Señor Vánchez is gone. We were both shattered when we signed over the papers for him last week. None of this would have been possible without him. You could not have asked for any more out of that little white van than what we put him through and to say he got the job done is a massive understatement. The best car either of us have ever owned without a shadow of a doubt. I wish we could have shipped him home for the next journey.

          

Early days, adding the finishing touches with Adam and dealing with the fuel situation in far Southern Chile.

          

Southern Chile in Señor Vánchez. Dirt roads with endless potential.

Southbound to the end of the world. Ruta 40, Patagonia.

          

Beth stretching her legs on a beautiful Patagonian morning, and long dusty days…

          

Still tripping out over these photos… without Señor Vánchez, the sense of accomplishment that came with arriving in such a remote and special place at the bottom of the world would surely not have been the same. One of the best days of the trip and our lives for sure. Cerro Fitz Roy, Argentina. Still cant believe how windy this part of the world is!

          

Chubut Argentina, very remote and amazing scenery. One of Beth’s favourite towns Camarones on the left, and searching for waves in the Atlantic (or lack thereof) on the right.

Patagonia got the best of Señor Vánchez, with horrible roads it was only a matter of time until something rattled loose. Turned out it was the exhaust that finally gave way. We paid the mechanic a hefty tip when his hour of hard work and perfect weld job amounted to the Argentine Peso equivalent of 7.50 AUD. Really helpful friendly guy. Camarones locals are the best.

Heading north through Chile, camping in the Atacama. Happy days on the road.

          

Pisagua, Northern Chile. A ghost like town a long way from anywhere.

The road in to Pisagua. Breakdowns would not be ideal in this part of the world…

On the Bolivian border, Lauca NP is an amazing place. I had never heard of it until we were in Northern Chile. Turned out to be an amazing detour and our highest point of the trip. Breathless at around 4700m in altitude. He made it up some damn big hills this day.

Last week before we said goodbye to our loyal little white van. I hope we see him again some day somewhere on this earth…you never know. Señor Vánchez, we already miss you mate. See you in the next life!

This is it! We fly out in two days and reality is starting to set in. Life changing trips don’t come along very often but we have learned a lot about ourselves and each other since setting out in December and underneath all of the driving, laughs, new friends, MASSIVE blowups/arguments, setbacks, amazing waves, language barriers, bureaucracy, hospitality, breakdowns, Llamas, desert landscapes, The Andes and Patagonia. Our journey through Chile, Argentina and Peru has definitely changed us in a way that I can’t describe…it just has. Get out there and do it!

Adios…or Hasta Luego, We’re not sure which.

b+m