( lakes ) across the Altiplano ( above 4,000mtr ) of Bolivia. It was tough going from the start. Soft sand, deep ruts & a brutal headwind restricted us to around 45km per day. We would start riding as soon as we could in the morning around 7:30am when the sun had thawed out the tent & our bikes. We would ride for a while before being hit by the headwinds then we would continue on into it until 3pm. Matt had to push his bike a lot as he had skinny tires on & all of his weight was loaded onto the front of the bike, meaning he would just sink into the ruts & go nowhere. It was a spectacular route, at one point i counted 14 volcanoes surrounding us. There were Flamingos in every lake & we managed most nights to find incredible places to camp. I would recommend this route to anyone who wants a challenge & to experince some of the most spectacular scenery South America has to offer.  After 5 days on the route we were faced with our final obstacle, the Bolivian border & Chilean entry. We decided to push our bikes through deep sand over almost a 4,800mtr pass to skirt the border. It took 4 hours or more of just pushing hahaha what a challenge. At that point we were weighing up if it was worth the money. We finally hit the pavement & final descent into Chile. We were hoping for a solid ride into Chile down a huge 40-odd km descent but no, of course not. There was a big headwind reducing me to 60km/hr no matter how hard I pedaled, somewhat frustrating. We finally rolled into the town of San Pedro De Atacama at 8:30pm. The border guard had Bob Marley playing, asked where we had come from and didn`t even look at our passports -- he just stamped them. WOW we got lucky. We somehow managed to roll into town on the Chilean independence day, meaning it was a 4 day weekend with a lot of partying going on. KEEP DREAMING
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Shane HuttonI am an ultra runner, Mountain biker, Packrafter, Climber, Ironman, Endurance Athlete Archives
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