Saturday, April 12, 2008

THE BEST OF LIST IS HERE!!!!

ladies and gentleman, boys and girls brace yourselves for the "best of" list!!! this is a behind the scenes look at our incredible adventure....

and in no particular order we commence.

BEST:

campspots--with over 90 sleeping experiences, here are the best: our first night in the andes with Luisa, the rock beach in bariloche, lago steffen, the last night in chile, the river alumine, spanish boys spot, camping with eva.


lago steffen

last night in chile.

shower (sorry, no photos!): coyhaique (at agustin's and lucas' house!!), junin, and the farm in el bolson

hostel: punta arenas, villa amenguael (after a long rainy day!), junin

desperate meals: mayo crackers, oil and salt bread, raw potato with oil and salt

meals: "mr. beef", norma's house, bulgoki (for leah's birthday), hamburger buddies, potluck with the spanish boys

shared snacks: "cookie with 8", crackers with frederico and "a kari" in el bolson

cuppa coffee: with agustin and lucas in the abandoned bus shelter (quite possibly the best of my life)!!

mate experience: cutral-co with the police officers, the RV people at lago steffen, at the end of the "magic road"

sunset: at luisa's house, with loni by the river, lago faulkner, bariloche, and "bomba"


"bomba"


lago faulkner


bariloche (also a favorite campsite)


"loni river day"

sunrise: luisa, "bomba", last day in chile, ranch, lago steffen (sorry, no pictures...sometimes it was hard enough just to get up!)

stretch of road: "bob" sandwich day into manihuales, national park with loni, ruta 46, "penguin road", "wrong turn road", quelat park, 1st part tierra del fuego, big climb day with chilean boys.


chilean boy day


wrong turn day


manihuales day

most memorable ripio (gravel roads): truly the best: tierra del fuego, loni park day, seno otway
truly the worst: F-- day by trevelin, on the way to la Junta, "martin/ angostura day"

new songs (created by us on the open roads): "i am not a hippie", "o-town", "john lenon/tigger medly", "como te llamas", "my chamois has a first name"

accidents with language: "tu cabesa es loco" (your head is crazy), "pegar" (to hit) instead of "pagar" (to pay), "sopa" (soup) for jabon (soap), "tenador en la calle" (fork in the road which is not an idiomatic expression in spanish)

descent: 2nd on 46, 1st on 46, to el bolson, 15 switchback descent, junin gravel day


2nd on 46

wind: (tail wind): "miracle tailwind day" into zapala, tolhuin crosswind day

bad advice: "there's this secret road..."

beer experience: the flavia, ethan broken rib day in the park, the walk with flavia back to the ranch, junin


ethan in the park moments before he broke his rib on that very bottle!

beer: austral, quilmes, artisenal beer in bariloche

gift: mate mug, trophy from norma, mate, bread at cutral-co, gift from street vendors, chocolate from spanish boys, chocolate from jose at the ushuaia sign, juice from jorge, peaches from alfonso, pastries in tolhuin

comfort on road/luxury items: powdered milk, hot coco, thermoses, margo, whiskey, sesame oil, nutritional yeast, my space pen, nutella

catch phrases: "por favor", "nunca te rindas", "yo pienso, yo puedo", "what is going on here", "todo es possible", "nobody matter you", "porque no?", "Let's eat the @#*$ outta that!", "we are survivors", "these are the good old days", you can't handle the truth"

speechless moments: cuppa coffee in bus stop day, when cari and leah received these ugly earrings as presents, norma torphy moment, the top of every mountain pass.

marriage proposal: alfonso at neuquen, bus driver in los antigos

stream/river/lake: rio azul, rio futalafu, lago steffen, laguna blanca stream, laguna verde


laguna verde


rio futalafu

place to meet people: bridges

piece of gear (or gear we were so glad to have): waterproof stuff sack, space pen, "baby" (the 10 liter water bag), zip ties, ear plugs

piece of gear we never needed (and thankful for it): first aid kit, space blanket, spokes, brake cables

lost gear: sunglasses (x 3), top of leah's bell, towel, binoculars

"pig out": junin (we each ate an entree at a restaurant and then ordered a pizza to share, chapparos, at norma's house

ruined gear: bob trailer, cari's brake levers, cari's head lamp, water filter, crocs, all our clothing, "poop shovel", jude's derailleur, cari's kickstand, jude's topeak pump

new discovery: mate, dulce de leche, empanadas, frutigran, the knife/spoon tool, dr. bronners as toothpaste, bob trailer as grill, "cindy meal", paint thinner as gas, leah's flat bread

books: "cloudstreet" by tim winton, and "the hobbit" by tolkein

most looking forward to: no chamois!!! jubelale in rachel's fridge, music, down blankets and beds, watching a movie and in general to experience simple comfort

what we'll miss most: meeting new people, being special, can't live outside, not knowing what is around the next bend, hunger--real deep hunger, dulce de leche, knowing the time by the sun, moon and stars, the simplicity of just being

well, that concludes the list...hope it makes you laugh. i'll publish my short story soon. and a sincere thank you to everyone we met on our trip for the never ending kindness. and for the readers of this fine blog...thanks for sharing the adventure.

jude.

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