Ok....I was at another site and it seems the Ferry Express that started transporting people and motorcycles no longer is running after the end of April (until further notice....yeah right). Besides the 4 day San Blas cruises what other options does anyone recommend other than Girag to get from Colombia to Panama in a day or extremely close to it without having the boat drop your bike in the bottom of the sea????

Hopping "banana boats" across the Darien gap took me two weeks. As far as I know there are no "fast" options for doing the Darien gap by water except the ferry.

If your timing was good air shipping would be the quickest, but the stars would have to align for that to all be done in a day.

Any reason it has to be done in one day? That crossing was the best memory of my trip, even including the bike almost being dropped in the water. The Kuna Yala and their islands are unique in the world.

Visited the FerryExpress web site and found the image below as a pop-up notice.

Disfruta tus vacaciones viajando con Ferry Xpress

I tried copying the text and running it through Google Translate, but it didn't make the clearest to translations... I looks like the voyage from Colon to Cartagena are running through April, then "end of season." (Fin de la temporada) Was there always a plan not to run the ferry in the Caribbean during hurricane season?

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Peter B
2008/09 - NJ to Costa Rica and back to NJ
2012/13 - NJ to Northern Argentina, Jamaica, Cuba and back to NJ
2023 - Peru, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia...back to Peru.

Blogs: Peter's Ride

Already !!! That didn't last long did it.

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Can't say anymore.

If this is just a seasonal closing, any idea when the season begins and it will resume operation? I'm planning a crossing in Oct-Nov. What is their website?

link already posted above

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Tony
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End of season could also be the end of the Latin travel/summer season. In Argentina summer is the reverse of North America. Given that Central America and South America has little change in temperature year round, does travel generally slow down in May, just when it is picking up in northern climates?

Indeed time will tell and someone planning the cross the gap, to whom the topic is of greatest interest, will eventually contact the offices and share an update.

In recent years, three boats have transported bike from Panama to Colombia. Last year there was a report or two of riders having problems getting out of Cartagena on a smaller boat. The Stalhratte is the largest and has not been subject to the whims of customs officials. Ask around and see if there are current reports of problems.

The Stalhratte can transport 26 motorcycles. I believe they run out of bunk space due to back packers before deck space. In the past you could reserve a space simply by sending an email and waiting for a confirmation. Captain Ludwig posts here from time to time, correct me if wrong or policies have changed.

Taking a sail boat is expensive, cheaper that air lifting and way more fun, in my opinion. Airlifting motorcycles across the gap is for riders with more money than time. The Stalhratte was one of the highlights of my trip. I haven't taken the ferry, which is/was cheaper, but a bit institutional/commercial by the reports.

Ultimately a voyage schedule needs to match your adventure schedule. I rode a bit faster through Central America in order to sail on a certain date. Having already ridden sections of CA and with plans to ride more on the way back, I made a one month dash from North Carolina (the HU east coast rider meeting) to Panama. By most accounts that was a rushed schedule... Check their website for dates and availability:

panama_cartagena_en

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Peter B
2008/09 - NJ to Costa Rica and back to NJ
2012/13 - NJ to Northern Argentina, Jamaica, Cuba and back to NJ
2023 - Peru, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia...back to Peru.

Blogs: Peter's Ride

Even if someone suffers from extreme sea-sickness ? Very narrow minded of you Peter.

There are often more reasons than "more money than time" for an option.

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Guilty as charged, very narrow minded of me. I have suffered a few times from sea sickness, learned from those experiences and take preventive steps. Before a boat leaves anchor, I take motion sickness tablets. Are there people that don't benefit from motion sickness preparations? Could be. Maybe you're one of them.

Of the three long sails on the Stalhratte, I took and offered tablets to everyone on board. The passengers that did get sea sick also declined the tablets. A physician told me to take the tablets BEFORE the boat starts rocking. Sea sick tablets have little or no effect after motion sickness sets in.

Between Colombia and Jamaica one passenger couldn't get out of bed for the first three days and made spot appearances on the fourth day... He decline tablets when as we left Cartagena. The same brave soul continued on the Caribbean tour through Cuba, Mexico, getting off in Panama. He wasn't planning to change his strategy for the last and longest leg. Go figure.

A lack of time is the reason I have seen posted here on the HUBB for air lifting. Lack of time can easily mean that a traveler could not wait for the next available boat to sail.

A few years back riders sometimes wanted to avoid Colombia and would airlift to Ecuador. I forgot to mention that reason, probably because its not the issue it was. At least not in my (non-risk adverse) opinion.

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Peter B
2008/09 - NJ to Costa Rica and back to NJ
2012/13 - NJ to Northern Argentina, Jamaica, Cuba and back to NJ
2023 - Peru, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia...back to Peru.

Blogs: Peter's Ride

I was told that the Panamanian customs are not allowing ANY sailing boats so good luck assuming that doesn't apply to the Stalhratte.

There were a few other boats previously accepting bikes ($550 each) so if there was a way around the rules I am sure at least 1 would have continued.

Bike weight has no bearing on the charge. Dimensions make no difference either. More than likely that cost is sans "dangerous goods handling"..


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Excellent news. Can you confirm that the same boat transports bike the other way - to Panama from Cartegena. Thanks .

It does. You'll need to figure out the paperwork for the bike. They take care of the immigration part for yourself.


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I am delighted that there is a decent alternative since the Stahlratte (4 trips including Cuba) is not in service now. I definitely did not want to take the Independence as I had one miserable trip with them.
Actually, I had already decided to leave my bike in Quito at a shop I trust and highly recommend. I will fly back to Michigan for a brief family reunion. I will then use Lulu's Stahlratte in the Fall.

I had serious charging issues and replaced major components on my way to Quito from Santiago. The local HUBB folks suggested going to the Suzuki, but I decided to return to Willy at City Motosport. He found the problem of a bad switch between the thermostat and radiator fan right away. The only challenge was getting the needed parts from the dealer, Comandato, who were terrible. I ended up telling them that I have worked for Yamaha, BMW, Harley-Davidson, and Ford in 14+ countries besides the US and have never seen such a poor parts process. After four trips there, I finally got one of two needed parts from them and Willy found the other somewhere else.

By the way all the many official (including the president) motorcycle escort riders bring their work and personal BMW's, Suzuki's, Honda's, etc. to "Chilly Willy," because they know and trust him. This a strong recommendation in my book. So, even if you only need to do some basic maintenance, on your own there, I strongly recommend him. He charges motorcycle travelers VERY reasonable rates and is an all around great fun guy.
This was an unpaid non-political endorsement,
Chris/motomon "Pinche Gringo Loco"

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It sounds as if the government of Panama is the problem with this issue. Has anyone considered bypassing Panama altogether and shipping a bike from Costa Rica to Columbia or vice versa?