Looking for a riding buddy through Central and/or South America - Spring 09
 

Hi Gang--

I'm a 25 yr old male currently living and working in LA, but need more adventure... hence this post. I was originally planning on a solo trip down south, but the more I think about it, the more I feel that I should have a riding buddy for safety.

My plans are to leave LA sometime in early spring, stopping at any and every place that sparks my attention. I'm envisioning a trip from LA to wherever, (ideally Tierra Del Fugo) lasting anywhere from 6-8 months, depending on how long the money lasts, really. In the event of conflicting itineraries, I don't mind meeting up with a partner every few stops/days/week/etc.

I will be riding an 04 Suzuki DR650 outfitted for cross-continent traveling (currently modding now).

Let me know your thoughts and we can discuss specifics.


Cheers,
Steve

hi friend!
 

hi! I read you post, Im a traveler like you, im in montevideo uruguay keep my email lemes54@hotmail.com and if you some day are near here only email me I can help you with lots of hints,places to go etc.
best regards
kevin

few of us are heading across the pond at various points next year mate, i'll be in l.a by about june and heading south so expect will meet you at some point:thumbup1:

Tentative schedule is to sneak past winter down the west coast leaving Victoria,BC on or before 25 January.

I should be departing for Mexico from San Diego around 1 Feb.

Tentatively now... From there I will re-trace my previous trip down the Baja, ferry from La Paz to Mazatlan and head on down through Central America.

The Darrien Gap in Panama will prevent me from a non-stop ride south into Columbia so will need to ferry or fly my bike to Columbia from either Panama or Costa Rica.

After that it is loop down the west coast (South America) and go until the weather forces me back up the south east coast into Argentina. From there the bike needs to go to Australia or Africa. Haven’t decided yet.

Just turned 50. Riding a 2007 KTM 990 ADV. Charging the dead battery today with new charger. Bought an external digital thermometer so I know when it gets close to freezing/death. lol

Cheers
Randy

little help
 

I can give you a little help with the Panama to Columbia thing -:scooter:
i'm leaving also I hope end of Jan to CR from Los Angeles area
keep in touch wouldnt mind company !

Zigeuner

fellow traveller
 

Hey

Ive been replying to various posts guys as I am planning a trip north to south. Im just looking at routes, visa requirements, borders etc - all the usual gumpf. I was originally planning it on my own but really think it will be a better experience with other travellers.

Anyways, just trading my K1200R which has taken me around europe for a KTM Adventure (bit worried about parts and reliability so any help appreciated!). Job is then to prep her.

Im pretty flexible about routes but would like to zigzag across the states during the spring summer and autumn months and then spend the winter months going through south america where the whether is good.

Its a good time for me to do this and I'm pretty flexible re dates although im just nursing a particularly sore left shoulder that gives me riding trouble.

Im 32 and free of ties so i have no planned amount of time to be travelling - just see what happens.

Would love to hear from you all.

Craig

Steve,

I'm also a younger guy (22) coming from the midwest. I'm not looking to spend 6 to 8 months touring, but I am interested in returning to central america with another younger adventerous rider. I'm riding a 950 adventure and will be able to depart in mid May. I can't PM you yet as per HU forum rules, but I'd like to discuss what we each want to get out of the trip over emails. why don't you shoot me one at xdbx at comcast dot net.

Hello World!
 

That's an excellent way to take a trip. I hope one of us can hook up with you, but do tell... You're a young lady on a motorcycle trip to volunteer? Have I died and gone to heaven? :innocent:

Anyone heading near Yuma, AZ, let me know.

Heading South
 

Hey Tina, is being an "old curmudgeon" like me, a good thing or bad?

I would to head south on May 1, which is when Tina is also planning to leave from the Los Angeles area. Current plan is to be in Costa Rica to meet relatives either late May (Chris) or late June (Tina). The only place I really want to go, assuming I do Copper Canyon before then, is the Palenque ruins in southern Yucatan. Otherwise I've seen much of Mexico, most of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Costa Rica (lived/worked there), but not much of Nicaragua nor Panama.

