Life2 on-tour

28/02/2025

Landing at the Great Wall Station – Our First Steps in Antarctica

After a remarkably calm voyage across the infamous Drake Passage—fondly nicknamed “Drake Lake” when the waters behave—we were finally ready to set foot on Antarctica, or at least its northernmost outpost, the South Shetland Islands. Given that we were aboard a Chinese charter, where 189 of the 191 guests were Chinese, it felt fitting that our first landing was at the Chinese Great Wall Station, located at the southernmost point of King George Island.

This was no ordinary stop. We were the only expedition or cruise ship granted permission to land — a rare privilege made possible through the influence of one of our fellow passengers. A guest on board had spent three years constructing Dome A Station at Antarctica’s highest point for the Chinese government. Thanks to his connections and official approval, we were permitted to step ashore and explore.

While we may not have fully appreciated the political or scientific significance of the visit, we could certainly feel the excitement of our fellow travellers. For them, this was a moment to be celebrated and even revered. Their enthusiasm was contagious, adding an extra layer of significance to the experience.

One of the more unexpected scenes of the day was a young Chinese couple dressed in full wedding attire, taking photos in front of various monuments and statues. It wasn’t clear whether they had officially tied the knot at the station or if this was merely a symbolic celebration, but the bride’s elegant dress and the groom’s sharp suit stood out against the stark Antarctic landscape. We were even invited to join in their photos, a moment of joy and festivity amid the scientific and industrial surroundings. Curiously, the wedding dress never reappeared for the rest of the trip, suggesting that this was the spot they had chosen to mark the occasion.

As we wandered through the station, passing rusting Mitsubishi pickups outfitted with tracks instead of wheels, and exploring the accommodation blocks and research centre, I was approached by a Chinese woman who asked me to take her photo in front of one of the buildings. Happy to oblige, I took a few shots and handed back her phone. However, my photography skills did not meet her high standards—one by one, she deleted the images with a scowl. After some additional instructions, I tried again. This time, a couple of shots passed the test, though most met the same fate as before. Just as I was about to continue exploring, she began directing me for another round of photos, seemingly assuming I was a member of staff rather than a fellow paying guest. I politely excused myself, much to her disappointment.

Despite the excitement of setting foot on Antarctic soil, King George Island didn’t yet feel like the icy wilderness we had envisioned. Unlike the snow-covered landscapes we would encounter in the coming days, this area was largely bare. Though the cold was biting, it wasn’t quite the dramatic frozen world we were anticipating. We did, however, get our first taste of the region’s incredible wildlife — Elephant Seals lounged lazily on the shore, while seabirds circled above. It was just a preview of the wonders still to come.

Our first landing on Antarctica had set the stage for what lay ahead. The adventure was only just beginning.

26/02/2025

Episode 73 folks.

Hope you’re not waiting for us to post the videos here and you’ve subscribed to the YouTube channel. These are quite far behind, behind already being quite far behind… if you see what I mean 😝 😂

Riding alongside the edge of the Amazon Rain Forest was magical. Stunning landscapes that took our breath away.Ice 2 Fire is the first leg of our Round the W...

19/02/2025

A taste of what’s to come.

17/02/2025

So, we had reached our goal.

18 months to travel from Prudhoe Bay to Ushuaia - the entire length of both American continents. Just as Deadhorse is an industrial zone to the North, so Ushuaia has grown up to serve the commercial and scientific needs of Antarctica. Being the Southernmost port, protected from the ravages of the Drake Passage and the convergence of the Arctic, Pacific and Southern Oceans, it has the feeling of a frontier border town. It has grown very quickly as tourism has become a major attraction but its location in amongst towering snowcapped mountain ranges and the Beagle Channel, give a feel of remoteness and hard-living.

Would seem a shame to stop now, when another continent was within reach. If the weather played its part, we would set foot on a fourth continent - ANTARCTICA!

We knew we were joining this trip unconventionally, skipping the usual connecting flight from Buenos Aires and instead meeting the group at the port. What we didn’t anticipate was stepping into an entirely different world—one where we were the only two people who didn’t speak Mandarin.

It started in the car park, waiting for the coach to take us to the ship. As the seafront filled with Chinese travellers enthusiastically filming, posing, and live-streaming their departure, we joked about their “TikTok ways.” But as we boarded the bus, the joke quickly became reality. This was a full Chinese charter. No English announcements. No other Westerners. Just us—completely out of our depth.

S**t. What have we done?

