Just in time for Christmas I came home from an epic journey through South America. Riding my trusty DRZ400S through Argentina, Uruguay, a tiny bit of Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru and the whole length of Chile down to Tierra del Fuego, I covered 23,517 kilometres / 14,616 miles in four months.



This trip was everything and more I had ever dreamt of. In the weeks to come I am going to tell you all about it; here is just a little taster of my experiences:

I saw fascinating landscapes -

Cataratas del Iguazú, Argentina / Brazil


Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia


Torres del Paine, Chile


… and beautiful places –

Machu Picchu, Peru (no, I didn't ride my bike along this path)


Arequipa by night, Peru


Cerro Fitz Roy, Argentina


I rode awesome roads –



Ruta 26 between Cuzco and Nasca, Peru


Carretera Austral, Chile


Caught glimpses of history –

Brachiosaurus bones in the palaeontological museum MEF in Trelew, Argentina


7,000 year old mummies from the Chinchorro culture, San Miguel de Azapa, Chile


Ocotber 2010, Copiapó, Chile


Watched wonderful wildlife –

Vicuñas in the Lauca National Park, Chile


Pelicans on the Pacific coast, Iloca, Chile


Magellan Penguins, Patagonia, Argentina


Had a fair share of “Oops” and “Doh…!” moments –



Near Pucón, Los Lagos, Chile


“Should I have listened to the GPS?”


Learnt a lot about the mechanics of my bike –

In the workshop of Motoservi in Sucre, Bolivia


During regular maintenance days


What a neglected sparkplug looks like after 22,000 kilometres…


Tasted delicious food –

Llama steak, Uyuni, Bolivia


Trucha (trout), freshly caught from Lago Titikaka, Bolivia


Home cooked meals…


And, best of all, I met amazing people everywhere. Here are just a few –

Benita on the street market in La Paz, Bolivia


Oscar and Julia in San Fernando, Chile, who let me park the bike in their dining room


Jorge, Facundo and their friends in Otamendi, Buenos Aires Province, who introduced me to the pleasures of a proper Argentinean Asado (BBQ)


As English is not my first language, it will take me some time to write the report but I hope you will find it worth the wait…

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www.pumpernickelontour.com - Four months through South America on a DRZ