Pan Americas - Which way round?
 

Here's a question that I've stumbled across in my initial planning stages for a Pan Am trip in 2011/12 - hopefully the HUBB collective wisdom can sort me out.

Given that I only have 3-4 months to do the trip, is it better to go Alaska to TDF - or TDF to Alaska? And, at which time of the year is best for each option?

I read trip reports south bound - which seem to focus on sept/october departures. And northbound trips, heading off around March.

I've also read reports about the Patagonian winds - and central american rains being worse at certain times of the year (but often they just say summer/winter etc not sure if that means locally or mine?). These will clearly be a factor in my planning.

My gut feeling is to fly into BA, head down to TDF in March, then head to Alaska by around June. That way I'll hit the hardest riding (ruta 40 / carratera austral etc) while both the bike and I are pretty fresh. But I don't want to do that if it means riding through the worst of the winds and rain!

Does that option sound sensible - or has expereince shown a better timing/direction?

Grateful for any insight, as I'll need to start serious planning soon.
Thanks in advance.
Pat
:thumbup1:

Some things that went into our consideration (we're flying to BA in Dec, then riding down to Ushuaia and back up):

* a big concern is temperature in Ushuaia and Alaska if you don't hit them in the summer. Dead Horse is probably much worse in the winter than Ushuaia (guessing) Wikipedia has some Ushuaia temps for you.
* we found the plane tickets for the humans to be $1k cheaper for two humans going from Boston to BA than BA to Boston on the same day.
* Consider what the weather will be like as you pass through various countries. Oddly, January will be the rainy season in Bolivia, but the Dry season in Venezuela. So the Salar De Uyuni will probably be flooded when we hit it and the rivers near Angel Falls will be too try to get to the falls. If there's something you particularly want to see make sure it's seeable at that time of year.
* Almost all the ride reports you'll read are north to south. This means it's a lot easier to get routes and tips that are written in that direction. Going north to south you have to spend more time figuring out your own routes. I find that fun so i don't mind in the least.

Central America doesn't have a Summer and Winter so much as it has a Wet and Dry season and when people are talking about weather there they mean local summer / winter because the author generally doesn't know where you live. ;) Google for "Dry season" and the country name. In Costa Rica, for example the dry season is Dec - April for most of the country, but in the Arenal Volcano and northern lowlands the dry and rainy season actually appear to be reversed (go figure). Also, it should be noted that if you go at the wrong time of year some of the passes in the Andes are closed because of the snow.

It also means you'll be starting out your trip, breaking in the bike and all the stuff you've attached to it in a country where it'll be harder for you to replace things that don't work as well as hoped. If you start in Alaska and head south you'll have a few thousand miles where pretty much anything can break on your bike and it's a non-issue. If you find something doesn't work as well as hoped you'll be able to replace it easily. If you break down you can get a tow. Starting in Argentina you're jumping in the deep end and hoping your bike and gear are good from the start. Also, south to north means you'll have the least amount of money for the most expensive part of the trip.

If you do go south to north I'd strongly recommend multiple real test runs on dirt roads near where you live before heading out.

Having not done the trip yet, but having done a lot of research, I'm of the opinion that it doesn't particularly matter which direction you go. You're going to get blown around in Patagonia. You're going to get torrential downpours at some point along the way. You'll be be overheated in the Atacama. You'll try not to freeze in the highlands, in the Andes, or near the poles. No matter when you go these are going to be issues. They're part of the trip. Embrace it.

But, yes, riding through Central America and the Amazon during the rainy season probably isn't a good idea.

About Chile weather
 

Hi!

my girlfriend and I are planing the same trip, but starting in Santiago and going north to Alaska.

If you are talking about Carretera Austral en Chile (I don't know if there are anoter with the same name in Argentina :S ).... the best months to go there are January and February.... those are the driest months of the year in that zone, and even then you will wet a lot of rain.... we are going there this summer (December or January or February) and we are geting equipment for heavy rain.

In the north of Chile (about Atacama desert) it's allways scorching and "never" rains

I hope this help.

If you need info about chile, drop me a letter.

Buenas rutas.

Climate Overview
 

Here's a link to a temperature and a rainfall chart broken down by month and country. Provides a graphic climate overview for Central & South America. Might help your planning.

One bonus for going south to north, you can drop into DakarMotos in BA and find a lot of Lonely Planet guides sitting there. Also a good chance of picking up cheap extras from people selling off their bikes

Cheers
TS