Have lived in and seen much of South America including Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina. Have yet to see Uruguay, Paraguay, and Brasil. I'll probably skip the Guyanas as I prefer to ride in twisty mountains as opposed to beach/coast.

Chris

Where in the midwest are you? I too plan on leaving in May...
But my plan probably won't work with your plan though. I'm in Mpls, MN. I finish spring classes at the university around May 4th, then have a 6 week study abroad in VEnezuela May 18th, so I'm going to zoom zoom through central to Venezuela, then once class is over at the end of June I'm going to take a month or two to come back home.

Wow..what a cool thread!
 

Wow...what a cool thread!

I'm planning my trip to Argentina and couldn't leave at the most oppurtune time in the fall like I wanted due to work (I hate it) so I'm considering leaving in March. I was concerned about leaving in March because of the seasons but it seems like several of you are also leaving in the spring so maybe my concerns are unfounded. I will be going to Argentina and would be interested in keeping up with all of your plans, etc., and perhaps riding part of the trip as well.

I live in Southern California near Palm Springs but will be departing from Florida and crossing into Mexico at Brownsville. I'm flexible, easy going, and enjoy meeting others. My wife passed away last year from cancer so I'm single, but harmless for the most part to female riders and interested in making friends and enjoying the trip.

My profile should read Detroit. I go to school in East Lansing, which is Central Lower Peninsula Michigan. I'm about ~4 hrs from Chicago proper.

You sound like you have a potentially neat plan brewing, but I'm not looking to do any zooming. On the contrary, I've spent my entire undergraduate engineering program "zooming" between this and that. My trip is all about relaxing. Literally stopping to smell the roses, talk to someone if they look interesting, and that sort of thing. I believe I deserve it. :thumbup1:

Hi

I have been reading this thread and no one seems to have mentioned the reversal of seasons?

What I mean is, during the North America Spring Summer Autumn, down below the equator, surely it will be reversed, that is it will be Autumn, Winter, Spring?

I am from Australia and we are currently in Summer, so is Argentina, so I am wondering what the winter weather will be like for travel down that way. I am sure it will be mighty cold up in them mountain ranges, in fact I have heard it is very cold even in Summer.

Looking forward to some clarification. I am curently organising Visas to get over and do th estates during their Summer and intend to head south for the northern winter.

Cheers
TravellingStrom

This is the question I'm desperate to get answered. I've read a lot of post/replies, and they have been helpful, but I havn't found anyone that has personally crossed the mountain passes in South America in May/June.

My worries are with the road conditions in Central America during the raining season (april) and the road conditions crossing the Andes into bolivia and Argentina during May/June.

If anyone has personally made the trip during these time froms please reply.

My understanding is the southern part of Argentina is almost certainly out of the question except for Nov-Dec.

What type of "Volunteer Work" are you planning. This sounds like an interesting way to experiance the various cultures. I've always enjoyed the interactions with locals as much as the counties themselfs and may be interesting in volunteering as well.

weather planning
 

Well, I am not sure about the others but my timing is based on arrival in Ushuaia. To me that is where the most extreme temperatures will be and therefore my priority. That being said, I aim to be there in middle December for summer with a nice slow trip down.

Cheers,
Tina

volunteering
 

The volunteering is actually the focus of my trip - with the bike being a really fun way to get from place to place. I am working on finalizing the details right now but I hope for volunteer at orphanages or groups working with street children in Nicaragua, Peru, Argentina, Brazil and Guatemala for one to two months depending on their needs. Hope to see you on the road!

Cheers,
Tina

P.S. It is still under construction but there will be a lot more information here at my site on my volunteering plans for the trip and why I have chosen the places I have chosen.

