Ushuaia!
We made it to Ushuaia! After riding (and pushing) our bicycles 24.267 km through North, Central and South America we reached this windy, and cold city at the end of the American continent. And it felt good!
19 months ago we left the town of Inuvik in the Canadian Arctic and have been cycling South ever since. We rode through 15 countries where we met lots of truly amazing people who have helped us in many different ways. We heard endless warnings to not go further towards the next country or even the next town as it would be dangerous. But we kept on riding and it was fine. Sure, shit happens and people do get robbed and that really sucks (we got robbed in the USA). But I would say that most people in the world are good. Stop listening to the media and all that BS propaganda, head out there and see for yourself. We made friends with many other long distance cyclist along the way, awesome and inspiring people. Some of these friendships I am sure will last for a long, long time. In short, it was a hell of a ride. It was challenging and rewarding all at the same time.
The endless, windy pampa of Tierra del Fuego.
It certainly is a privilege to be able to undertake a journey like this. Most people on this planet still live their lives in deep poverty and struggle to survive. We have it pretty easy here in the Western world, and we should never ever take this for granted. Drinking water from the tap, a hot shower at any time of the day, a dry and warm place to sleep, a kitchen where you can cook without having sand blasted into your dinner, live seems so easy now. It is important to sometimes get outside of your comfort zone and head out into the unknown (which doesn’t have to be far away).
We had a hotel booked for four nights in Ushuaia and of course our flights. So there was no diddl-daddling around over the last two weeks. It was a hard push with lots of wind that just seemed to be trying to prevent us from getting to Ushuaia. A highlight for both of us on this last stretch was to be able to see king penguins at a penguin reserve. They had the ugliest, cutest chicks hiding under their fat belly sacks – adorable!
The ugliest and cutest little penguin chicks! They were usually hidden under their parents' fat belly.
Our last day was not as enjoyable as we had hoped.The weather turned out horrible, rain and an ice cold head wind escorted us all day long while we were inching our way closer to the end. We were ready to throw our bikes into the ocean, once we got that photo at the famous „Ushuaia – End of the World“ sign.
„Well, I guess this is it“ – we tried to smile at each other despite frozen faces. I think at that point we haven‘t fully processed the fact that it is over, just like that. We hugged and kissed and both just felt really happy and relieved! Standing here at this sign together after 19 months of riding through deserts, mountains, jungles, blistering heat and freezing cold, rain storms and hurricanes, fighting dogs and mosquitoes – it means a lot.
„Well, I guess this is it“ – we tried to smile at each other despite frozen faces. I think at that point we haven‘t fully processed the fact that it is over, just like that. We hugged and kissed and both just felt really happy and relieved! Standing here at this sign together after 19 months of riding through deserts, mountains, jungles, blistering heat and freezing cold, rain storms and hurricanes, fighting dogs and mosquitoes – it means a lot.
Most of our cycling friends will be finishing as well in the next few weeks, sadly we will miss them. It was a strange feeling to stash our bicycles in our little apartment, put on normal cloths (even though Nyle loves his spandex) and be "normal“ people again for a while. But we were ready – ready to be done and move on and do something else. Ready for the next adventure.
A welcome wind break somewhere out there.
Even though this trip is over, the people we met, the places we visited, and this huge amount of experiences we share will last us a lifetime – and something really special is that we created those memories together. There hasn’t been a day where one of of us isn’t saying ‘Do you remember this and that?’ and then we talk and laugh about these memories. For me this is the biggest reward, an endless pool of shared memories and experiences that no money in the world could buy.
This whole undertaking wouldn’t have been possible without the support and love of our families and friends and the many people we met on the road – THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to all of you!
We thought this would be a good place and time to get married! So we did - just the two of us at the end of the pier and some rings that Nyle bent out of bicycle spokes. King crab dinner and champagne used up the last of our pesos, well spent we figured.
Happy Ending :)
Happy Ending :)
Just Married :)