Tierra del Fuego – The end?

Very early in the morning we drove to the ferry. It took two hours to cross the historic Magellan channel to ‘Tierra del Fuego’! Now the aim of the ‘Ride South’ tour was not far anymore!
The crossing of ‘Tierra del Fuego’ was a shitty gravel road again. Hopefully the last one. Again, we stayed with the gauchos, at police stations or in other huts. The tent remained stayed packed, :-).
A little highlight was still on the track. There were only a few places outside the Antarctica where king penguins were living. Here was a small colony and it was cute to see them ‘waddle’ around.
On the tour through the Americas I encountered again and again products from the German lands. Of course,  the car company’s were known or specifically in South America everybody knows about the German football. Bayern Munich e.g. was well known. But since Alaska a Swabian company was always present. Not only the products are known, also their liked calendars. One adorned in my former office and here in an Estancia hung the same. The ‘Stihl’ chainsaws could be seen everywhere.
In the final days before the finish it was again properly cold. In the morning we started at below zero degrees. It got not warmer than 5 degrees during the following days. As add on again and again the cold wind. Since the bakery in Tolhuin was again a good place to warm up. Each cyclist had to pass this ‘Bottelneck ‘ and stayed here. Generations were writing on the walls with slogans or paintings. Those who wanted to could take a few days off and were able to help in the bakery to make some ‘ Medialunas’ (the local croissants). But we went… as fast we could! It was cold again and it started to snow. On the last pass before Ushuaia we struggled our way up in the snowstorm. The cars and trucks pulled on chains and I wear the rain pants. On the whole trip I nearly didn’t used them! But here! It was extremely uncomfortable, but fortunately there was again a restaurant to warm up a little bit. The route led to the ski pass in which in two weeks started the season. No, thats not the right time for biking.
Completely frozen we reached Ushuaia at the well-known ‘Fin del mundo’ sign. With trembling fingers we shot the photos and took off to the hostel. It was simply too cold to enjoy the moment. In the hostel we arrived and met again the well-known faces of the Patagonia cyclists… for each of us it came to a halt and everyone thought wistfully: That it! … The America’s were cycled! From point to point! What I felt? Especially the cold, Ushuaia in mid-April is just uncomfortable … but this ‘Good Friday’ 2014 will probably be remembered.
For the statisticians among the readers: At the end I cycled 33.000km. On the second bike I needed four wheels, five chains, countless coats and the number of plates was determined three digits. But not a single broken spoke! The bordered almost on a miracle. Overall, the condition of the bike is much worse than the one of the rider, .
The cyclist family stayed together for a while. Many accompanied me for weeks. Everyone had to Buenos Aires, this is the great distributor for flights to Europe or the United States. Most flew, others were trying to hitchhike. Many trucks drove into the capital. Flying was the easier choice for me. We organize bike boxes and to save weight for the flight I had to ‘cleanup’. Almost an entire saddlebag stayed in Ushuaia. Things which were really in the end came into the trash. For a Swabian not easy, but it had to be. The flight lasted only 3 hours, but the preparations were significantly longer!
Otherwise, each needed a rest, but to escape the cabin fever I ran to a nearby glacier. A puny thing compared to the previously unseen . Lange was not a man , the weather was too uncomfortable and motivation low. Ushuaia looked rather artificial. These were one of the richest provinces of Argentina. There was oil. The city is since 20 years in an extreme growth here can earn good money. In order to justify the territorial claims against Chile, moved the state with low taxes and high earners to countless people. Especially in the public sector there have been countless ‘ employees ‘ who had to just be present . A somewhat verquerte world. The tourism sector also grew, there were a few ski resorts in winter and summer national parks for hiking .
After a few days, the plane went to Buenos Aires. What I will expect? The culture shock of a big city? It doesn’t matter, the main thing would be nice weather. And then? However, the ‘Ride South’ tour is at the end, the journey is not. Maybe it will be interesting again… .