From Anchorage to Ushuaia by Bike

As we left Rio Grande after a comfortable couple of days with Anibal, we knew we were on the home stretch, the last bit of road to Ushuaia. We left late that day – we needed the time to organize ourselves and catch up on sleep. Argentineans have a different rhythm of life, and dinner here never gets started until at least 10pm. Just outside the city we met a French couple with a dog, walking from Ushuaia to Lima, Peru! They seemed just as crazy to us as we seemed to them!

We only biked about 40km, surrounded by clouds, although we barely got rained on. In the evening we stopped in a touristic estancia with rooms to rent, and asked if we could stay. We knew that they had a house that they offered to travelers like us, unofficially, for free. We first asked if we could camp and they told us that there was no camping allowed but that they had a house we could sleep in. It was very basic, mainly lived in by seasonal workers, but at least we had a roof over our heads to protect us from the rain. And right beside there was a little hut where they kept the meat for the dogs, and the odors of rotten meat permeated everything!

Despite the headwinds, the next day we made it Tolhuin, where we knew we would not be staying with the famous baker of the village. He is known to invite all passing cyclo-tourists to stay for free in a little cabin. But we rode right by, following the directions that Anibal gave us, all the way to the lovely little cabana that he reserved for us and paid for! He joined us that evening and cooked us an asado (Argentine barbecue): more than a pound of meat per person! The meat is slow cooked over the coals, and the whole operation meant that we didn’t start eating until almost midnight! But the Argentinean beef is worth the wait!!

We rode on… Ushuaia was only a hundred kilometers away. We just kept biking; it’s not all that complicated. We stopped at the Lago Escondido and found a beautiful campsite. We had to search a little for a good spot, but we pitched our tent beside a lake, in the middle of a forest. We were even able to have a campfire, and regretted that we hadn’t brought some meat to cook over the fire! We made the most of it, took our time, and watched the trout jumping in the lake (Sébastien would have liked to fish, but it was already a little late). After the resident fox came around for a visit, we snuggled into our sleeping bags and went to sleep.

In the morning the alarm went off, but we didn't really feel like getting up. Although we knew objectively it was our last day, we still didn't believe it. We had wanted to leave before 10, but we were unusually slow eating breakfast and packing up, enjoying every moment. We crossed one last time over the Andes: a pass 400 meters above sea level. We climbed quickly, especially with the encouragement of the cars and motorcycles, which we really appreciated it. We ate lunch under some trees by the side of the road, and yes, it rained one last time on our last day of biking. A couple of kilometers before the entrance of the town, Heather went ahead with the video camera in order to film our arrival in Ushuaia. Sébastien and I looked at each other... a little teary eyed. And on the 21st of February, 2010, at 4:48pm, we arrived in front of the sign at the entrance of the city, the same sign that we had seen on the websites of other travelers. I had tears in my eyes then, tears of joy, sadness, and of all that I had accomplished. Sébastien too had tears in his eyes. We had conquered the Americas by bike, by the strength of our will and our calves!

Heather took out the sparkling wine that she had been hiding since Rio Grande. I had wanted to stash a bottle for the occasion, but it would have been hard since Sébastien looks in all my panniers. When I told Heather, she offered to hide a bottle it in one of hers. Sébastien couldn't believe his eyes!

We toasted and took about 40,000 pictures, and congratulated ourselves, proud of what we had done! We are grateful to all those who helped us along the way, encouraged us, biked with us, gave us some of their time, and welcomed us into their homes and their hearts. It's a long list of people, and we want to thank each and every one!

And now?

We are going to spend a couple of days in Ushuaia, exploring this famous town, whose very name has inspired so many cyclo-tourists. Then we will fly to Buenos Aires where we will spent 3 weeks in and around the city. Then off  Madrid, for our own “Tour de France,” seeing friends and family, all waiting impatiently for our return. We will also give a couple of presentations about our trip. So there are still some adventures waiting for us on the horizon!

Sara