Hi Dan,
Your blog is lots of fun to read, and very informative. I appreciate
the way you focus on your experiences, rather than concentrating
on the statistics of miles driven, vehicle repairs and expenses. That
said, I have a couple of numbers questions:
What would you estimate to be the number of days you have camped,
compared with the number of days you've spent in hostels, cabins,
hotels and private homes?
I see you're putting the Jeep to good use. How often would you say
you drive on roads that are not used by larger vehicles, such as a bus
or delivery truck?
Incidentally, that tarantula will seem small once you visit South America!
Chip Haven
Hey Chip, I'm glad you like my site. I thoroughly enjoy writing it and sharing with everyone. I'll try to answer those questions as best as possible.
Camping: in North America it was at least 9 nights in 10, actually I'd say more like 19 in 20. Since hitting Central America I'm uncertain about safety and have no been camping very much, although lately I've been paying for campgrounds and am happy to camp there because it's safe. Usually it's $2-3 a night. I really want to get back to just camping out in the wilderness, I'm told South America should provide for that.
That would be a huge advantage to having a vehicle I could sleep in, the ability to camp anywhere and not worry.
Roads: hmm, bussess and delivery trucks down here are insane, they go almost anywhere. I think you want to know how often I've actually used the Jeep as a dedicated 4x4 vehicle... very infrequently. Staying on the highways, etc, you could easily do it in a sedan. Most gravel roads are rough, but would be fine in any vehicle if you went slow enough. Actually using 4x4 and the ground clearance is only when I'm trying hard to go somewhere very far off the beaten path.
I'm not much of a 4x4 'enthusiast' and just use it as a tool to get somewhere cool.
I've been thinking a heck of a lot about my vehicle choice and what I might do differently next time. Rest assured there will be a post about it before the adventure is done. I want to see South America before I commit to anything.
-Dan
