Journal on Gran Viaje

Uruguay

Sat, 28 Dec 2019 16:30:05 +0000

Chuy and Fortaleza Santa Maria

Chuy is a border town where the city is split in the middle between Brazil and Uruguay and a free trade zone. The border between Brazil and Uruguay is also divided – the Brazilian customs is north of Chuy and the Uruguayan customs south. Exiting and entering was quick and easy and Uruguay gives out a one year TIP (Temporary Import Permit) for the vehicle. Therefore many Europeans leave their campers in Uruguay over winter and go back to Europe.

Goodbye Brazil

Mon, 14 Oct 2019 18:06:12 +0000

Sao Paulo to Pico do Parana

After a surprisingly quiet night at the airport parking I got up early and headed towards the beach. Luckily there was barely any traffic and after a shockingly high toll I reached the coast. It was raining for the last week but the weather was now warm and sunny and I found a few nice places to camp and beautiful roads to drive.

Brazil IV – São Paulo II

Sun, 13 Oct 2019 19:50:27 +0000

Ubatuba

We spent 4 weeks mainly to get ourselves prepared to head home. Updated resumes, job applications, and a bit of beach time in between. Not a lot to report from our time other than Ubatuba living up to its nickname – Ubachuva, because of all the chuva (rain).

Top 10 Waterfalls

Tue, 24 Sep 2019 16:48:45 +0000

1. Cascada de Basaseachi, Mexcio

There was nothing not to love about this waterfall north of the Copper Canyon – the surrounding landscape, the rainbow, a hike down to the base and the free camping.

Top 10 Towns of Latin America

Wed, 04 Sep 2019 13:58:36 +0000

There are so many cute towns in Latin America and we will miss exploring them when home. We encountered photogenic town plazas, colorful streets, scenic backgrounds, street food served by friendly locals and so much more. It was hard to just name 10 of our favorites, but each has a unique quality that stands out in our memory.

Brazil 3 – Rio de Janeiro, City and State

Sat, 31 Aug 2019 17:42:38 +0000

Before we entered Brazil we waffled on whether or not to visit the most famous city here. It has a pretty bad reputation and has one of the world’s most famous slums… so would this be for us? We were drawn into the area by surrounding towns and mountains, so we made a quick stop and got just a touch of that Rio feeling.

Top 10 Hikes – Latin America

Fri, 30 Aug 2019 02:17:36 +0000

1. Laguna de Los Tres, El Chalten, Argentina

A classic in the heart of Patagonia with perfect weather and fall colors. Endless views on the trail and a destination that leaves you speechless. Read more here.

Brazil 2 – Minas Gerais

Thu, 29 Aug 2019 03:25:47 +0000

After a long drive from São Paulo we arrived in Minas Gerais. The district is about 10x the size of Switzerland and full of hikes, big cities, cute towns, spelunking and more.

Brazil 1 – Pantanal, Bonito and Iguazu

Mon, 12 Aug 2019 14:23:43 +0000

No border crossing is without its headaches. There’s always an element of an unknown going in – and for Brazil, it was the customs office lunch break. We got checked out of Bolivia quickly, received passport stamps for Brazil within minutes and headed over to get the TIP (Temporary Import Permit) for the car. We missed them by less than 5 minutes and had to wait 2 hours. On the plus side, no problems or hassles from authorities on either side.

Bolivia

Tue, 02 Jul 2019 15:04:36 +0000

San Pedro de Atacama

We spent a few days around Backpackers Central in Northern Chile. Tourist towns offer higher prices but often good foods we miss. The highlight of the town was the French bakery with amazing Pan au Chocolat and baguette. We visited a few spots near the town, mainly a couple viewpoints and flamingos. Pretty much all the spots you could wild camp at years ago are now only accessible if you book a tour from the city so it was overall a bit of a dud.

Argentina 3 – The Wild North

Sun, 16 Jun 2019 22:42:01 +0000

First up: Argentinian wine country! We are more beer drinkers, but never turn down a chance to try the local specialties and expand our horizons. A fairly long drive brought us into Mendoza, our first big city in months. We spent two days checking out the city, running in the park… and not drinking any wine.

Argentina 2 – Northern Patagonia and Lakes District

Wed, 29 May 2019 18:52:19 +0000

Torres del Paine was such a highlight that it was tough to head back north and backtrack through the Argentinian pampa. After the last few weeks, it was like coming off Cloud 9 and coming back reality. To soften the blow, we made one last hop into Chile to retrace one of our favorite stretches of the Carratera Austral and visit a couple villages we missed on the way South. We got to see the beautiful mountain peaks covered in snow this time which made the detour worth the extra pages in our passports.

Heart of Patagonia – Chile Part 3 & Argentina Part 1

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 21:33:15 +0000

Here we enter the border jumping portion of our trip! We now have pages of passport stamps from Chile and Argentina as well as a stack of export paperwork for Mitzi. Luckily, the border agents (with one minor exception) were all well trained and efficient. We probably spent more time at the border of Honduras than we spent on all the jumps between Chile and Argentina combined.

Chile 2 – Lakes District and The Carretera Austral

Thu, 04 Apr 2019 13:58:43 +0000

The Lakes District of Chile is a beautiful area between Villarica and Puerto Montt full of… Drum roll please… Lakes! Gorgeous blue lakes framing picturesque volcanos and other mountains. It’s a lively area that reminds us a lot of the Pacific Northwest.

