"The sweet taste of success! A bottle of Malbec and a juicy steak"

I arrived in La Calera around midday and rode around for a while before eventually finding a cheap hotel, in fact it looked like the only hotel in town. For 7,000 pesos I got a “cell” with a single bed and my very own padlock to lock the bedroom door. Yes, a really classy place!

The rest of the day was spent avoiding going into my cell so I was forced to drink beer (they had no bottled water – what can you do!)and work on the internet in the hotel bar. There was nothing to do in the small town so I ended up eating dinner there too. I was so excited about the morning and the thought of reaching Argentina I went to bed early and tried to get some sleep. It reminded me of Christmas as a little boy!

Sure enough I slept fitfully and was up before the sunrise, packing the bike and on the road about 7.00 a.m. I worked out it would take me about 2 hours to reach the border somewhere up in the Andes mountains.

After an hour or so I entered the foothills of the Andes and wondered how high I would have to climb. I had heard that there was a tunnel through part of the route and so I was interested to see how much of the Andes I would climb over and how much I would ride under. Passing through several half tunnels I started to climb steadily and then sharply as I approached what turned out to be 31 tight, hairpin bends with dozens of trucks crawling around them like giant caterpillars. Still seeing no sign for aduana or migracion, I pushed on until the sharp curves straightened out and the road plateaued eventually leading me to some kind of checkpoint where an official looking woman was manning the road,

“Donde esta migracion. Salida de Chile, por favor?”

“15 kilometres” she said pointing further up the road.

It all seemed a bit strange, especially when I saw a sign saying, “Bienvenidos Argentina”. I hadn`t officially left Chile and here I was in Argentina. You`d think after 13 previous border crossings it would all be easy and straightforward by now, but everyone has been different, as this one was proving to be.

The road suddenly ran out and became a dusty, dirt track with visibility limited by a truck in front kicking up the dust and the strong wind blowing it into my face. A quick twist of the throttle took me out of the dust storm and further up ahead I glimpsed a sign indicating the border was near.

I was in Argentina but wasn`t ready to celebrate before it became official. Dropping down in altitude I saw up ahead a solitary building which was obviously the official border crossing. I joined a queue of stationary traffic, turned off my engine and in the heat of the midday sun proceeded to wait, every few minutes pushing the bike ever closer to the checkpoint. Once inside the building I could see the system. It was a joint Chile and Argentina migracion and aduana. Get your passport stamped a one booth and move a little further and get your temporary import permit for the bike at another one. What a good idea! Central America could really learn a lesson here!

With minimal fuss I was now officially in Argentina! I had done it! The goal that was a long time in my head, a year in the planning and over 7 months in the execution was now achieved! I allowed myself a smile of satisfaction as I rode away from the border and a massive feeling of relief swept over me. After all the ups and downs, and the physical and mental challenges, I had finally completed what I set out to do last June, and 4 months ahead of schedule too! There was of course the small matter of 1,000 + km to get to Buenos Aires, but the actual journey was “Alaska to Argentina”, and here I was in Argentina!

The landscape was totally different from Chile. I was riding along winding, hilly roads in the foothills of the Andes surrounded by snow capped Andean peaks framed against a bright blue sunny sky. I was heading for the city of Mendoza, the wine capital of Argentina. I had promised myself a decent bottle of wine and a good steak dinner when I got to Argentina.

As I rode along the twisty roads and closer to the city, my thoughts turned to home and I wondered what it would be like to return to normality, but I had to remind myself to stay “in the moment”. I still had Argentina to cross and I would allow myself the indulgence of the necessary assimilation and introspection when I arrived in Buenos Aires.

My immediate plan was to spend 3 nights in Mendoza to recover from what had been two long, back to back days on the bike and celebrate, but first I had to find a place to stay. I made for the centre and stopped at a couple of hostels but they were both full, as were the next two hotels I tried. Peak holiday time again! Nevertheless, I was confident I would find the right place soon because I always have. The very next hotel came up trumps. Secure parking, wifi, air conditioning, cable tv and all for about $40, which was a massive improvement on the overpriced hotels in Chile. I had a feeling I was going to enjoy Argentina!

That night I did treat myself to a steak and a half bottle of very nice wine, but Chile had blown a huge hole in what was left of my money and I spent the evening studying the figures and working out how I could eke it out to get home.