Crossing the border was a two day affair as you climb to around 4800 metres. Arthur cugged up hill and during the 2300 metre climb (we started at 2500m) we had to stop 5 times to let the engine cool down. We think the problem was a strong breeze right behind us which meant that there was little or no wind going through the radiator, as we had climbed similar mountains with no problem. This particular pass we had come through (in the opposite direction) on our l...

After the excitement of the Blue whale sittings we headed out along a lovely coastal road through desert. The north of Chile is primarily desert. Lots and lots of it. We stopped at a town with a large wooden church built in the 1860's by English carpenters in Chile to help build the railway. That night we camped in amongst some eeiry animal shaped rocks by the side of the highway. The desert area is quite scenic but all the towns seem dirty, dusty and run down...

We left Rancagua next morning after another yummy buffet breakfast. It was Sunday so we hoped to get through the capital Santiago without to much trouble. As we approached Santiago a policeman waved us down. Not a good start! He looked quite serious but only wanted to see Peter's driving licence. It is quite funny when you see them trying to read the reverse side, it's so complicated and you can see them give a knowing nod whilst trying not to look completely ba...