The Long Drive to Santiago Continues

Wed, 13 Mar 2019 14:34:10 +0000

The border crossing to Chile had us worried beforehand because of strict import rules regarding food and animals. We spent a full day preparing paperwork for Mitzi and cleaning the car. We made sure to eat all our produce and other restricted items like honey. The border was super busy with holiday traffic and the agents seemed exhausted, so in the end we only got a cursory look over and we were sent on our way!

Peru 2 – Cordillera Blanca and a Change of Plans

Wed, 27 Feb 2019 23:46:26 +0000

While most people think of white sand beaches as their dream vacation getaway, we tend to see white mountain peaks as ours. It’s no surprise then that the Cordillera Blanca was front and center on our must see list in Peru. We arrived smack in the middle the rainy season, which lasts generally January through March. Generally mornings are dry, but evenings are rainy and the clouds are thick most of the day. In spite of the bad timing, we enjoyed this region and got to do some great hiking too!

Peru North

Mon, 18 Feb 2019 15:39:41 +0000

Yumbilla and Gocta Waterfalls

The border crossing to Peru was simple and fast, and the road to our first destination pretty calm and eventless. The towns we drove through were drab compared to what we’re used to so far on this trip. But the landscape was pretty spectacular, as were our first two major stops!

The coast, Cuenca and final days before Peru

Wed, 13 Feb 2019 00:10:52 +0000

Ayampe

We ended the last blog at 5100m below the highest volcano in Ecuador. So of course, next stop was to be the ocean! We haven’t been to the beach in a while, and spent a week with other travel friends in the tiny town of Ayampe. We didn’t do much beyond reading, playing in the water and watching the sunset.

Ecuador 3 – More Mountains and More Hiking!

Sat, 19 Jan 2019 22:03:51 +0000

Baños

In a valley below an active volcano is the resort town of Baños. It is a town well past its prime, with a number of abandoned buildings interspersed between the hotels and souvenir shops.

Ecuador 2 – Mountains and Hiking

Thu, 10 Jan 2019 02:13:36 +0000

Mindo

We had booked ourselves an AirBnB in Quito over the holidays and had a few days left to kill before heading into the city. We decided to visit Mindo and ran into our overland friends Megan & Tyler (and Marley).

Ecuador – Mitad del Mundo

Sun, 30 Dec 2018 15:47:51 +0000

We spent almost 2 hours waiting for an exit stamp out of Colombia, where it is complete understaffed chaos processing the Venezuelan refugees. There is one single person staffed to handle the hundreds (or thousands?) of people waiting to leave Colombia and head south.

Southern Colombia

Mon, 10 Dec 2018 01:54:51 +0000

Our last few weeks in Colombia were spent exploring a few final spots in the south. We had already passed the 3 month mark in Colombia and were eyeing Ecuador, so the only way to go was south!

Bogotá

Mon, 03 Dec 2018 20:45:32 +0000

From the Zona Cafetera, we had a couple of days to drive to Bogotá in order to meet incoming guests! Yolanda, who has been out to meet us in Belize and Honduras, and Hung, Rachel’s friend from college, flew in over Thanksgiving week to check out a bit of Colombia with us!

Eje Cafetero

Sat, 01 Dec 2018 14:12:42 +0000

The next stretch of road is one we’d been really looking forward to: Zona Cafetera. As an avid coffee lover (meaning a person you shouldn’t talk to before their morning coffee) the fields of coffee are a special kind of beauty to Rachel.

Medellín

Sat, 17 Nov 2018 01:49:13 +0000

We spent four weeks in Medellín to attend Spanish school and explore the city. Our Spanish school Colombia Immersion was wonderful and we can recommend them to anyone! It is a fun and interactive program where we spent plenty of time working on grammar but also working on conversation and having fun. We aren’t paid by the school, don’t worry! We just the liked them a lot.

Exploring Beautiful Boyocá

Thu, 08 Nov 2018 01:06:17 +0000

Iza, Dessert Capitol of Colombia

After burning tons of calories on the trails of El Cocuy, we found the perfect place to eat them back: Iza, dessert capitol of Colombia. This tiny village has 20 different shops all selling the same assortment of desserts. How do you pick a dessert shop when they’re literally all the same? You pick 2 at random and try out a few different cakes! The desserts aren’t worth a long detour, but if you’re already nearby it is worth a stop!

Iza, Boyacá7 photos

El Cocuy National Park

Tue, 16 Oct 2018 02:05:39 +0000

El Cocuy National Park is a high elevation gem tucked away in eastern Colombia. Although it is a stunning location, there aren’t too many tourists here. Access to the park is time consuming and it requires a bit of planning and money to organize the permits required to enter the park. In addition access to the park for tourists has been limited or completely blocked during the last 4 years. The popular 5 day trek through the park is completely closed and now only 3 day hikes are available. The day hikes are tough and scenic all day events, gaining 1000m or more and up to elevations of 4800m or more. The other catch keeping some people out is the requirement to have a guide, which costs around $40 (USD) a day on top of the entrance fee.

