Getting Gear in South America

Notice holes in nearly everything,
except my peanut butter jar.

If you ask anyone who lives in and/or has traveled to South America, you will likely hear similar tidbits of advice from them: "Make sure you have US cash; the mail system in most countries is terrible/non-existent; be sure to bring enough gear, because gear is expensive and/or non-existent."

If you ask us at this point in our trip, we would likely say the same as those who came before us. As a person who had never been south of the United States border with Mexico before November 2015, this trip has been eye-opening in more ways than I'll ever be able to explain. This blog is going to focus on my (and our) experience getting new gear in and to South America.

Gear falls apart

Fidgit and I were able to purchase in the US and bring down much of what we needed our first season (November '15 - April '16). The only issue we had was with socks and shoes - we went through multiple pairs each. Thankfully we were in Chile most of our first season, and were able to find and purchase overpriced-but-will-do-the-job-this-time shoes. We were also able to send ourselves gear via the Chilean bus system - which is oddly reliable. Okay, not so odd once you understand that many people don't own cars down here.

Winter is coming

On my way to get the gear, looking out the bus window

Where we ran into trouble with getting gear was near the middle of our second season (season two spans November '16 - November '17). As we neared northern Argentina in April, we were attempting to find someone who was willing to bring down some US gear for us, as we had once again purchased not great shoes and socks in Santiago to tide us over while we figured out what our options were. We decided to reach out to see if sending it to ourselves or finding someone to bring it was preferable - all our resources leaned towards finding someone to bring it down, because the tariffs we would have to pay in Argentina would be exorbitant, and that's IF the gear made it through customs. So we reached out to people we know who travel to and from the US with some regularity, and found a willing friend.

Hello again, Pacific Ocean

Unfortunately, after we had begun ordering and mailing new gear to an address in the states, unforeseen circumstances forced our friend to cancel his trip. Thankfully, we were at a spot where we had regular and useful wifi (not the norm in most countries down here, though it is improving), so we began a new search for someone willing to bring our stuff down. Fortunately, we've met many people, and our old gear mule was quickly replaced by our new one, Dan. He was heading back to my home state, and we immediately began re-routing items to my sister's house in Pennsylvania to be picked up and hauled down to Peru by Dan. Why would we ask a person who's technically three countries away to bring us our gear, you ask? DESPERATION. The nights were getting colder, my sleeping bag was wearing out, as were my shoes, socks, pants, shirts, you name it. Also, three countries away is much closer than multiple continents away. So Dan gathered the gear from my sister and brought it down to Peru, where I met him to catch up and retrieve it after approximately two days on buses and two border crossings. We met in Tacna, Peru - a border town with cheap, tax-free goods. Dan and I met up with his travel partner Justin, and we got a hostel room, as we would be there a couple days - I hadn't seen these guys since Santiago and wanted to catch up.

Dan, me, Justin.
The lovely lads who helped us out! (and me)

Dan, Justin and I were able to spend a couple days together before they continued northward, and I made my way back towards Argentina with new gear for Fidgit and me. This is where most of my trouble began, and I'll put these hurdles in list form, as there were many.

New Gear! 

-At the Peru/Chile border, the Chilean border patrol was staging a 'slow down.' Since they can't close the border, the were only allowing so many people through per hour. I waited for five hours in a line in the sun to get through, feeling bad for the people who arrived after me.

-Arriving to the bus station in Arica, I find the pass I need to cross to get back into Argentina is closed due to snow and high winds. Thankful I had made it across mere days before a blowing snowstorm, I was now fretting as to when I would make it back across into Argentina.

New bag for winter!

-Impatiently waiting out a far-away snow storm at a 4,000+ meter pass wears on me, so I spend only two days in Arica before deciding to bus up to San Pedro de Atacama - closer to the pass. Bus goes through Catamarca and I am warned of theives so I keep a close, but tired eye on my belongings after a night bus through a 4 am checkpoint from Arica to Catamarca. Make the bus to San Pedro and am told the pass will reopen Wednesday (it was Sunday).

