The Island is laced with old tracks in variable states of flooding and sometimes quite overgrown. We climbed up Cerro Carancho and then took the often visited Dientes de Navarino route which provided stunning camping and views down to Isla Hornos. The island is expensive to stay on with the cheapest option in Puerto Williams a simple but welcoming campsite at 15,000 pesos/pp/night, so it is good to plan as many nights camped on the trails (free) as possible. Weather windows are notoriously short here in this subantarctic latitude which can mean rapidly changing conditions, snow in summer and high winds. It is not uncommon for visitors to only have a day or two of even remotely 'good' weather per week. It is sad to see the huge environmental damage caused by introduced beavers on these islands with their enormous dams from felled forests and the consequent flooded grasslands.
We left our bicycles in Punta Arenas so we could fly back from Isla Navarino, ride them the two days to the southern road end of contiguous continental South America at Cabo Froward and then pack them up for the flight home.
Overall we are glad we did this slightly different finish to the traditional route as both Isla Navarino and Cape Froward (actually San Isidro, Froward is several days dangerous coastal hike further south) felt far more remote and spectacular for a finish point. We would highly recommend the Yaghan ferry provided you catch the afternoon departure from Punta Arenas in good weather so as to time views of the glaciers during the daytime. And so ended our travels in South America, our bicycles lasted well carrying us across deserts, through chaotic cities, through temperatures from -10'C to +42'C, in winds up to 120kph, up to 5000m and back down to the ocean.
We haven't tallied up the distance but we only replaced one tyre with the other three still going strong after what must be now 12,000km. The only puncture we noticed was when crashing into an acacia bush and sustaining 5 at once which all sealed instantly. In the gear review posts there is far more detail on what worked and what didn't but overall we were very lucky to get through such wide ranging and harsh conditions without major injury, breakdown or even robbery.
We came from a background of a good baseline mostly hiking/tramping fitness, but only one longer cycle tour through New Zealand at a recreational pace and otherwise no serious long distance cycling experience. Most of the other cyclists we met on this trip had similar backgrounds, planning their gear fastidiously ahead of the trip, so as to be adaptable and self-sufficient, building some basic fitness and then building up their actual cycling experience on the route itself with a slow and steady start not too far from civilisation before graduating to more adventurous routes. It is quite straightforward to buy a decent touring bike from others ending their trip in the country but to be sure of bike fit and understand your components is absolutely vital preparation for more remote trips, so I would advise bringing your own. We can only comment on cycling through the south of South America given starting in La Paz, Bolivia, but it strikes us as the ultimate way to experience the less accessible regions away from the bus routes where the intensely varied culture and landscapes come to life. There is a wealth of recent information available now across iOverlander, the Whatsapp cycling groups and blogs such as Highlux Photography, Tumbling Diaries and Drawing Lines on Maps.
We are enormously indebted to the help we received from other cyclists online and on the roadside, all of the immensely generous locals sharing their time, tools or food to help us out when best laid plans fell apart, despite them often having such a basic subsistence themselves. We look forward to repaying these favours and generosity when we settle back ourselves, providing for the cold, tired and hungry cyclists that head our way.
For now it's back to New Zealand to progress our training and careers but someday we'll be back to make our way northward into the Amazon, this time perhaps not in rainy season!