Adventures in Santander

Mon, 08 Oct 2018 02:39:55 +0000

Bucamaranga

Not only a fun city name, also a bustling metropolis! After yet another long drive day heading into Bucamaranga – we’re sensing a theme here – we got to enter the chaos of another Colombian city. Ben is getting pretty good at handling the traffic and apparent lack of rules, and Rachel is getting better at not screaming. We attempted to do some shopping in the city, but after getting turned around a few times, we finally arrived at our destination to discover we’re too tall for the garage. Then we headed about an hour east from the city to find a campsite, only to find the young girl working at that moment to be unhelpful and unwilling that we got frustrated and just left.

Colombia from Cloud Forests to Deserts

Sun, 30 Sep 2018 17:00:35 +0000

Our next stretch of road in Colombia took us to three very different climates: The cloud forests of Minca, the hot and humid swampiness of Mompox, and the dry deserts around Los Estoraques.

Colombia – Caribbean Coast

Sun, 16 Sep 2018 22:40:36 +0000

It only took 15 months and 50,000km, but we made it to South America!

San Blas Islands

Sun, 09 Sep 2018 00:40:31 +0000

Panama and Colombia are connecting by a thin peninsula of thick jungles and no roads. Getting a car around involved stuffing it in a container and putting it on a cargo ship. Getting ourselves around there were two options: Fly or Sail.

Shipping the Darian Gap

Tue, 04 Sep 2018 00:03:18 +0000

North- and South America are not connected by any roads, between Panama and Colombia is about a 150km stretch of jungle, the so called Darian Gap. Therefore, we have to ship our Landy to Colombia.

Panama

Wed, 22 Aug 2018 01:46:18 +0000

Before leaving Costa Rica, we stopped at a private Mirador (Viewpoint). The Mirador is run by a National Park Ranger and has two short but steep trails to a viewpoint. From there you have a beautiful view of the coast and with good weather we were told you can even see mount Chirripo. What we also saw on the hike were many green and black frogs, nearly completing our animals to see in Costa Rica list! The only ones we didn’t see were Quetzals, the elusive national bird of Guatemala we’ve been on the lookout for since months.

Costa Rica III

Wed, 01 Aug 2018 17:34:29 +0000

Part 3 of our adventures starts and ends back at the beach. We start on the Pacific coast, with a night of wild camping. We found some safer stretches of coast in this part of our journey and could enjoy something for FREE in Costa Rica! After all that complaining we did about prices in the last stretch, it was a nice change of pace.

Costa Rica II

Sat, 28 Jul 2018 23:10:19 +0000

We left the beautiful Nicoya Peninsula excited to see what the highlands of Costa Rica have to offer. The country has a lot of beautiful and exciting National Parks – that are both expensive and totally forbidden for dogs. Monteverde, which would have been the next stop, has $30 entrance fees per person plus a hotel room to leave the pup at while there, made this quickly drop from possible stops. Instead we drove a windy mountain road nearby, enjoyed the beautiful views, and continued on to Lake Arenal.

Costa Rica I

Fri, 20 Jul 2018 00:42:03 +0000

Costa Rica is an interesting place. It is a huge tourist destination and unlike the rest of Central America, it is full of people that speak English and steep entrance fees to see anything. After our tense drive through Nicaragua and the nervous weeks leading up to that, we were mostly excited to have made it safely to the Switzerland of Central America.

Nicaragua

Fri, 13 Jul 2018 01:03:32 +0000

Nicaragua was a very short visit for us. Because of the civil unrest we didn’t do any tourism and just drove through this beautiful country in two days. We met up with two other travelers near the Honduras/Nicaraguan border and convoyed through the country. We avoided all the big cities and most of the main roads so that we could avoid most road blocks. We started early and were at the border at 7am.

Honduras Part II

Mon, 02 Jul 2018 16:18:25 +0000

From Gracias, Honduras, where we had our first long streak of bad travel luck, we continued on through Honduras and found better luck ahead! We had a long drive through green hills and mountains to our next destination. We stopped in the town of La Esperanza stretch our legs, have coffee and do a little sightseeing. Little towns off the tourist route are often the most charming, and this one was no exception.

Honduras I

Fri, 22 Jun 2018 16:27:03 +0000

After a beautiful week in El Salvador and many in Guatemala, we had high expectations coming into Honduras. With fewer tourist highlights (meaning fewer viral Instagram photos), we weren’t sure what to expect.

El Salvador

Sun, 10 Jun 2018 21:55:34 +0000

El Salvador is a small country and we only explored a small portion of it, but what we saw was stunning. From the first day we felt welcomed, had wonderful coffee and food, and met so many warm and friendly people. Our week here is full of happy memories and we had full, happy bellies to match.

Guatemala Part II

Mon, 28 May 2018 20:34:56 +0000

Lake Atitlan is a stunning lake formed by an ancient eruption and now framed by three volcanoes. We spent a week at a lakeside campsite and could have stayed much longer.

Guatemala I

Thu, 17 May 2018 16:37:58 +0000

After only a half an hour drive from San Ignacio, we reached the border to Guatemala. Leaving Belize was a relatively quick process, and entering we got lucky with short lines and zipped through there as well.

You better Belize it!

Sat, 28 Apr 2018 00:32:40 +0000

Tucked into the Caribbean Coast between Mexico and Guatemala is the tiny country of Belize. It is officially an english speaking country, though most people have a different mother tounge – Mayan, Spanish, Kriol and many others. But everyone does speak English, and border immigration was all in English which made our two weeks here a bit easier.

