If you're put off your plans by that particular book (or others like it, or opinions which are widely and loudly expressed by people who for the most part have never done what they're so opinionated about), you're going to miss much of what's worthwhile no matter where you go. There are scores, maybe hundreds, on this site and ADVrider.com who've made similar trips mostly quite free of drama. Go to Colombia yourself and you'll see. Or at least think about using Chris Scott's book as a guide (disclosure: I contributed, but have nothing to gain from continued sales).

None of which should be taken to mean I think you necessarily need to ride down or follow any particular program or path. I'm just saying you sound somewhat over-anxious about "all the shit going on" in general and about Glen's book in particular. I've done the trip once in each direction and haven't found it difficult or any other sort of big deal in any way.

Hope that's helpful.

Mark

No two people do the same trip, or a trip for the same reasons, so it's hard to give you specific advice. However, I would urge you to think about why you're doing such a trip and what you want to get out of it first - as you've already seen there are 1001 ways to get to being on the back of a bike in Santiago - which is the right way for you will depend on the reasons why you're doing the trip and what you want out of it.

With all that in mind, I would say the following specifics:
- I air freighted a bike from London to Buenos Aires for a bit less than $2,500 so I'm sure that price can be improved on.

- On the road, time and money are interchangeable. Yes, sea freight has a lower sticker price but believe me when I tell you estimating when you can get to your bike from the ship better than +/- 1 week is impossible - when you compare the cost of life for that week vs. the saving over airfreight (which is a lot more certain timing wise) the seafreight saving is less obvious.

- Given you're doing this as a retirement thing, I'd imagine you're not as strapped for cash as a 21 y/o. Like some others have said, I think spending money on a bike you know that you're comfortable, that you can equip it the way you want it is a good way to gain comfort with the trip (I personally found this invaluable). Plus for a 6 month trip, the fixed cost of shipping starts to pale into insignificance vs. cost of living.

- When selecting a bike, the key thing is how comfortable are you with off-road and how much off-road you want to do. I personally wasn't (at all) comfortable with it and chose a Suzuki V-Strom 650 (and spent $$ replacing every consumable pre-trip). For me it was the perfect bike - it's by no means sexy/beautiful or exciting, and it is a heavy dog off road. But my trip was less than 10% off road and the Strom fitted that exquisitely. It worked flawlessly like a swiss watch (which made local support for it irrelevant) for 12,500 miles and the 90% + of those that were on roads were a hassle free joy. I would choose that bike 1000 times for a similar trip.

- If you decide that minimising hassle is your thing (it was for me), take a look at Dakar Motos in Buenos Aires. If you manage to airfreight your bike to Buenos, Dakar will get it out of customs for you for a small fee and about 1.5h total hassle. If your Spanish is not that good, that may be a better route to go than Santiago.

Good luck and enjoy the ride.

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http://sginsa.wordpress.com

Lots of great feedback guys, much appreciated. I just bought a Suzuki DR650. I think it will work well. I also just got a tip from someone that Air Canada ships motorcycles for cheap so I checked into it and it is true. You can ship a bike from Toronto or Montreal to Santiago or BA for only $1250 CAD which is just under $1000 USD at today's exchange rate. What a deal! If you buy a passenger ticket on Air Canada the price is $300 cheaper too. It would be nice if I could ship it directly out of Vancouver because that would be a much more fun trip to ride the bike to from New Mexico but I believe it is $650 extra to ship from there to Toronto or Montreal then down south so that is an option too.

If I were going in a group I think I would consider riding down through Central America but don't particularly want to do it solo. I have the time. I've been to Costa Rica and Panama before (not on a bike) and know how much it rains there so not sure I want to ride in it. Perhaps once I'm more experienced. Maybe I'll come back that way if I can't leave my bike in Chile.

