Overlanding

In the US driving around on dirt roads in the wilderness is usually described as overlanding. In other English speaking countries overlanding is variously defined and the best summary I can think of is “travel to foreign countries by vehicle.” I’m of the opinion that a bicycle is a vehicle in this context where walking is not. And don’t think people don’t walk the PanAmerican. The latest I saw was from a post by an acquaintance we met in Mexico years ago. Neil is still in Central America and met this guy. Is he an overlander..?

The definition of overlanding came to mind when a German camper here in the municipal campground at Malargüe I was talking to a European traveler and they explicitly said local van and camping travelers are not overlanders. We were talking on some other subject but that passing mention got me to thinking. I guess traveling your own country isn’t overlanding. Maybe.

A Victorian saying went “Travel broadens the mind,” and though I der stand and appreciate it’s intent you would be amazed how narrow some minds are that we encounter. I for instance would not lay down my life to defend the overlander definition I set out above. But I see people even in this most innocuous of pastimes, basically going for a drive, getting annoyed over the subtlest things.

Nationality is fraught with peril. Germans stick together, French stick together and Swiss stick together by language. Tell a German-Swiss they ideal German and you will see fireworks. Their dialect is a whole different language and identity. And even if you meet them in Tierra Del Fuego in the middle of absolutely nowhere they will get quite sniffy about that faux pas. I won’t make that mistake again.

I introduce myself in French to French and Swiss overlanders and the response I get is surprise to meet an American who speaks French. Granted I’m an immigrant but the US has a population of 320 million with many immigrants from all over the place. And yet…

We have met a handful of Americans on the road but not many. One notable encounter in Peru involved an American family and a German couple who nearly came to blows in the campground over their cats. Most extraordinary thing I’ve seen and we tried to stay neutral but the Americans were having none of it. We met them later nearby the border with Chile and they camped as far as they could from us. 

On the beach in Argentina we saw a Promaster approaching, a vehicle we caught a glimpse of when we crossed  paths on a highway in Patagonia. They drive past our wild camp slowly as you do on a track, stared at us and kept going. It turned out they were going to join the American cat family who had caught up with us and as has become a pattern parked as far away as they could. And yet they too feel the isolation. 

Granted we don’t have kids and are old farts but still the cat family appears not to have forgotten their rather bad behavior in Peru. Not that we talk about it and they did ask us for help getting papers for their cat border crossing. We explain the procedure we had done for Rusty and they never spoke to us again. 

Of course we have met plenty of people compatible with us whose stories I have told here and there are lots of people with whom we just don’t mesh or whose paths lead them in a different direction. That’s the nature of being a nomad. But we have seen enough weird interactions including those not involving us directly that I’m always leery of meeting overlanders.

I have to consider that I may possibly have set out on this journey being rather naive, my usual self. We cane on the PanAmerican to fulfill our curiosity and with retirement funding our trip we don’t need to chase views and fulfill expectations of an Instagram hungry audience. But I had expected more from my fellow travelers. 

When we sailed Central America at the turn of the century we similarly had some odd encounters but we made life long friends too. Layne is very good at keeping in touch and just showed me pictures of a German couple we met in Peru now touring Australia in a locally purchased 4 x 4. The internet is always a curse and a blessing.

I was provoked to think these thoughts as we are now moving away, at last in my opinion, from the regular circuit. The normal route is to converge on Montevideo at the end of summer, now through May and ship your vehicle. Some store there vehicle’s planning to return in the Fall but most have jobs and families to return to. We have neither so we plan to see the bits we skipped in the way down, northern Argentina, Bolivia, Cuzco in Peru and then the back door into Brazilian Amazonia. 

The idea is to drive the ghost road in dry season and explore northern Brazil while it’s cold in the south. 

Whether we shall pull it off I don’t know but it’s on our minds. We try to have as few appointments as possible but the weather is always there to dictate our movements. By September it might be raining in Brazil and we don’t want to be in Amazonia  then. So we aren’t really quite as free as we might appear…For me one advantage will be not having to tread delicately around all the social faux pas I fall into so easily if we are on our own. 

It’s an odd business overlanding. Some days I see the advantages of sailing as espoused by Webb Chiles and his monastery of the sea but I like driving and I like seeing more than the coast. I wish I spoke German because I know there are interesting lives hidden behind a wall of shyness because English may not come easily to them and for that I am sorry. 

I think we have to go to Mendoza tomorrow to be productive. I love being lazy in this campground. I have plenty of my own character defects. 

Campground Pause

The city of Mendoza in western Argentina is known, if you have heard of it all, as the wine capital of Argentina, the Napa Valley of this country. With one million people in the entire metropolitan area it’s the fourth largest in Argentina. We aren’t there yet but we plan to spend next week doing good things in the city. 

Like Napa Mendoza has rivals for grape growing and wine production in the country but it’s still the most famous and it is an obligatory stop for overlanders. 

However we were parked next to Christoph and Monika yesterday in the lakeshore at the village of El Nihuil and it was not good for us. The sun was burning us up and there was no shade. The Germans are remote workers and depending a satellite signal for their jobs so parking unprotected suited them but we craved the shade of the campground  back at Malargüe. 