Yucatán Peninsula

Fri, 13 Apr 2018 03:33:59 +0000

Here it is, our final blog post from Mexico! After 5 months and many kilometers, our final adventure was on the Yucatan Peninsula. After our time in the jungles of Chiapas, coming into Yucatan was a bit of shock.

Chiapas Part III: Mayan Ruins & More Waterfalls

Wed, 11 Apr 2018 22:48:42 +0000

From Frontera Corozal, we took an early morning boat with our travel buddies Tyler & Megan to the Mayan ruins of Yaxchilan. The boat is about 45 minutes along a river that forms the border between Mexico and Guatemala.

Chiapas Part II: Along the Guatemalan border

Fri, 16 Mar 2018 20:40:55 +0000

Two of the main stops for any overlander or tourist in Chiapas are San Cristobal de las Casas and Palenque. The direct highway that connects the two, 199, has a number of roadblocks set up by the Zapatistas.

Chiapas Part I: Aguacero, Sima de las Cotorras, Cañon del Sumidero and San Cristobal de las Casas

Fri, 16 Mar 2018 19:54:28 +0000

Chiapas is a spectacular state in Mexico full of waterfalls, wildlife and Mayan ruins. From the first day we were enamored by the region. Not long after crossing into Chiapas, we were waved over by a friendly guy that saw our Swiss plates and wanted to meet us.

Estado de Oaxaca

Sun, 11 Mar 2018 19:54:10 +0000

Our first stop in the state of Oaxaca was a reserve protecting Green Military Macaws, or Ara Militaris. The birds often return to a canyon in this reserve for the night and it is possible to see them through a guided hike in the late evening. While the hike was hot but beautiful, we only saw 2 Macaws from our viewpoint.

Zona Archeológica de Cantona

Sun, 11 Mar 2018 19:48:51 +0000

Cantona is a large and remarkable archaeological site that is much less visited than the other large sites of Mexico. Cantona was a large city with an area of approximately 12 square km and full of many pyramids and ball fields. The most significant feature is that these were all built without plaster or mud – just dry stone buildings. And for our visit, we only saw 6 other people in the 2 hours we explored this large area.

Izta, Popo & La Malinche

Sun, 04 Mar 2018 16:50:40 +0000

Just outside Mexico City are the two big volcanos Iztaccíhuatl (5230m) and Popocatépetl (5426m), also called Izta and Popo. They are respectively the 3rd and 2nd highest mountains in Mexico. They form a National Park and Izta can be climbed whereas Popo is closed due to volcanic activity.

Mexico City

Thu, 01 Mar 2018 17:54:55 +0000

From Teotihuacán looking towards Mexico City, you see a daunting thick cloud of smog. As you drive through the outskirts of the city, the sky seems to darken a bit as you enter that smog… and we thought, one or two nights will be enough here.

Teotihuacán

Thu, 01 Mar 2018 17:18:37 +0000

We have visited many archaeological sites at this point, from active excavations to well maintained sites with detailed museums. Now we were heading for probably the most famous site in all of Mexico, Teotihuacán. This city used to be home to over 100,000 people, making it the largest pre-Columbian American city, and one of the largest in the world at its time.

Querétaro and Hidalgo

Thu, 01 Mar 2018 17:17:23 +0000

After our long stay in Guanajuato, we were happy to hit the road the again. Our first stop was the city of Santiago de Querétaro. The town has a beautiful old city and long viaduct that used to transport water into the city.

Guanajuato and San Miguel de Allende

Mon, 05 Feb 2018 22:47:00 +0000

Ever since crossing the border to Mexico, we had been planning to stop for an extended period in Guanajuato to take Spanish lessons. We chose Guanajuato because of the city size and good reviews of the town from other travelers. Guanajuato was also on Lonely Planet’s Top 10 Cities to visit in 2018 – sounded like a good place to spend some time.

Nayarit and Jalisco Highlands

Wed, 24 Jan 2018 23:05:05 +0000

After a lazy Christmas along the Pacific Coast, we headed inland to Laguna Santa Maria del Oro, a beautiful crater lake. The lake and surrounding area were popular, but had a much more relaxed atmosphere than the coast and was mostly full of vacationing families.

Mexico – Durango, Sinaloa & Nayarit

Sat, 30 Dec 2017 17:37:35 +0000

After our exciting journey through the Copper Canyon, we made a few stops in cities inland and then headed back towards the warm coast for warmth and relaxing! Our first stop after Copper Canyon was the town of Hidalgo del Parral.

Barrancas del Cobre – Copper Canyon

Sat, 16 Dec 2017 00:53:16 +0000

The Copper Canyon in northern Mexico are a beautiful area often compared to the Grand Canyon.

Baja California Sur

Sat, 02 Dec 2017 18:08:17 +0000

Our first stop in Baja Sur was San Ignacio, an oasis in the middle of the desert. It was also our first glimpse of an old colonial mission built to convert the natives of Mexico. Although beautiful structures, the missions carry a sad history linked to European diseases that decimated native populations. We saw more of these missions along the peninsula, including the next stops in Mulege and Santa Rosalia.

Baja California Norte

Mon, 20 Nov 2017 19:39:24 +0000

The north half of the Baja peninsula offers a lot of varied scenery, from quiet sandy beaches to high sierra pines. We spent a week exploring this region after crossing the border in Tecate.