-Buy bus ticket Tuesday for Wednesday morning, and the moment of truth arrives - I get on the bus and we go to the edge of town and sit for two hours to see if the pass is open. It's not, and I dejectedly return to my hostel. The bus driver says we will try again in the morning.

Stuck in line at the Peru/Chile Border

-Thursday morning, 8 am. I arrive at the bus station, get on the bus, and we once again drive to the edge of town and sit, waiting until 11 am. I see two garbage trucks, one dump truck and one bulldozer pass. I believe they are going to help clear the snow across the road, and concern enters my brain. 11 am rolls around and . . . the pass is open! We trundle up and up into the snow, then down to the Argentina/Chile border. The Chilean border guards seem to not be as slow at this border, and I am grateful our bus makes it through.

The cabbie in Chile- they love
The Simpsons down here.

-We careen down the other side of the pass into Argentina, with a steep series of S-curves along the way, carefully executed by the driver of the double-decker bus, and I am finally able to contact Fidgit at the Jujuy bus station to let her know I'll be in Salta around 11 pm. Taxi to where Fidgit is staying with no fewer than three stops by the cab driver to make sure the address I've given him is really there.

Gear retrieval success!!

So tired on the bus to San Pedro de Atacama

Another bus window view

Passing the time in San Pedro, waiting for the pass to reopen

Made it back to the Chile/Argentina Border!

Reunited, and with new gear!

Gear Reviews and Geeking Out

Solid and dependable gear is essential to being comfortable on my wilderness trips, and I could geek out about it with you for hours if you’d like. For those of you who would rather get the information short and sweet, here it is:

Clothing

Ex Officio Women's Give-N-Go bikini brief - Since first discovering these underwear on my Appalachian Trail thru-hike in 2008, they haven’t let me down. I have worn the two pairs of these underwear I own for months on end, washing them in streams or sinks when possible, and they always come clean. They take years of wear and tear to lose their elasticity. They may also come clean after poo-mergencies in the woods of New Hampshire, but that’s purely hearsay . . . They are breathable enough, don’t chafe, and dry quickly. The only downside I’ve experienced is similar to any clothing made with synthetic cloth - after a few weeks of wearing, they begin to have a permanent stink to them. It is more subtle than it could be, but the perma-stink (as I call it) is still there and never goes away no matter how many washes the underwear go through.

Ex Officio Womens Percorsa Shirt - This is a button-down shirt that I wore daily - alone if it was hot or under layers if it was colder. This shirt is not comfortable for wearing for many days in a row - the fabric has no stretch to it, and the seams in the shoulder area rub under the straps of a backpack. I would say this shirt is more for a casual traveler than a thru-hiker, though it lasted longer than expected, undergoing many months of sweating, dirt, and washing before a large tear from my shoulder along the back left side to the bottom of my ribcage appeared. If you have long hair like I currently do, also consider cutting the breast pockets’ buttons off - my hair kept twisting around them, and the pockets are useless anyway.

Target sports bra - I like these sports bras because 1) I barely need one, 2) I have yet to experience an expensive sports bra out-perform them, and 3) I wear them out quickly. The elastic doesn’t cut off my circulation, and they are still supportive. If you are looking for a more supportive sports bra, I would suggest Title Nine, an amazing women’s athletics company. I have only heard great things from my bustier friends about how their sports bras fit.

Outdoor Research Womens Essence Tights -  These long underwear bottoms did exactly what I required of them - they kept me warm and didn’t tear when I shoved my wet, sticky self into them nearly nightly. If you look, Outdoor Research does say on their website they are only 12% merino wool, which means they are mostly synthetic and will begin to have that perma-stink.

Outdoor Research Womens Voodoo Pants - I wore these pants every day on trail and put them through nearly everything that you could imagine happening to pants - from glissading down passes to bushwhacking through prickly bushes to road walking. These pants can take a beating and not fall apart, that’s for sure! I only got one tear in them in 1,800 miles and it was around the ankle; I got them caught on a tree root. They dry quickly, wash well, and also come in dark colors, so stains don’t show. The fit is also nice - the waist isn’t too high or too low; they aren’t too tight or too loose. The only issue I have had with these pants is that the belt loops get between my hip bones and my pack’s hip belt, which can be painful. Some of the stitching in the back pockets wore out as well, though the essential stitching areas held together without issue.

