Tracy and Will

Tanzania, Malawi and Zambia Stage 3 of the trip took us from Dar es Salaam in Tanzania to Livingstone at the bottom of Zambia. We had been warned that this part of the trip involved a lot of travel and it was largely a commute rather than seeing anything in particular. In a certain sense this was true, however visiting Lake Malawi and spending time in Livingstone were exception to this rule. Two days of driving from the Indian Ocean to the African interior had left us pretty tired. Particularly as on the first day the truck ran out of diesel and we had to wait for 3 hours on the side of the road for it to be re-fuelled, and then later we were caught up behind a serious traffic accident. Nevertheless we eventually arrived ... read more

Africa - Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda So after 6 busy but amazing days in the UK, Tracy and I flew to Nairobi, Kenya to start our African odyssey. Nairobi was nothing special, but it was the starting point for the overland trip that would cover nine countries in eastern and southern Africa. For most of our trip we would be travelling on a large truck-like 4x4 bus (called Caprice), with a guide, assistant guide and cook. For the first part of the trip we have also had 19 other travellers of various ages and experience. Most nights we will be camping and cooking our own food. The first part of our journey takes us from Kenya to Uganda and down to Rwanda before returning the way we came. On our first day we drove to Lake ... read more

With La Paz behind us we headed on east to the sacred lake of the Incas - Lake Titicaca. Our first stop was Copacabana (Bolivia) to visit the Isla del Sol. We then crossed the border to Peru and stopped at Puno to visit the Floating Islands, before heading on to Peru's second city - Arequipa. Copacabana As ever the journey to Copacabana itself was eventful. The bus arrived an hour early, before we had even packed; the only seats were right at the back with no leg room; and the bus had to cross the Lake on a separate ferry to the passengers, in case the ferry sank (well the bus 'ferry' was just a wooden platform, barely buoyant above the lake's surface - good to know it had all our bags on it). We ... read more

Sorry this has taken so long, the internet connection in Bolivia is not great! And so off to Chile. We had hoped to spend more time in Chile however uncertainty regarding the residual effects of the earthquake meant that we entered the country close to Santiago. We spent three days in Santiago and a weekend in a nearby city called Valparaiso before heading north to the Atacama Desert. Santiago It was good to be back in a city after a long time spent in the wilds of Patagonia. We stayed in an area (Barro) of the town called Bellavista, in a hostel sharing the same name. The Barro had a great vibe to it and had a great number of bars and restaurants. We spent our first day visiting a look out across the city and ... read more

"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself" FDR 1933. It would not be an underestimation to suggest that Tracy was somewhat apprehensive about tackling the W trek. A nasty experience in Scotland had spooked her, and left her with a fear of hiking in mountains. Nevertheless, several days ago we boarded a 5am bus from our hostel in El Calafate (Argentina) and headed to southern Chile and our destination - the Torres del Paine national park, biosphere reserve and world heritage site. The Torres del Paine is considered a highlight of South America. It includes mountains, extinct volcanos, lakes, woodlands and glaciers. Most people who visit hike across the park, although there are several day trips. The two main hikes are the Main Circuit (approx 10 days) and the W trek (4 to ... read more