HI TaosTraveler,
I'm planning a trip around the time you are.
My bike (Az registered) is in San Diego and I have been looking to ship it to Chile in late October or early November and then ride south to Ushuaia and back up to BA.
I plan to be away for 3 months and leave the bike somewhere for a year and return to head further north. The only time specific thing I would like to achieve this trip is to see some of the 2016 Dakar.
PM me if you want to discuss things further.

Matt

There are a lot of ways make your trip happen. Some choices will work for you and others not so much...

Fear is something your have to manage. There are concerns, but keep it real. Scary accounts in books and news reports bubble to the top because they are unique, not the norm. Yes, there are places in every country that are not particularly safe.

Here are a few simple steps to staying safe.

• Store your motorcycle in a secure location every night (hotels always have a solution, which might a garage or yard be down the street, a night guard or you roll your bike into the lobby.) In cities and large towns, during the day use attended parking. Consider carrying a thick cable and lock (I did.) I would venture to guess that more motorcycles are stolen when not attended than at gun point.
• Plan on stopping a few hours before sunset to find lodging or set-up camp. Looking for a hotel and trying to negotiate a good rate after dark is more of a challenge.
• Wandering on unfamiliar streets, alone, after drinking is a recipe for getting mugged, anywhere.
• Watch your health, drink bottled water, wine, soda, , whenever possible avoid tap water.
• Think twice if you feel you are being steered by someone on the street to a destination away from the main flow of foot traffic.

Colombia earn a bad reputation, but the situation has improved in recent years. When traveling through southern Colombia I rode some local riders and stuck to the main roads. I met some of them in Quito, Ecuador at a BMW dealership, but left ahead of them. The next day while stopping to take a photo, we connected again and rode north. They were on a schedule and so was I. One day I will to return to Colombia and explore off the beaten track. Its a beautiful country, the people are friendly and the economy is better than many of the South American countries.

Recently I joined friends on a commercial motorcycle tour in Peru. We rode a lot of one lane dirt roads with steep drop offs and no guard rails. Its a bit unnerving riding constantly next to the edge, until you change your focus. "Focus on where you want to go and the bike will follow. Don't focus on where you don't want to go..." Words to live by.

Shipping. I was going to tell you about the cheap rates by Air Canada, but you already found out. Call a few freight forwarders and tell them what you are want to ship. You'll need to provide the weight of your motorcycle and an estimate to the crate weight. Press them for details on all charges, including what it will cost to extract your motorcycle on the other end. Many travelers that ship hire a broker to guide them through the customs process. If you are prepared to crate your bike yourself, then you'll save money. The founders of Horizons Unlimited, Grant & Susan, built crates many times. I think it was mostly Grant, but Susan certainly provided moral support. Shipping by sea is cheaper, but takes more time. Its hard to beat the prices Air Canada is offering.

PS: I have never air lifted or shipped a motorcycle by sea container. I rode from NJ to Panama, sailed with the Stalratte to Colombia, then later sailed with the same from Colombia, Jamaica, Cuba and Mexico.

Buying a motorcycle outside of your home country raises the question, what are you going to do with it at the end of your trip? (assuming you ride it home.) If you ride it home, then you have to pay importation taxes. If you buy a bike in Chile, it won't be set-up for you beforehand, accessories are harder to find and potentially more expensive, you will be able to leave the bike in Chile without issues (leaving a foreign bike in Chile can be problematic, you can run over your temporary vehicle importation permit (TVIP) period, face fines, lose your bike, or pay storage fee in between countries or in a customs/bonded warehouse...its messy if you ask me.) Finally, some people have reported navigating their way through the legal process to buy a motorcycle and properly document same, within a reasonable amount of time. Assistance can be found to do this. Others ran into problems and encountered problems entering Peru (but not Argentina and other countries...) Getting all the correct paperwork which allows you to cross a border into another country is reported to be possible, but takes effort, time and money. Too many unknowns for me to consider. That said, if I was going to one large and fun country, where I didn't have to worry about crossing into another country, then buying a local bike would be on my radar.

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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