62 days cycling in South America

09.10.2024

After 62 days on his wooden bicycle, covering more than 4,000 kilometers and climbing 38,000 meters of elevation, Louis Margot arrived in Lima on July 31st. The swiss has now settled there, taking the opportunity to rest while resuming training — particularly on the rowing machine — crossing the ocean mid-October.

After weeks of cycling through Colombia, Louis faced a key route decision. At the border with Ecuador, two options were possible: pass through the mountains, adding 8,000 meters of elevation to the journey, or cross a “red zone,” known for drug trafficking. “I chose to take a small risk,” he admits, but despite the danger, Louis puts his decision into perspective: “This kind of business isn’t done in broad daylight, right in the middle of the road. We tend to dramatize these regions, partly because of Pablo Escobar and the guerrillas, but things have calmed down a bit today.” Nevertheless, it wasn’t entirely reassuring, especially given that he was almost always alone on the road.

Life in the villages

Because the Human Impulse adventure is not just a sporting challenge but also a journey of discovery into new countries and local populations, the living conditions in these areas left a mark on the swiss. “I was in villages where there’s nothing. They don’t speak a word of English, there are trucks, and people dealing on the streets… You really see the true face of the region. I wasn’t in tourist areas,” he explains. “The hotels were either for truckers or locals. Sometimes I slept in tiny rooms… I was sometimes alone in hotels with fifty rooms.”

To progress, Louis had to take some risks, including using a road closed due to landslides. “As I was climbing, people said they couldn’t continue because of the rockfalls, but I decided to give it a shot anyway. Changing my route would have forced me to make a 300 km detour. It’s not like back home where there are roads everywhere. Here, the next road could be several dozen kilometers away.”

Some roads were poorly maintained, like a bridge where he noticed a hole had formed, and through the iron reinforcing bars, he could see the landscape “at least 100 meters below.” “I don’t know if I could have fallen through, but a child certainly could.” “I’ve seen so many things along my journey that I could never tell them all — you have to experience it to believe it,” he summarizes.

An unexpected encounter

During his trip, Louis met Canadian adventurer Marc Sky, who aims to bike from Canada to Argentina (24,000 km) while climbing the highest peak in each of the 15 countries he passes through. A welcomed “teammate” for the Vaudois, happy to have someone to motivate him and provide mutual support.

Despite the sometimes difficult moments, Louis found much to appreciate: “In the mountains, it was magnificent! We were in the middle of nowhere, and there was no one around. There are no tourists, and that’s part of why I’m doing this trip. I was in places I would never have seen otherwise.”

Next Destination: The Marquesas Islands

By the end of October, Louis will set leave Lima for the Marquesas Islands (France), from where he will make his way to the mainland via a yet-to-be-defined route. He is currently busy with final preparations on his boat and has been able to order new spare parts thanks to crowdfunding. As mentioned in a previous article, the journey to the Marquesas should be relatively calm in terms of weather. By choosing to travel via South America, Louis made a cautious decision, thus avoiding the potential hurricanes in North America.

Article : Jérôme Laurent

Carte du projet Human Impulse de Louis Margot, en aout 2024.

Share !