We had just spent a shed load of money on an expedition where we wouldn’t understand a word. No turning back now. We braced ourselves for a voyage of hand gestures and Google Translate.

But then, something unexpected happened. The crew immediately had our backs.

First, the expedition leader, Jake, greeted us at the gangway with a knowing smile. “You two must be the Brits. Do you speak Mandarin?” he asked. When we shook our heads, his face said it all. Moments later, the hotel manager asked the same question. Again, our sheepish “no” was met with an amused but determined response.

From that moment, they pulled out all the stops. Personalised tannoy messages. Translated menus. Extra briefings just for us. It was like being accidental VIPs—not because we were special, but because we were the only ones who needed it.

The weather did play its part too. From the “Drake Lake” to blue skies and low winds, we had daily excursions to the islands and Antarctic mainland, viewing multiple glaciers from the land, water and air. Observing pods of Humpback Whales, Orcas and Fin whales; rafts of floating penguins to chicks on nests; to seals malting; to the albatross making a life on the wing. Then there were the ice-fields, floating fragments fallen from glaciers, in various sizes, shapes and shades of blue and white, where a Leopard Seal would test our Zodiacs for source of food amongst the cathedral of cracking ancient ice. All this and more, was our education, entertainment and enthralment for 11 days.

Oh, and did we not mention the swim? ;-) That and much more coming soon!

15/02/2025

We started this trip accompanied by two furry friends.

Ice Bear - representing the Ice (Alaska) in our Ice 2 Fire name for this leg of the journey.

And

Pingu - representing the Fire (Tierra del Fuego) and Ushuaia.

They started out very white and very black.

They’ve survived heatwaves, rain, a little snow and everything in between.

18 months and 16 countries later and they are now looking a bit travel weary and more grey… 😂 😂 😂

13/02/2025

WE DID IT!!!!

We were now on the final push to Ushuaia. The wind forecast for the next couple of days was middling. Quite strong but hopefully a lot of it would be behind us.

We set off early from Punta Arenas to try and avoid as much of the wind as possible. As the day goes on so the wind gets stronger.

We arrived for the ferry for Tierra del Fuego just as one was preparing to sail and so we didn’t have to wait long.

And there we were, on the island. We set off and as the journey went on we were blown away by its beauty. Nobody ever says how stunning Tierra del Fuego is. From the low flatlands near the ferry that stretch for miles, to the hills that gradually climb. The border back into Argentina is along here and shortly after it the ‘nodding donkeys’ provided the answers as to why Chile and Argentina fought for this piece of land.

As we headed south and then west towards Ushuaia, views over Lago Fagnano greeted us. We climbed higher and higher and breathed in the mountains as we touched on the southern Andes.

We rounded a corner and there was the sign. The sign that we had been aiming for, for the last 18 months. It felt surreal.

I felt the tears as we stopped by the sign and took in what we had achieved. I felt such sadness that Carl’s Dad and my Mum weren’t around to see us complete this mammoth leg of our journey, but we also felt a huge sense of accomplishment, and pride, in riding the entire length of the Americas through 16 countries, from the very top to the very bottom. 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 🇲🇽 🇧🇿 🇬🇹 🇸🇻 🇭🇳 🇳🇮 🇨🇷 🇵🇦 🇨🇴 🇪🇨 🇵🇪 🇨🇱 🇧🇴 🇦🇷

A friend from the UK happened to be in Ushuaia and Marshy greeted us as we arrived at our accommodation. So nice to see a face from home on such a big day. Really cool.

We went to the National Park together and had a photo at the official end of Ruta 3.

That’s it. No more road south.

So what’s next on our ride home? Think you may be nicely surprised.

Watch this space…

12/02/2025

Still catching up…

Gotta love a click bait title… 😂 🤪

Lucky to be alive to be honest… 🤣 🤣

We did our first presentation!! We also bit off more than we could chew when we went for a hike...Ice 2 Fire is the first leg of our Round the World trip - P...

10/02/2025

El Calafate was where we were for my Mum’s funeral. A truly difficult day but a beautiful service. A service she had planned out and so it was just as she wanted which made it even more special.

She didn’t want me to return to England and so I didn’t. A difficult decision but one I know she wanted me to make. We watched the funeral and then went for a walk along the waters edge where we found a Scottish thistle! How appropriate.

The ladybird also came visiting again, finding shelter by our apartment from the Patagonian winds and landing on our fingers.

Who knew, in this harsh landscape, that ladybirds would be the tiny comfort.

