A Trip through the Americas
from the USA to Terra del Fuego
A yearly overview of our current journey…
Year #1: The USA
National parks, wonderful people and a change of plan
October 2019 – October 2020
We were excited to start our trip of a lifetime in Phoenix, Arizona. New to overlanding, and with a six-and-a-half-month-old baby in tow, we were only too glad to be able to ease into the lifestyle, using the house of our good friends’ Roland and Denise to do our final preparations.
After two weeks we were ready, starting our new lives on the road and kicking it off with the Grand Canyon.
Winter was approaching fast, and we went through New Mexico, Texas, the American South, and hit Florida for December, joining all the other snowbirds. Some of which included Richie’s family, and then later on in February, Zoe’s Götti, Lucky, flying in from Switzerland. We were glad to have been able to spend this quality time with them because a month later, the pandemic hit and the borders shut. Our plans to go to Canada were no longer a reality. In these unprecedented times, we were fortunate to have had friends in Virginia and Ohio who took us in and treated us like family.
As soon as the first states began to open up in May, we were on our way again, stepping through the symbolic ‘Gateway to the West’ in Missouri. And the ‘Wild’ West is where we spent our summer months. From South Dakota, through to Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, down to California and Nevada, and then back to Phoenix, Arizona.
Due to the pandemic, we have extended our visas to buy some time and wait this thing out.
Considering all that has happened in the world, we are extremely grateful to still be on the road, exploring this beautiful country and making friends along the way …and enjoying each and every Ribeye!
Year #2: USA & Mexico
Jail, Covid and a vibrant new country
October 2020 – October 2021
With a pending visa extension application and the pandemic still lingering, we did a second loop through the West, visiting hotspots we missed last time: Northern New Mexico, Colorful Colorado in the fall, and red rock country Utah. Amazing! We kicked off the new year, spending our last two months in southern Arizona, enjoying the beautiful weather and getting ready for Mexico.
We tried to cross over the border at the beginning of March and ended up in Jail, almost losing everything! Luckily, it wasn’t the end, and two days later we made it to the Baja California on our second attempt. You can read the full story in our blog post here, or watch our YouTube video about it.
The Baja California was a perfect way to ease into a new culture and language. In fact, we loved it so much, we spent almost three months on the peninsula, circumnavigating the southern cape twice over and making new friendships. The Baja will always have a special place in our hearts.
In June we took the ferry to Mazatlan; mainland Mexico. Now we feel the adventure on the Panamericana has really begun. The beach holidays are over, and we are moving faster. Through vibrant cities, busy markets, and bright blue agave fields. We’re sleeping in many more parking lots, eating even more tacos, and learning more about Mexican life each day …oh! and how to get rid of diarrhea!
A vast country full of diversity: Wildwest in Durango, Tequila and Mezcal, Pyramids and Volcanos, Pulque and Borrego, Highlands and the Jungle, releasing turtles on tropical beaches…
Mexico, you have welcomed us with open arms, and even though the pandemic is still going strong, you have kept us free and showed us great hospitality, good food and breathtaking landscapes. Thank you so much!
Year #3: Central America
Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica & Panama
October 2021 – October 2022
Mayan temples tower over jungle treetops, epic volcanoes rumble and rage, monkeys howl, snakes slither, and sloths laze in the midday sun. Welcome to Central America.
We complete our Mexican adventure joining in with the ‘Dia del Meurte‘ festivities and rushing down to Guatemala. There’s been a drastic change to our visa allowance!
It’s all OK though, because Guatemala steals our hearts; so much so, that we spend five months in this diverse country, starting school, eating opossums, feeding villages whole hogs and partying with Guatemalan locals. El Salvador is all about the huge variety of volcanoes (and papusas!) and we eat the best steak of our lives in Honduras. Nicaragua has us sliding down volcanic ash and gawking deep into a hot bubbling cauldron of fire whilst Costa Rica offers us pure ‚Pure Vida‘ in every sense. Panama is our last stop and the gateway to South America. It is here where we pack Silverskin on a ship and we take in the ingenuity and skill of the Panama Canal, as well as visiting the tallest waterfall of the country and immersing ourselves into the Ngöbli Bugle culture.
Year #4: South America
From Cartagena-Colombia to Ushuaia-Argentina
October 2022 – December 2023
We sure have learned how to speed things up! We managed to cover a whole continent from north to south in a little over a year. Starting with the vibrant, colourful, hot and sticky Cartagena in Columbia and finishing with a rather cold, wet and windy Ushuaia. Yes, we make it to the end of the world for Christmas Day.
It’s not all just one big race to the finish line though, expect to read up on remote wilderness adventures in Colombia, tribal spiritual cleanses and unusual meat delicacies in Ecuador. Extreme altitude sickness and breakdowns in canyons in Peru, stargazing under incredible night skies in the driest desert of the world in Chile, and a culture that tops the charts for grilling and late nights, this of course being Argentina.
45,000 km through South America, from top to bottom! No wonder we’re still playing catch-up on blog posts and YouTube videos…but do stay tuned!
Phoenix AZ-USA to currently Argentina
06. October 2019 – March 2024