Southern California on the Beach

Mon, 20 Nov 2017 19:12:17 +0000

The closer to the beach you get, the more expensive the camping gets, so our stay here was quite short. We spent a couple nights in state parks along the ocean, but the noise from trains and cars led us to continue on south. A few highlights from our short stay around San Diego county were La Jolla cove and Mission Trails State Park.

8 photos

Joshua Tree and Inland SoCal

Wed, 08 Nov 2017 19:52:13 +0000

After a brief visit back to Switzerland to help clear the apartment and take care of administrative items, we are now all on the road – Ben, Rachel and Mitzi. After a 12 hour flight to LA, we spent two uneventful days in the city before heading out on the road again.

Equipment – What worked, what didn’t?

Sun, 22 Oct 2017 13:04:04 +0000

My initial plan was to use a tablet with Locus Pro for main navigation. However, on the way to Halifax I met two other travellers and they told me about the app Maps.me. I tried it and loved it immediately. So much easier to download the maps I need and the turn by turn navigation works most of the time.

Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park

Fri, 13 Oct 2017 02:53:32 +0000

Kings Canyon National Park has a lot to offer. First of all the road coming from Fresno (CA180) winds up from an elevation of 90m to about 1900m which is already quite impressive. From there the road goes further up before it drops down into the canyon at about 1300m meandering along the canyon wall.

Yosemite National Park

Wed, 11 Oct 2017 21:42:40 +0000

After the heat in Death Valley it was time for colder temperatures. My plan for the remaining two weeks until my flight back to Zurich was to enter Yosemite from the east side over the Tioga pass, spend two days in the famous Yosemite National Park and then visit Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park before driving to LA.

Death Valley

Fri, 06 Oct 2017 19:21:30 +0000

Entering the Death Valley via the Jubilee Pass is a great drive scenic with no body else on the road. Only after Badwater, the lowest point in the Unites States (85m below sea level) the crowds are starting to appear. The size, the dryness and the heat (105F/40C) in the valley is impressive. There are huge salt flats, canyons and colorful hillsides to explore. There is a Painters Drive leading through the most impressive parts. The hills are covered in all kinds of colors by the different minerals.

Grand Canyon, Mojave Desert

Fri, 06 Oct 2017 19:10:02 +0000

After a rather disappointing experience in Zion I drove straight to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Against all my expectations the Grand Canyon area is not warm end of September. One of the reasons for that is that the North Rim is at about 2400m elevation. Another fact I didn’t really know was that the Grand Canyon is not just one canyon but a huge area with many side canyons leading into the main canyon carved by the Colorado river.

Bryce Canyon National Park

Thu, 28 Sep 2017 23:20:10 +0000

Utah has been a highlight so far, but Bryce Canyon (which is in fact not a canyon) just blew me away. The colors of the hoodoos and the slots were simply amazing. I combined the Peek-a-boo- and Navajo-Trail for a hike. Even though it was quite cold the clouds and sun played an amazing light show with thousands of photo ops.

Capitol Reef and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument

Thu, 28 Sep 2017 23:11:20 +0000

Capitol Reef National Park was my first park in Utah. I arrived late in the afternoon and just camped at a very popular boon docking site just outside the park.

Nevada and Great Basin National Park

Thu, 28 Sep 2017 23:00:17 +0000

To get to all the famous National Parks in Utah and Arizona from California one has to cross Nevada. Most of Nevada is part of the Great Basin which is basically a series of mountains and valleys. However, the valleys aren’t nice lush meadows and creeks but huge, mostly flat dry land. I decided to take the US50 dubbed the “loneliest road in America”. The driving itself is very uneventful, even though there is more traffic then the name of the road suggests but one can get lost pretty nicely by leaving the US50 and hit one of the county roads.

Lassen Volcanic National Park

Wed, 13 Sep 2017 18:35:33 +0000

After visiting Mt. Hood and the Columbia Gorge (luckily the day before the Eagle Creek fire got out of hand) I went back to the Oregon coast to a) get out of the smoke again and b) to meet up with my friends Chris & Conny from Offroad-Travelers. First time we met was last November in Zurich to discuss our Panamericana plans. We both didn’t really know what to expect but I think this kind of traveling was everything we were hoping for and more!

Volcanos and Oregon Coast

Wed, 06 Sep 2017 18:51:57 +0000

I did not get around to write something useful, thus there are only pictures 🙂

Timelapse Atlantic to Pacific

Sat, 26 Aug 2017 19:54:00 +0000

00:00 – Hurricane Ridge, Olympic National Park 00:27 – Cascade River – North Cascades National Park 00:45 – Divide Mountain – Near Glacier National Park 01:19 – Cape Enrage – New Brunswick 01:39 – Lolo National Forest 01:57 – Skyline Trail – Cape Breton Highlands National Park 02:13 – Brier Island – Digby Neck 03:02 – Mount Rainier – Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest

North Cascades, Seattle, Olympic Peninsula

Sat, 26 Aug 2017 19:46:22 +0000

Following Highway 20 and some back country road detours I drove to the North Cascade National Park. Unfortunately the smoke from wildfires in British Columbia was my constant companion. However, what I saw from the North Cascades was really nice and reminded me a lot of the Swiss alps. Even though it was super smoky I had to do at least one hike. I chose the Cascade Pass hike and found a beautiful spot for the night on the Cascade river.