Outdoor Research Mens Foray Jacket - I bought this jacket because with my long torso, women's jackets usually leave much to be desired. Specifically, women's jackets are never long enough to cover my rear end/lower back when I bend over in them. So I buy men's jackets when I want to know they’ll fit. I also enjoy the extra space for wearing layers underneath the jacket without squishing the layer, which would defeat the point (especially with a down layer). This jacket is a gore-tex rain shell made specifically for keeping humans dry in wet conditions. I also found it doubled as a wind layer

OR Women's Flurry Gloves - These fleece-lined gloves are well made and durable, able to keep my frosty fingers warm while bushwhacking. The only issue is they take a long time to dry when they get wet, which doesn’t help my perpetually cold fingers.

Ibex Women's Hooded Indie - This shirt is a nice layer for wearing when it is too cold for just a light shirt but too warm for your rain jacket or down layer. I liked the thumb holes and the hood, however the zipper didn’t really seem necessary. I put this hoody through the wringer, and it only ended up getting holes in it near the end of the 6 months I wore it nearly every day. My only complaint is it’s not quite long enough for my torso, so I chose a different Ibex hoody to have with me this season.

Bridgedale Women's Coolfusion socks - I’ve worn these for years, and they are great- enough cushion where you need it, none where you don’t. They are a wool/nylon blend so they don’t wear out as quickly as pure wool socks.

Patagonia Men's Down Sweater - Again, I went with the men’s because it works for my long torso. This down jacket kept me warm when I needed it most, and I did my best to take care of it in return - keeping it dry and well lofted when I could. I didn’t have any seams wear out or zippers break either.

Sleeping

Montbell Down Hugger 15* sleeping bag - I like to curl and bend in my sleep. I discovered this sleeping bag years ago, and it has become my favorite. It moves with me more than restricting my movement like other bags, and it keeps me warm. I have also sent my bag back for repairs over the years, and Montbell has always come through, though it does take a month plus at times.

Sea to Summit silk sleeping bag liner - Not only does a sleeping bag liner keep your bag from getting dirty as quickly, it can also double as clothing in town! This liner is lightweight and durable. I have torn through some of their liners in the past, but Sea to Summit has recently changed their design to give it more stretch at the sides, and I haven’t torn the seams yet!

Therm-a-rest Z lite sleeping pad - It is a sleeping pad, a chair at breaks, and a backrest sometimes. I like this sleeping pad, because I can’t break it. If it gets a hole in it, I can still have padding to sleep on. It may get flat over time, so if you are looking for something that will last longer, get an inflatable pad and treat it with kid gloves.

Technology

Garmin E-trex 20 - This GPS is hand-held and got us into and out of many troublesome spots last season. The mapset for Patagonia isn’t great, so there were sometimes lakes where mountains were on the maps and vice-versa as well. The actual device works splendidly, taking drops from hip height and being out in the elements like a pro. The rechargeable AA batteries I have last 2-2.5 days of 12 hours of tracking routes each day and being turned off at night.

GoalZero Nomad solar panel - This was a useful tool for charging our batteries as well as other devices (phone, tablet, satellite tracker, etc.) on the trail. And if we didn’t have immediate access to a wall plug in town, we were able to use the solar panel. What you’re charging and how sunny it is will determine charging time. Thankfully, GoalZero put that right on their solar panel, as well as clearly labeling each cord coming out of the solar panel - the design seems well thought out and practical. My hiking partner’s panel failed ¾ of the  way through the season, so it was convenient that we were both carrying one. We are still unsure why hers failed, though GoalZero was very helpful in troubleshooting the problem, and we were able to get a replacement device.

Some of these items I will continue to use going into Season 2, some I will be switching out for something that works better for me. Please contact me/us if you have any questions, and I’ll be happy to geek out on gear with you!