Itinerary

Over the past seven years, we've pedaled across diverse and exotic Africa, absorbed the romance and sophistication of Europe, and traveled along Asia's ancient Silk Route. Now we explore South America, with all its alluring cultural and natural wonders. Departing from Buenos Aires and finishing in Lima, the 2011 Vuelta will cover over 6,000 km through Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, and Peru.

Our participants come from all over the world but share one thing: a passion for cycling. Traveling by bike allows you to immerse yourself in a foreign culture - to smell strange and wonderful foods cooking as you roll through a village, to share a home-made beer in a country inn, to feel the temperature drop as you relentlessly climb to the top of a mountain pass, and to observe how the culture and vegetation changes across landscapes. Such experiences create the Zen of long distance cycle touring.

From Darwin's exploration of the Galapagos to Che Guevara's "Motorcycle Diaries," the wonders of South America have changed the lives of travelers throughout time. The goal of this tour is not to travel the most efficient line between the opposite ends of a continent, but to explore it by bike. You will ride from the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans, and climb up and down ... and up and down ... the Andes. En route, you will visit some of South America's most renowned sites, including Mount Aconcagua, the Atacama Desert, Lake Titicaca and Machu Picchu.

This expedition will provide a complete range of cycling conditions: extreme temperatures, mountain passes over 4,200 m, open desert crossings, and every conceivable road surface. Whether you want to immerse yourself in the diversity of ancient cultures or simply enjoy the contrast between the salt plains and the altiplano, this will be a journey of a lifetime.

From the cosmopolitan appeal of football mad Buenos Aires to the chic sophistication of Santiago, all of the cities we visit have their own twist on architecture, food and art that contribute to the glorious mosaic of South American culture. Its peoples of the past, notably the Inca, also constructed magnificent civilizations, including mystical Machu Picchu. In the rural areas indigenous people live today in humble agricultural villages illuminated by the brilliant fabrics made of wool and cotton.

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