As a (very) dedicated fly-fisherman I'm planning to combine this and my other love (my BMW F650) and take 9-10 months (Nov 02 to Sep 03) travel thru Chile/Patagonia then up to the Rockies and Canada/Alaska.... basically follow the summermonths from the southern hemisphere to the northern hemishpere!

I have been prepping my bike/visa's etc, but upon more accurate budgeting calcs it is becoming obvious that it will be far cheaper to buy a second-hand motorbike (a road/trail 400-650cc) in Chile and again in USA, then sell it in each location rather than spend a couple of thousand ($AUS) on my current bike, ship it from Australia to Chile (couple of thousand more), then Quito to Panama, then USA back to Oz again (couple of thousand again!).

Does anyone have any experience being a foreigner and:

1. Buying, registering and insuring a bike in Chile and USA? (do I need a permenant address in Chile/America?)
2. "Fees" and "Duties" when taking a Chilean registered bike into Agentina, Ecuador and
Peru?
3. Does anyone know of a generic pannierbag system that I can buy before I leave that will fit most bikes (I have some ideas but they will be rather chunky)? (I'm thinking of old-fashioned leathersaddlebags with lockable alluminium inserts.)
4. Also - anyone know of internet listings for second-hand bikes (or agents) in Santiago? (I've found two stores, and one traveller refers to Lira St, but that's it!)
5. Will I need a carnet from Chile if I take the bike to Argentina, Ecuador and Peru?

Anyone interested in joining me in the Hunt for the Perfect Salmonid? .... washed down with the odd vino?

Cheers,

Alex.

claymore61_2@hotmail.com