Carl was ill the next day and it was a huge disappointment that we couldn’t get to the Perito Moreno glacier. That had been on our tick list since the beginning of the trip. However, we could always return on the way back up if we chose to.

Unusually for us, we had a date to chase, but first we had to get to Punta Arenas to get new chains and sprockets on the bikes. They were clanking (mechanical term) badly and we were hoping that they were going to hold.

They did! So, all fixed up, it was the final push to Tierra del Fuego and Ushuaia…

09/02/2025

We really are so far behind with sharing the YouTube vids on here…

Episode 71. Carl was after freebies, apparently… 😂

Our first few days in Ecuador - Pimps, Pedalos and German Beer! Ice 2 Fire is the first leg of our Round the World trip - Prudhoe Bay to Ushuaia.We have sold...

08/02/2025

Los Malditos is a section of Ruta 40 that is 73km long and the only continuous section of off road. About 10km of it is deep gravel.

It’s a well known and often feared section of road (for bikers anyway). The whole difficulty of it depends completely on the weather.

Rain, and large sections of it turn to mud. Strong wind and the deep gravel section becomes dangerous. You have to ride in the wheel tracks but the wind can blow you out of them and then you squirrel around in the deep stuff.

We arrived in Gobernador Gregores and the forecast for the next day was very high winds; consistent speed was around 50mph and gusts were up to around 80mph. We decided to wait that out and go the next day. We found out that they had closed the road anyway, and many other roads in El Chalten and El Calafate.

The following day the weather was on our side. We stopped to get fuel and Roberto from Poland came over to us and asked which way we were going. He seemed relieved when we said south as he was headed that way too. He seemed as apprehensive as we were do we asked him if he wanted to ride together. Safety in numbers and all that.

There was the usual Patagonia wind but, after fighting a side wind along the tarmac, when we hit the ‘73’ the wind was mostly behind us.

I (Isi) had one tricky moment when I caught an edge and ended up out of the rut. I squirrelled around, tried not to fight it and let the bike work it out, and after what felt like an age, managed to get back in the rut.

We didn’t stop, we just kept on going and we all arrived at the tarmac again in one piece and very relieved that section was over. We stopped and gave each other big hugs before carrying on our journey to Tres Lagos, where we had an awesome evening with Jonny and Debby from the Netherlands and Fernando from Argentina.

We have since found out that tragically, four bikers have died on this section of road in the last couple of months and several others have been injured. You really do have to check conditions and go at the right time. So sad.

29/01/2025

The Carretera Austral was great fun. There are several ferries that hop across the peninsulas but as we couldn’t get booked on the main one and we didn’t want to risk getting stuck on the route in the middle of the night, we took the night ferry from Puerto Montt to Chaiten. It missed the first part of the route but the fun was still to come.

We can’t describe how beautiful Patagonia in Chile is. Simply stunning. We stopped to get a photo and thought we might have a short break but we were immediately surrounded by the most enormous horse flies we’ve ever seen!! Quick photo and we were gone. Guess there are trade offs for the amazing scenery…

The tarmac soon ended and we were onto the gravel and dust (if it was dry) that was the remainder of the route.

It was difficult to stop for any photos as any kind of pull in was deep gravel and not easy to park a bike on. We had to wait for bridges that were wide enough for others to pass safely.

I took the lead for the first day of gravel. Carl likes to ride with his visor up so yes, he got filthy riding through the dust I left in my wake!!

As we went further south the nights got a bit chilly but we had a wood burner in our little cabin so we were nice and toasty.

Not enough adjectives for the Carretera Austral, there really aren’t.

27/01/2025

Episode 70, where we say goodbye to Colombia, but not without visiting the stunning Las Lajas cathedral in Ipiales.

I’m behind again with sharing these. There’s a few out. Sorry. Subscribe to the YouTube channel to make sure you see them when they’re released.

Ciao!

The mystery of the lost package is solved...and we leave Colombia.Ice 2 Fire is the first leg of our Round the World trip - Prudhoe Bay to Ushuaia.We have so...

26/01/2025

Sam Manicom - Adventure Motorcycle Travel Books by Sam Manicom - is one of the UK’s, if not the world’s, most beloved motorcycle adventurers. Having crossed continents and written numerous books filled with tales of fellowship, hardship, and companionship, he embodies the true spirit of adventure. A true gentleman of the road, Sam never has a bad word to say about anyone and generously shares his wisdom on managing breakdowns, borders, and everything in between.