The thing is Layne has found a Michelin starred restaurant she wants to have lunch at and there is also a cooking class she wants to attend. Add in a couple of wineries anfd an olive oil producer and there fire we have a bit of a schedule forming. 

We decided the lake shore was too much for us and after one last walk we packed up and pulled out. 

Argentina has a number of stray dogs and they live in the streets attaching themselves to passersby. I carry extra dog food for them always but I miss Colombia and Chile which don’t have this stress for me. I would adopt them all. They aren’t as wretched as many dogs in Mexico but I think all dogs deserve love. Rusty disagrees vehemently and Layne calls him  a MAGA dog because he’s got his and doesn’t like to share. 

He doesn’t walk so far anymore but when he gets annoyed at me feeding the strays he stalks off and challenges me to follow him as he pretends to ignore me. The make up belly runs confirm his ascendency over me and I know I am putty moulded by his emotions. It’s not easy. 

We said goodbye and drove through the village back to the highway. They are going back to Austria, Monica’s country, and Munich where Christoph is from and spend summer with their families returning to their big white Unimog in September, which vehicle they will leave in a garage in Uruguay. We may see them in Brazil. 

Rusty won’t travel in his bed but he cherishes the opportunity to sleep there between journeys.  

It’s only about 80 degrees by day but it feels hotter but it also drops forty degrees at night so it’s a very arid desert climate here. It looks pretty desertlike too. 

It was a two hour drive back to town and we stopped at the Vea supermarket for perishables and the made a beeline to the campground. 

Rusty was glad to be back as were the campground dogs as they knew I am good for some meals while here. 

And there’s hot showers, electric plug ins and lots of lovely shade. The Starlink signal isn’t great but we are happy to be here for a few days. Then Mendoza then back to Chile. 

Meanwhile like our color coordinated neighbor it’s time to rest and relax. 

Near Mendoza

We plan to spend much of the next week around the city of Mendoza, the largest western city in Argentina. It’s known for its wine so we’ll do a tour or two of a vineyard, and there’s a restaurant Layne wants to eat in and she has a cooking class planned. Making reservations and traveling on a tight schedule stresses me out so she’s handling details. 

I met a woman from Bariloche a couple of weeks ago, traveling in her pick up with a camper shell and we fell to talking about life in Argentina. Hers was just another story of bureaucracy rendered inoperative by staffing cuts, costs out of sight and all round diminished expectations. When I remarked I saw the same future in the US she took my arm and said “Don’t feel guilty about living down here and traveling. We each have to cope as we can.” And her words keep rattling around in my head. As much as I feel a fraud for keeping going I don’t see the point of going home to face people in red caps rejoicing in the wholesale destruction of the places and institutions and lives that I value. I’ll end up in jail. With that in mind here are a few photos of things I’ve seen that I like as we meander toward Mendoza. I hope they help. 

Classic campground grill used by all Argentine campers: 

Here’s a thought. How to plug in to shorepower in a 220 volt country. We haven’t seen US standard 110 volt systems since we left Ecuador and each country uses a different style of plug which is absurd so we carry a bag of adapters. Below is the adapter we use to plug into Argentine sockets and that is the correct way up. 

Our Up/Down converter we bought in Chile after our original 800watt box proved to small to charge our batteries and burned out. This one is rated at 2000 watts and doesn’t even get warm when plugged in to GANNET2. It has a Chilean plug (below) as well bought it in Chile.

So we need an adaptor for the Chilean plug (above) to plug into a US cable (below) to connect it to the Argentine power outlet up at the top. Confused yet? 

Then I have to make sure the box is ready to receive 220 volts (below). We use a lot of electricity aboard GANNET2 to avoid carrying propane. Gas is a problem for travelers as some countries use butane which requires different burners for long term use. Plus every country has its own set of attachments to allow filling. So we went all electric to keep it simple. 

However that means where we sit still for a while we like to be able to plug into shorepower. And this is how we do it. I have heard some parts of Brazil use 110 volts so that will be interesting to see. 

Europeans use 220 volts so they can plug into 110 volt systems and their appliances just run slowly. If we plug into to 220 volts we wreck everything. So you need to pay attention. The box weighs about twenty pounds and I am very glad to have it.  

When we plug into shorepower to shorepower we avoid running heavy appliances like the stove or air fryer or the rooftop air conditioner. We just use shorepower to charge our batteries as we can run everything off our onboard inverter. Campground electrical system blow fuses very easily if over use them. 

Christoph gave me a tour of his Unimog a vehicle designed by Mercedes for the military and widely adapted for use by overlanders. 

It’s too big and too complex for me but it is a home on wheels with a shower and hot water and 120 gallons of water. He bought it used and upgraded it, testing his improvements driving around Europe over the past four years. It broke a drive shaft on arrival in Chile so no one is immune to breakdowns. 

He and Monika are web designers by trade and with their home in Austria rented they put Starlink on the roof and travel. Everywhere they go they get involved in the local Salsa dancing scene. If there are no signs of life around Mambo the Unimog it’s best to assume they were yo till dawn dancing.