Missoula and Glacier National Park

Fri, 04 Aug 2017 03:24:03 +0000

After Yellowstone I drove further north to Glacier National Park but on the way there I stopped in Missoula to visit Rachel’s aunt and cousin. I had a great time there and they showed me an awesome place in the mountains where I decided to camp for the night. The sunset was fantastic, the smoke clouds from the wildfire nearby made it even more breathtaking. I also got some wildlife visitors but nothing that tried to eat me 😉 A bit later in the evening, the moon rose over the far mountains and another amazing picture opportunity arose!

Grand Teton and Yellowstone

Mon, 24 Jul 2017 19:49:08 +0000

I crossed into Wyoming via back country gravel roads and headed north to the Medicine Bow National Forest. The mountains in this National Forest reach over 3000 meters and the small lakes make it a very picturesque landscape. Again, there would be many hikes to explore but I only spent two days there, having some “off road” fun with old snow drifts that blocked several forest roads.

Colorado and Rocky Mountains National Park

Wed, 19 Jul 2017 16:03:17 +0000

The drive to Colorado Springs was smooth and not half as boring as everybody told me it will be!

Midwest and the Water Pump

Sat, 15 Jul 2017 19:39:08 +0000

It was time to head to the Mid-West and meet up with friends who used to live in Switzerland but moved to Kansas City end of last year.

Hiking, lots of water and other stories

Fri, 30 Jun 2017 00:34:38 +0000

More hiking was done in Lake Placid which is in the Adirondacks. In 1980 the Winter Olympics took place in this area. I spent three days around Lake Placid mostly hiking, but also doing laundry and shopping.

North East USA

Sat, 24 Jun 2017 14:47:13 +0000

After enjoying a few days in the Acadia NP I moved on and again followed the coast. The weather on Mt. Desert Island was rather cold and foggy, thus I sped up things a bit in drove down to Camden. A pretty down with a nice history center and of course good coffee shops, and a brewery.

Acadia National Park

Sun, 18 Jun 2017 17:37:32 +0000

My first stop in DownEast Maine was at the Acadia National Park. I stayed at the Blackwoods Campground in the NP for two nights. This way I had enough time to do a few hikes. There are over 120 miles of hiking trails in the Acadia NP.

New Brunswick

Sun, 18 Jun 2017 17:31:34 +0000

The coast of New Brunswick is very similar to Nova Scotia, it is after all just on the other side of the Bay of Fundy. Nevertheless it has quite a few unique attractions to offer. For example the tide formed Hopewell Rocks. For once my timing was perfect and I got down to the ocean floor at the end of the low tide, thus I could take pictures without the crowds 🙂

Nova Scotia II

Tue, 13 Jun 2017 23:38:44 +0000

Cape Breton Highlands National Park

To get to Cape Breton, I decided to follow the coastal road along the Eastern Shore. From the Bay of Fundy I quickly traversed the land with a stop near Halifax to stock up groceries and to do some laundry, boring everyday tasks have also to be done while traveling. Why did nobody warn me?!

Nova Scotia

Wed, 07 Jun 2017 19:02:43 +0000

Everybody knows of the stereotype that Canadians are the friendliest people on earth and after a week in Nova Scotia I can tell you it’s true, at least for the Nova Scotians! Every day I meet strangers who are curious and want to learn what I am up to with this strange vehicle[1]. Sometimes they don’t even want to talk to me, one guy in the car in front of me paid my ferry ticket and all he said was “Welcome to Nova Scotia!”. Crazy!

Welcome to Canada (or how to get a car out of a container)

Sun, 04 Jun 2017 21:54:06 +0000

TL;DR: Scroll down.

After an uneventful flight to Halifax but a rather lengthy chat with the immigration officer I was finally in Canada! I am not sure why I always get the extra treatment at the border, is this a sign of things to come? Let’s hope not! Anyway, they let me in!

While the Landy is away…

Tue, 30 May 2017 23:13:23 +0000

A lot happened in the month between the shipping date and Ben’s departure to Halifax. While we wait for the Ben to take possession of the Landy on the other side of the ocean, we thought we would fill you in on all that has happened.

Shipping Date Arrived

Wed, 03 May 2017 21:32:01 +0000

On April 27. shipping day snuck up on me. Almost everything I planned was completed, but some bits and pieces were still missing. Guess I do have to check a bag on the flight to Halifax…

Adventures in Südtirol

Mon, 17 Apr 2017 17:24:56 +0000

Easter weekend was the last big adventure with the Landy before it ships to Halifax! After a lot of consideration and checking of weather reports, we packed up our stuff and the dog and headed Southeast to Südtirol.

The Last Vacation

Wed, 05 Apr 2017 19:09:03 +0000

What to do with all the untaken vacation days from work? Well, take them before leaving the company and put them to good use!

One Month Until Shipping Day

Mon, 27 Mar 2017 16:00:36 +0000

One month until the Landy will be stuffed into a container and shipped over the ocean! Luckily the car is almost ready and the first test in Ticino went very well. Biggest issue: Figure out where to store what so that the things we need often are easily accessible!

Camping Weekend In Ticino

Sun, 26 Mar 2017 22:34:42 +0000

To celebrate all the new developments, we took the Landy out for a trial run in Ticino. First we stopped in Lavertezzo for a picnic lunch and some sightseeing. Lavertezzo is a beautiful village famous for the double arch stone bridge Ponte dei Salti and the old church Madonna degli Angeli. The sun was shining and we enjoyed some time along the river.

