Andy is the bike expert, a fine camp cook, and cultivator of a rather large head of hair to help him blend in with the local wildlife. When not galavanting about on bicycles he’s a designer of digital stuff, maker and tinkerer. After a few months on the road he can’t help but start sketching plans.

Eileen’s forte lies in scheming, big ideas and logistics. She can rarely ride by a llama without taking a photo, making for slow progress on the road. In more stationary times Eileen is also a digital designer.

In May 2016, after a concerted effort at careers and mortgages in Wellington, New Zealand, we decided the right time to hit the road will never come if you’re waiting for it, quit our jobs, and set off. Past travels have taken the form of some longer backpacking stints, travelling slowly, light and overland, and savouring those places in between. A chance encounter with the blog of some cycle tourists sent Eileen down the rabbit hole, only to emerge bleary eyed some time later with one of the aforementioned Big Ideas. Peru to Patagonia had a nice ring to it, and became a bit of a battle cry in the months leading up to departure.

A year, we thought, then back to business as usual. However, on reaching the bottom of South America we weren’t quite ready to call it a day. The mountains were still calling…