Sam has been a huge inspiration to us, and we’re now privileged to call him a friend. His help, advice, and encouragement during the build-up and ex*****on of our little ride home have meant the world to us.

As we made our way south through Chile, bound for Chiloe Island for Christmas and New Year, Sam posted a photo from his time on the island back in 1997. We decided to take on the challenge of finding the same spot to recreate the photo 27 years later – and here’s the result!

Here’s to the road, the memories, and the incredible people we meet along the way.

22/01/2025

We decided to spend Christmas and New Year on the island of Chiloe. We needed time to deal with our bereavement.

We booked a lovely cabin just a few yards from the sea in a very quiet area, 8 km down a gravel road and 30km to the nearest shop. Perfect.

We didn’t do the island justice in terms of exploring but we did go to the ‘official’ (Chilean official at least) end of the Panamerican Highway and mile zero.

The island and location of our stay did do us justice though. It gave me (Isi) the peace and space I needed to grieve whilst also doing my bit of admin for the funeral. I also got to do some cold water swimming as the sea was freezing!

Our hosts were exceptional. They brought us homemade cake on Christmas Eve and even brought us a Christmas dinner of roast lamb, potatoes and salad the next day.

A couple of days after Christmas they took us on a boat trip round a local island to see Magellanic penguins.

My Mum’s favourite animal was the penguin and one of the big highlights of this trip was going to be sharing this with her. She passed away 13 days too early.

It was such an emotional experience to see them in their natural habitat and as they came into view the tears were pouring down my face with such sadness that she didn’t get to see them with us.

At New Year our hosts invited us to share a hog and lamb roast, cooked over the traditional fire. Carl helped out, taking his turn at rotating the spit.

There were six other campers there in their vans and we had a lovely evening with them and our hosts. As the wine flowed we seemed to speak more Spanish and they seemed to speak more English with a new phrase being developed of - muchas thank you. 😂

Bringing the New Year in was again emotional. We were now in the limbo time of waiting for another funeral and with heavy hearts we continued our journey south.

18/01/2025

Episode 69 - what a palaver. 🤪

We had a parcel sent by DHL in the States to DHL in Colombia. Sounds simple, right?Ice 2 Fire is the first leg of our Round the World trip - Prudhoe Bay to U...

16/01/2025

Pucon, with the Villarrica volcano towering above the town, was beautiful.

It will unfortunately be remembered as the place where I (Isabel) received the heartbreaking news that my Mum had passed away.

It all happened pretty quickly so, although she had reached the amazing age of 93, it was quite a shock to us all. I am so grateful that I had a video call with her just four days before.

We were sitting at the edge of the lake, looking at the volcano and watching the sunset.

There aren’t any more words I can find for this post. Travelling is so hugely difficult at times like this. We have both lost a parent this year whilst away. It’s numbing.

16/01/2025

When a friend puts you in touch with someone because you need to get a parcel sent from the UK to Chile, you know good things are going to happen.

Laura connected us with Daniella and Roberto, and Daniella kindly said she would receive our package. After our disaster with DHL (see latest video) we decided to see what Royal Mail could do. I can hear you laughing already but you know what? They delivered and they delivered several days earlier than anticipated and they charged us a quarter of the price!

Roberto was also super helpful and gave Carl a hand to do our badly needed oil changes while Daniella made us a really yummy lunch. The Overlanding community really is a bunch of friends, some of which you haven’t met yet. It’s wonderful.

We did a wine tour. Fascinating to hear the history of the winery and vineyard.

We also caught up with Tanlon! We met back in Colombia at Donkey Sunrise and have seen him twice since then! He was on his way up to Lima to leave his bike and fly home. He arrived in Santiago while we were there so he came to stay with us for a couple of nights. We had an awesome couple of days mooching about Santiago, including visiting the train museum.

When Carl did the oil change on his bike he couldn’t get the sump bolt done up enough to stop it leaking. It was only minuscule but it wasn’t right! He’d had an issue with it on a previous oil change and was afraid to overdo it and completely wreck it. Oil all over an apartment car park really wouldn’t go down well.

So we found a mechanic just round the corner, where a spill wouldn’t matter. The mechanic had a look and tightened it up more and solved the problem. He didn’t charge us anything. “Bikers helping bikers” he said. Thank you so much Jesús and Anthony at Honda Providencia. Very much appreciated.

So, enough living in an apartment and pretending we’re normal people, we must press south.