‎(There and back again...a ride to the end of the world‎)

I agree, I don't "want" to zoom at all, but the end goal is that I have my bike while I'm in Venezuela and to have it to take my sweet arse time on the way back home after my studies, I just happen to be stuck with a tight timeline to start it all.

If anyone, while taking their time, rides through Belize I'd highly recommend stopping at Cave's Branch Adventure Resort for a day or two. I was there this past summer and the day trips they offer are amazing.

Anyhow, to ye who ask about May/June through the Andes passes... I haven't been there (yet) and there are others who have and could give you good first hand answers, but I can tell you my opinion that I wouldn't even think of going through the Andes on a motorcycle in the dead of their winter. September/October sure (their spring). As far as summer goes (to our Australian), I doubt Argentina would be considered cold by almost anyone's standards during their summers (in fact I've heard Argentinian winters aren't even so bad outside of the Andes, definitely not as bad as Minnesota), but maybe in comparison to the more arid Australian summers it is a bit "cooler", but definitely not cold. Again, I'm just a noOb at adventure riding and these are pure speculations.

Cheers and lets get to planning!
(ps, just thought I'd plug a note of my excitement that the nice FedEx man brought a ton of farkles to my door today, Jesse Odyssey II panniers, bash plate, beak extender, tank bag, GPS mount, and a few other goodies :clap: now if only Holan and Wunderlich would get on the ball with the rest of my stuff)

Thanks for the input about the winter crossing of the Andes. I can't seem to find a single person that has done it but lots of people leave in from the US in the spring so they must cross during our summer months. I closely reviewed the climate table that another gentleman posted and it looks like the rainfall won't be bad but the temperature will. I'm taking an electric vest so hopefully it will work out.

I can relate to the feelings when the things for the trip start arriving :))I'm living the same thing now. Got my GPS last week, ordered my Jessie's today, etc. Ready or not, looks like I'm leaving come March.

Hey,

Im leaving LA early April. Looking to ride down as close as possible to Tiera del Fuego on my 2005 bmw gs1200. Beginning planning stages now. Shout me back if you want to meet up in Hollywood to discuss,
Cheers

Andes crossings
 

When riding from north to south you should avoid being in Peru, Bolivia during their rainy season that starts November and ends around March ... best months for travelling in that latitude are May to August ... get to Ushuaia from November to March ... crossing the Andes is not a problem when you have paved roads but sometimes you will have to wait for snow clearance in some places during the winter months June to August in Chile ... I'm looking for a riding buddy who wishes to get to Ushuaia during March 2009 ... lease him one of my bikes and he covers my expenses ...
Cheers,
Roberto Thomson
Chile Moto Adventures

Hey,
I'm planning on riding out the recession on my BMW GS down to South America. Leaving LA early April. Cheers... mylaemail@gmail.com

Craig,

I'd carry an extra fuel filter. Just read a trip report of 2-up riding in South America on a KTM and they only needed a filter during their trip.

Darien Gap
 

For anyone looking for a way to bypass the Darien Gap should check out stahlratte segeln shuttle panama kolumbien cartagena panama san blas cuba jamaika. This boat has in the past taken bikes and riders and it looks like a holiday/adveture in itself. Linzi.

Leaving Los Angeles to Ecuador
 

I'm planing to tour Colombia and Ecuador in mid Oct. 09, I would be using the starting point of Cartagena, Colombia. I'll be flying in from Los Angeles. Riding south to Bogota. I would ride to Cali then ride to Ipiales (border to Ecuador). From Tulcan, Ecuador I would ride south to Otavalo then to Quito. I'll end my journey to Guayaquil, Ecuador. Please keep me informed on your progress for that if you're there in Colombia at the same time, we can ride together or if some mishap I may be informed. If you're in Los Angeles, Look me up.

south america seasons
 

It's now winter in Chile - Argentina... June!
so from June (even may) until end Nov - dec... you can't ride south of
Santiago.. you will have several mountains passes with snow and freeze your A..
:Beach:
the only thing different with Auz... the toilets here flush normal!