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