A World without End

Yesterday we reached the end (or the start) of the Panamerican Highway, stretching almost uninterrupted all the way from Alaska to the town of Quellon at the southern end of the Island of Chiloe, in Chile. Well, interrupted only by this ridiculous fifty miles stretch between Panama and Colombia, called the Darrien Pit. Actually it should be called the Dollars Pit, considering the outrageous fees charged to ship vehicles from one side to the other. This is another story, amply described in a previous post.

For us though, it is not yet the end. There are two options: either take a ferry south to the mainland, take the “Carreterra Austral” or Road 7 further south and cross into Argentina to reach the end of the world at Fireland. There is only one ferry a week and it left two days ago… The Carreterra Austral is a gravelled road, going through mainly deserted areas. Driving our camper on a gravel road is a pain without end: the cooking pots and dishes are banging endlessly in the cupboard, in harmony with the cutlery; the entire vehicle is vibrating; screws are getting loose; cabinet doors open constantly and stuff keeps ending on the floor; we cannot talk because of the deafening noise. Second option is to backtrack north and cross into Argentina through a paved road, and ultimately still reach Fireland of course. We had our share of gravelled roads, paved roads are more relaxing: we will take the paved road, even though the Carreterra Austral is terrifically scenic.

We have been following the Panamerican Highway since Seattle. Obviously we strayed sometimes. And sometimes, there seem to be several Panamerican Highways: there is one that goes through Bolivia into Argentina, and another one from Peru directly into Chile. Maybe each country wants its share of the famous Highway? Shall we find it again in Argentina? Maybe it was not the end of it after all? Will our journey ever end in a world without end?

I hope Ken Follett, one of my favourite authors, will not mind me having borrowed the title of one of his fantastic books for this post.