I started out with Hood Jeans, Motorcycle Jeans from Hood Jeans UK, then moved onto Kyrano, Motorcycle Jeans - Kyrano-UK, their sister company. Read a lot of info before settling on them. Tried Draggin on, and dig not like, also over priced.

I know what you mean about armour, but the new D30 is a great improvement. Some protection is better than none IMO. And as I have not broken anything yet...... :-).

As I say, I am a big fan of jeans and have not worn leathers for about 5 years now. As with bikes, it is each to his own choice :-)

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http://www.ytc1.co.uk

In 2013 I rode from Potosi to La Paz three times, once in late January, then twice in February (mid and late.) Twice I encountered snow in the mountains north of Potosi and every time there were periods of hail. I go drenched in Potosi and the altitude made the ride from there to Sucre challenging. The distances between towns can be long and if the weather turns you might not find lodging right next to the highway (in fact chances are you won't), so be prepared to explore small towns that are within sight of the highway.

The PanAm really sucks for maybe 20 miles south of La Paz due to deep grooves/ruts caused by trucks.

Adventure is something that sounds charming when you are sitting on the couch by the fire. Living it can be hard, but its worth it.

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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

Great comments Peter! No question your experience reflects just how nasty weather can get on the high Alti-Plano. Snow and super cold happen.

I did not ride bikes in Bolivia, but remember the Bus ride from La Paz down to Coroico (Death Road). You start out in La Paz around 14,000 ft, then go UP and over a high pass before dropping down onto the Death Road. That pass had a blizzard going on ... I was amazed the bus made it. Would have been dicey on a bike.

That super cold/rain/snow is another reason I gave up on cotton jeans over 20 years ago. If Cotton gets wet ... and you ride into freezing conditions ... you freeze! Ice next to skin is not good. With a Wool blend or synthetic you can still stay a bit warm even when wet and both dry out with air flow. Staying dry is key to staying warm.

I have most trouble with my hands and feet (because of exposure to frost bite). If your boots get wet inside and then you go UP to high altitude and freezing temps ... your feet will freeze, and that is really uncomfortable! (painful for me)

I treat my riding boots with Sno-Seal (US product) and use water proof over-booties. All this helps. With frozen hands and feet it's tough to maintain safe control!

Summer in southern South America can be quite pleasant, not too hot. I doubt you'll have issues with being over heated. You are more likely to be cold if you go deep into the cone. I have heard reports of a dusting of snow during high summer in Ushuaia. Search for "annual weather in...", then figure it will be considerably colder in the mountains.

Here is a sample website:
Santiago, Chile Travel Weather Averages (Weatherbase)

Its not all about riding, you'll want warm stuff to wear in the mountain during the evening. Cold and me, we have a love/hate relationship. Mostly hate from my side. I failed to take enough warm layers for the evenings.

When it comes to fabric, wool has some very practical properties. I was told that when wool gets wet, the insulating benefits increase. A friend of mine wore a light wool pull over shirt throughout his ride in South America. I am a fan of wool socks, for several reasons.

• If they get wet your feet will stay warm (...riding all day in pouring rain your socks will get wet)
• You can wear wool for days and it won't stink.
• Wool socks dry faster than cotton (for DYI hotel sink washing.)

When it comes to shirts and underwear, I go for polyester. In hot climates these garments can be worn for several days because they dry quickly and bacteria doesn't get as much of a chance grow. On the downside, when polyester gets a sink, it is hard to get it out. I buy small bags of powder detergent and hand wash in hotel sinks, roll up and squeeze with a towel, then drape over the A/C vent or fan. By morning the collection is usually dry. Cotton just doesn't dry as quickly as wool or polyester. Finding a wash service is a nice idea, but sometimes they don't have a commercial drier. You can stuck with wet to damp clothes. This happened to me in Peru after dropping the bike making a water crossing. One of the panniers got flooded before I could pick the bike up (in record time I will add.) That night the best hotel in town didn't have drier, or the language barrier kicked, or they just didn't want to dry my clothes. Clothes were draped everywhere in my room that night, and mostly dry in the morning.

My riding gear (Olympia Moto Sports) has waterproof and insulated liners. I hate the cold, so I wear a heated vest at high altitude or if the temperature drops and its raining. My spirits improve dramatically when the heated vest kicks in. Did I mention how much I hate the cold?

I don't think you will run into a lot of rain given the time of year, but it happens and you have to be prepared. When it comes to keeping your fingers warm and dry, I have searched for summer weight gloves that are water proof. I can't find a pair that are affordable and the liners don't come out when pull my damp hands out...so, I wear big rubber gardening gloves (Home Depot, $5.00 USD) over Mechanix gloves ($19.00 USD) . Yes, I go a little light on hand protection. The rubber gardening glove keep my Mechanix glove dry, and my fingers stay warm. Nothing really works to keep your hands 100% dry in a full day of riding in the rain.

One of my favorite memories from Bolivia was crossing the mountains north of Potosi. About an inch of snow had fallen shortly before I reached the highest point in the mountains. A few cars had gone ahead of me, leaving a tires width of track to ride in. Twisting back and forth along the mountainside I spotted a sheep herder sitting on the slope. He was wrapped in some kind of blanket and had a blunt cone shaped hat. This guy was hunkered down watching his flock as the snow fell around him. Tough as nails.

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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

More than a dusting and we had several days of (for mid-summer) bitterly-cold weather. Started on Christmas day



and got colder the next day

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Tony
Click here for Travel Photos & Travel Map

Well, at least you got white Christmas

THIS GUY is doing tours in the Andes and his review of the Badlands are great. His preferred setup is with pressure suit under though, but point is works for all temperatures and weather.

Maybe Santa will give me a suit for Xmas

How many days did you spend in Ushuaia? Doesn't look like good camping weather. Were the hotels full?

Being in extreme South, Ushuaia can have weather extremes any time of year. In one day it can go from muy Sunny to bastante misery. Over 3 yrs/ 6 trips in-out of Ushuaia (mostly Summer months) saw decent weather.
(lucky?) One November saw sunny & warm nearly every day.

Legendary wind of the area seems to partly miss Ushuaia. Much stronger bit further North, North/West. I flew alot around there (passenger) ... that wind is a real challenge to pilots.

One Drake crossing (by boat) in late March saw a sea state of 9 with 60 ft. waves for 4 days. Never so glad to see (and smell) Ushuaia.

December? want warmer weather? go to Buenos Aires. Or, for more moderate temps, try Valparaiso.

Looks like we might start in january (2016 unfortunately, have to save money and time off )

Then we'll probably start south an work our way up to Bolivia and south Peru maybe going by Buenos Aires on the way up (yes, realize not a small detour).

If we have 3 months and ride 2 days and rest 1, how far south can I realistically start? It's maybe 6.000km/4.000mi taking shortest route from all the way south in Chile, doing 200km/day it takes 30 days or 45 days including rest days. So we got twice that but is it still unrealstic (got a feeling it is)?

We will try to ride gravel when we can.