First Flight Mavic Pro

Sun, 05 Mar 2017 18:49:01 +0000

The last time I flew a quadrocopter was in Norway in 2014 and there I almost crashed it into the sea… Today I tried my luck again with the new DJI Mavic Pro. It’s a super compact drone which comes with a gimbal and a 4k camera. There are worlds between the Phantom 2 and this thing, technology is amazing!

Well, all the technology doesn’t make good videos, and I have much to learn. You can see the result of todays flight below, I guess it’s ok for my first try 🙂

Bits And Pieces

Sun, 26 Feb 2017 17:58:12 +0000

I’ve completed many small things this week. First of all the light in the back is mounted and wired. The LED lamp is super bright I might have to cook with sun glasses when it’s dark 8)

More Storage Space

Sat, 18 Feb 2017 18:25:40 +0000

Time to make a big hole into my Landy! I know, I know, Land Rovers are leaky enough, why would you add another hole? It’s easy, I want more storage space! But I am really not a fan of make holes into cars… There’s a reason I like to work with computers, when you break something, you just reset and everything is back to normal. That doesn’t work with metal and a disc grinder. So after measuring at least three times, I marked the outline and measured again. And again. And then I got down to action.

Coleman Stove

Sat, 11 Feb 2017 15:01:07 +0000

I am using a Coleman stove since years and was always quite happy with it, thus I’ll also take it with me for the Panamericana. It is powered by unleaded fuel and has two flames, therefore stove is quite big and needs a good place while not in use. The panel on the rear door which, when opened will be used for cooking, has the space required to also house the stove.

Shipping: Check; Flight: Check

Mon, 06 Feb 2017 20:29:33 +0000

Finally I know when I’ll leave Switzerland and the journey begins!

The container ship will arrive in Halifax at the 16. May. I will fly to Halifax on the 13. from Zurich via Frankfurt. I booked a room via Airbnb until the 19. I hope to get the car on the 18.

It still feels surreal but with every step it get more and more real!

Source: https://flic.kr/p/56uiGA

Weekly Update

Sun, 05 Feb 2017 14:25:21 +0000

Another week has passed, less than 80 days until last day at work!

Not much happened this week because I was on-call and I had to bake cake with my godchild on Saturday which was a lot of fun. Gotta spend some time with her before leaving, I already know that I’ll miss her! Nevertheless, I was able to get some things done. The solar control unit behaved a bit funky after my last weeks work on the electrics. Turns out reading the manual is not such a bad idea. You have to plug the cables into the device in a certain order to make it work. Well…. Who could have known? 😀 I rebuilt the mounting bracket for the fridge, it worked but just didn’t feel right, now I have a much nicer solution that won’t chafe the tension ratchet used to pull the fridge down.

Another Landy Update

Sun, 29 Jan 2017 16:59:43 +0000

Another busy day in the barn 🙂 The power distribution is installed and ready to get some load! The water hose is also installed including the outlet in the back for cooking and cold showers, plus the whole interior is back in the car.

Because the original mounting kit for the Engel fridge is ridiculous expensive in Switzerland, I create customer one. I basically replaced the handles with an aluminum bar that can be used to tighten the fridge down. Saved about a $100, I guess this solution is good enough.

Still a Long Way to Go

Sun, 22 Jan 2017 17:01:26 +0000

Showing off the new rims

Yesterday the first steps have been completed. I finished insulating the interior, prepared the place where the water tank will sit and the in- and outtake valves. I was amazed by how quite the new BFGoodrich AT tires are compared to the MTs I had before. You can actually here different type of tarmac now, it’s almost like a normal car now! 😀

Everything Falls Into Place

Tue, 17 Jan 2017 10:03:53 +0000

More and more all the pieces fall into place: I’ve finally found an agency that will insurance my car for USA and Canada (more on this later), I have health insurance for five years and the car shipping is also organized. I will have a 40′ HC container, in case you want to ship your car to Halifax in April, let me know and we can share the container!

In addition to that, yesterday I got a huge delivery of parts that now all need to be installed in the Landy. Think of safe electric distribution, water pump, and other amenities. There’s still some additional administrative work to do but an end is in sight (I am looking at you taxes!).

Bye 2016, Hello 2017

Mon, 02 Jan 2017 15:51:56 +0000

After a turbulent 2016 I am looking forward to the year where my travels start.

In roughly four months I will leave an environment that is familiar, friends, a secure job and a beautiful country. Sometimes this is really intimidating, sometimes it feels like heaven 🙂

What did I learn in 2016?

Trust your instincts
Change is hard
Nothing goes according to plans

My new year resolution?

Trust in people
Don’t worry too much
Be grateful for being able to travel

I hope your year will bring joy, some excitement and time to appreciate life.

USA B2 Visa Process

Tue, 20 Dec 2016 18:43:38 +0000

Today I went to Berne for the Visa interview at the US Embassy. For other fellow travellers who plan to visit the US for more than three months, I wrote down this summary of the process.

First of all, the people working at the embassy were all super friendly and were genuine excited about my plans, I did not expect that.

