patagonia chili perou andes mountains - end of 2005 : need i

[vincent danna]

Hello,
I want to go to patagonia this winter (dec 05 – jan 06) and also peru chili to drive in the andes mountains in one month +/-.
I have French passport (I don t think it will be difficult to get visas). + French and international driving license.

Is the planning good with the weather over there ?
Is it too short to do those 3 countries/areas ?

For so short time and money also, I m not flying with my bike.
Therefore, what would be the "best" bike to choose to ride overthere ? I was thinking about getting a local bike, like a 125 cc coursier/messenger bike for example (easy to fix anywhere, I won t have much time to wait for spare parts !), maybe something like Honda xr250, Suzuki dr350, bigger (?). What s the most popular bike overthere at which price (for a "ok" second hand) ?

Shall I rent or buy (and then sell before I leave or just leave it there for other people after me) ? budget reasons and also paperwork reasons (see under)

If I rent or buy (will I have enough time to register it properly with my name on it ? I don t think so!), would it be a problem to cross the borders ?

What shouldn t I miss on the way ? people, landscape etc ... ? avoid anything ?

What could be a problem on the way ? fuel, road conditions, safety, weather, etc ...

Thanx a lot in advance, sorry, I ve been lazy, I haven searched much for the moment, compared to other posts :-)

Happy trails