Finca Sommerwind

There are places along the PanAmerican Highway where overlanders gather and this is one of them. 

Matilda and Sammy from England bought their tiny Chinese-built N300 van from a traveling rock climber in Chile. It’s a basic bed space with outdoor kitchen, not enough room and prone to breakdown.

After Matilda finishes strangling the campground dog they have to get it back (the van) to Chile in August to sell it on to another intrepid traveler. It’s what European youngsters do in South America. And as previously illustrated their machine is tiny compared to ours. I gave Sammy a tour so he can get some ideas about their next home on wheels. 

Finn grew up in San Francisco but lives in Colorado and rides a BMW he rebuilt himself from a machine wrecked and given a salvage title. He is one of those wild travelers I admire (and fear) who seek out difficult dirt backroads. He hates the heat and humidity of the beach and stays in the mountains. He’s taken rooms in Quito because he also explores cities.  I hope we meet him again to find out what he has discovered. A bit of rain doesn’t bother him:

I didn’t get a picture of Olga without her helmet and it’s a shame because she is a totally capable world traveler. She grew up in Poland and has traveled alone all over the Far East living here and there and settled finally in Australia. She travels light and slept of the rain in one of Sommerwind’s cabins. I met her while I was walking Rusty in the rain and she was leaving. We had sat around the night before drinking German beer and talking. 

Florian the German mechanic who found our fuel hose problem has been living at this German campground for five weeks working for Hans the owner. His Volkswagen has no engine as the turbo charger broke and scattered metal into the engine wrecking it. 

He is waiting for parts from Germany while a machine shop in nearby Ibarra is repairing his crankshaft. He couldn’t find a new one and Ecuador doesn’t allow the import of refurbished crankshafts. Why? I doubt even the Ecuadorians who invented that stupid rule know why. 

He and his girlfriend hope to be back on the road in three weeks.

Americans will tell you never to tow a trailer in Latin America but this French family has come up from Argentina and are doing fine.

Mom and Dad have five kids and the Land Rover and trailer each. transform into a spacious roof top tent. 

The variety of vehicles on the road is surprising and we have met all sorts of vans trucks and cars pressed into service that we never see in the US. Taxes in Europe favor the use of diesel which is cheaper than gasoline but I prefer our gas powered Promaster over the diesel powered European versions of our van. 

 Miriam and David out of tiny Luxembourg say their Land Rover has trouble starting  from cold at altitude where the air is thinner. They’ve been two years on the road in South America and are an upbeat fun couple. Their route planning is “complicated” so who knows if we will meet again. 

We make a point of trying to get a photo and a bit of a bio of each traveler we meet partly for the memory and to have a reason to catch a piece of their story but also as a reminder if we meet them further down the road. 

Hans the owner of Finca Sommerwind (summer wind farm) has been in Ecuador married to a local for 14 years so he is well known to travelers and Ecuadorian authorities. He helped get us the flat bed and his restaurant is a place locals come to as well as travelers staying at Sommerwind. 

He helped a group of us plan places to see and avoid in Ecuador. Volcanoes, Amazon jungle, historic towns and safe beach areas are all on the list.

It’s a strange spot, next to a race track and driving school, across the lake from Cotacachi Volcano, with the town of Ibarra also across the water, who would come here if it wasn’t for Sommerwind? It’s an easy drive to the Colombia border, a place with all the facilities a camper wants, and even a place to store your vehicle if you want to dispense the summer with family in Europe.  

I never cease to be amazed how few Americans there are on the road. Europeans are far more at home down here. 

I am surprised  when I come across these characters who make homes for themselves far from home. Hans mangles some English but it’s not his comfort zone so I couldn’t really learn more about him.  This is a German hangout and perhaps I simply lacked the skill to be able to bridge the cultural gap. 

We are off today and I hope finally I shall cross the equator for the first time in my life. Not a huge feat as it’s about forty minutes south of here. But I have also heard the heavy rains have caused mudslides closing highways. We maintain our usual skill of causing chaos wherever we go. 

But go we do. 

Run and a campfire to keep out the nighttime damp. 

Finca Sommerwind, Ibarra, Colombia.