Preparation

The first step is to fill out the DS-160 form, and believe me, that’s the hardest part of the whole process! It took me about an hour to complete the form. Luckily you can save the progress and continue later, for example when you have to hunt down some documents (it’s been many years since I was in the military…) or get a photo. When you completed the form, you have to pay a visa fee of $160, this cannot be done with a credit card but there are multiple online banking options. After paying the fee, you’ll get a code that you need to schedule an appointment at the embassy.

The interview takes place in Berne in the embassy. There they will check your plans and make sure you do not intend to stay in the US longer than the visa allows. To make this easy, you should bring some supporting documents. I brought the following items:

- An overall map of both Americas with the points of interests I want to visit
- A more detailed plan with a route of my plans for the United States
- Bank account statements to show that I have the financial means to support myself during the stay
My current work contract

Keep in mind that you are not allowed to bring any electronic equipment into the embassy, print out everything 🙂

The Interview

I registered an appointment at 9am and when I arrived at 8:40 there was already quite a long queue outside of the embassy. It took me about 50 minutes to get to the first station where the passport and all supporting documents are put into a clear folder and a few questions about your plans are asked.

Next up is the security check, same procedure as on any airport with the difference that you have to power off your smartphone before entering and you will leave it at the security checkpoint. After that a second clerk is waiting to ask more or less the same questions and take your fingerprints. Here I had to wait another 15 minutes.

The last booth is the actual interview, which to my surprise was super quick. He asked me again about my travel plans, then he browsed through the rest of the papers, I gave some fingerprints again and got the final “Your visa is approved and will be sent to you in the next few days”. Waiting time was another 45 minutes, so all in all I spent roughly two hours in the embassy and maybe five minutes of them I was actually talking with somebody 😀

I think having a map of my plans printed out helped quite a bit. Working for a big American cooperation might have helped too but I got only asked twice about it, and one of the questions was if I plan to continue working there afterwards (I don’t).

Black Ice on Seealpsee

Sun, 18 Dec 2016 21:24:36 +0000

After watching Rogue One* on Saturday evening with my brother I decided to flee the birthday party going on in the shared apt, got my camera equipment and drove to Wasserauen. Arriving at 2am I noticed that I wasn’t the only one with the same idea, there were at least two other campers at the parking. I set my alarm to 6am and went for a cold nap. Note to myself: Should it get colder than 0• I need some additional layers 😀

Emergency Communication

Thu, 15 Dec 2016 10:27:59 +0000

I’ve updated the Equipment page with some information about my means to call for help in the case of an emergency. Happy reading!

Alea Iacta Est!

Mon, 12 Dec 2016 21:52:08 +0000

I decided where to start: I will ship to Halifax! Current items that are in progress:

Get a car insurance for the USA (easier said than done!)
Get quotes for shipping the car (Container or RoRo)
Multiple adjustments to the car.

A New Chapter in the Landy Life

Sat, 03 Dec 2016 18:55:22 +0000

After a very long drive I arrived at Huberts workshop on Friday at 3pm. I was lucky and there where no traffic jams on the road, thus there was plenty of time left to put the new interior into its place. A few things had to be adjusted to the internal roll cage but otherwise everything fit perfectly. Four hours later we were done and the Landy looked much more like a mobile home 🙂

A New Plan?

Wed, 23 Nov 2016 19:05:53 +0000

Going to Argentina in May is not such a good idea. Going to Colombia in May is a bit better, but since I want to see all of the Americas I would have to drive all the way to the south and back up again – which could be fun but also takes a lot of time. Therefore I was thinking about a new plan: I could ship to Halifax.

First Flight!

Sat, 19 Nov 2016 20:24:23 +0000

After three days of rain I could finally take off for the first flight of my newest photography equipment, a DJI Mavic Pro quadcopter. Compared to my old DJI Phantom 2 this is a quantum leap in capabilities and quality. This stuff is awesome!

How does this work again?

Where There Is No Doctor

Sat, 12 Nov 2016 19:37:02 +0000

Today I went to ATW for a one day class dubbed “Where there is no doctor”. This was a very interesting day and I learned a lot. It has been fifteen years since I took the mandatory first aid class to get a driver license and even just refreshing the basics felt good. But also a bit more advanced topics where covered. For example this poor little tangerine had to take my amateurish attempts to set a drip infusion, but I did well and it didn’t die ;). There was a lot of information that I have to digest and my travel pharmaceutical list is getting longer and longer. I hope I’ll never use it!

A New Temporary Home

Thu, 10 Nov 2016 20:38:45 +0000

Today I found a new home! From the 16th. November on I will be living in a shared flat in Wollishofen, five walking minutes from my workplace. The room is spacious and my flat mates seem to be easy going. There’s even private parking where I can work on the car from time to time. The current room owner will be travelling latin america for a few months and will be back by May. Perfect timing!

Good and bad news

Wed, 09 Nov 2016 22:21:56 +0000

Bad news: Trump got elected. WTF America?

Good news: The interior will be ready before January and the first pictures are very promising! Can’t wait to see it in the Landy!

Hello World!

Mon, 03 Oct 2016 19:11:06 +0000

This is it! The first blog post! Starting from today, I am going to regularly write what happened until the journey starts beginning of May. The current planning is the following:

✓ Planning phase, figuring out all the insurance stuff
Let my employer know that I’ll quite my job
Figure out shipping
✓ Figure out what to do with my apartment
Prepare my Landy
Book flight
Pay taxes
Leave 🙂