BIGGEST Mistake in Chile 🇨🇱INDIAN CYCLE BABA vs. HIGHWAY || EP.27

Within three days, I have ridden 500 km. It’s 7:00 pm and we have reached Los Angeles. I asked them if I could just sleep like this here. They said yes, no problem at all. Nature truly has no comparison.

The sound of tyres is different. The sound of a car is different. Maybe there’s a hostel somewhere inside the lanes and houses.

These are the real scenes of cycling.

Namaskar, Salaam, Sat Sri Akal, Ram Ram ji. Once again, welcome to a new day of my Pole to Pole and World Cycling Journey. We are in Chile. In the last video, you saw that I camped here. Right now, I am at a petrol station – here they call it a gas station. It’s 8:00 am. Everything is completely wet. There was heavy fog here.

Now I will pack everything. Since it’s wet, I will first dry it and then pack it. It will take another half an hour. The tent is still wet, so I’ve spread it out to dry. The groundsheet is here, the sleeping mat is here, and the top cover is here. I just need to wear my shoes and jacket, and then I’ll leave.

If you pack a tent while it’s wet, it starts smelling and gets damaged quickly. So always dry your tent before packing it. Today the sun is shining nicely, which is helpful.

Today’s target is between 180 and 190 km. There is a city called Temuco where I want to reach. In the next four or five days – maybe five or six – we will try to reach Santiago, the capital city of Chile. This is going to be the fastest route of my journey. On this route, there isn’t much to show apart from the road. If you don’t feel like watching, you can skip the video – no problem at all.

I’ve taken a coffee and a muffin for breakfast. It’s already 9:00 am. Being late has almost become my habit. I never reach on time.

Coffee is done. Now we head towards the highway. I will first walk for 50–100 metres before sitting on the cycle. It helps release muscle stiffness. Today’s target is long – 180–190 km is a lot. But I’m moody. Maybe I’ll ride only 50 km, or maybe I’ll complete the full target.

We are back on the road. I can’t pronounce the local names properly. They write something and pronounce it differently. If you listen carefully, it sounds completely different.

The count is at 866 km. I need to bring it below 700. Once it goes below 500, it will feel lighter mentally.

Farming is quite strong in this area. Look, I mentioned tractors and one just appeared! They have put up instructions saying no fire ahead because it’s all forest and the weather is hot. Someone told me there’s a forest fire somewhere ahead. Fires start easily in this region. As we go further, it will get drier.

Come on, Dhanu! Valdivia is mentioned ahead – it’s a tourist place.

I’m removing my jacket. It’s getting hot already. There is quite a lot of traffic on this road, and it will increase as we move towards Santiago. This is called the Pan-American Highway. I was sweating inside.

Now we’ve entered a hilly area. I don’t know how long this stretch is – maybe 30–40 km. In hilly areas, the average speed drops because it’s up and down constantly. Let’s see if we can reach the target today.

I had just thought that my water was finished – I had already drunk 2 litres – and suddenly I found water. Nature is amazing.

We’ve stopped for a short break. I’ve taken out my stove to make brunch. Here it is. I’ll add some dry fruits to it. That’s our brunch ready.

I thought today would be plain riding, but since morning it has been up and down. Still, it’s enjoyable. The weather is fine – not too hot. But there’s heavy traffic on this route.

I’m sitting alone on the roadside, eating food in a different continent. This is not my country, not even my continent. There’s another continent in between. But these borders are drawn by humans, not by nature. With the current geopolitics of the world, nobody knows what might happen tomorrow. A war could start anywhere at any time.

Brunch is done. Look at this – there’s a lot of litter here. I thought there wouldn’t be roadside garbage, but since it’s a busy highway, you see trash here just like in India. And look at the plantation – dense forests everywhere.

Dhanu is ready. I’ve put my trash back in my bag; I’ll throw it in a bin later. I only stopped to eat; otherwise, I won’t be able to complete 190 km. I’ve already covered around 60 km. It’s almost 12:00 pm.

Usually, I push harder from 3:00 pm to 9:00 pm. That’s when the speed increases.

These are the real joys of cycling. Look at these apple trees – they’re wild. Anyone can pluck and eat; there’s no issue. Some are still raw, some are ripe. And there are berries everywhere too. It’s amazing. After almost every kilometre, you see a few apple trees. Earlier I was showing you flowers; now I’m showing you fruits.

I have around 120 km left for today’s target. Suddenly it feels hot. I’ve already ridden 70 km. It’s 1:55 pm. I’m looking for a petrol pump to take some rest and have coffee. It shows one 4 km ahead – maybe a Copec petrol station.

I took a turn, and now the wind seems to be from the front. I’ve entered the 700 km series – 790 km left to Santiago. The climb isn’t much now, so maybe it will be faster.

Truck drivers often stop anywhere and block part of the road. I bought some fresh juice for ₹300. I’m currently stopped at a petrol pump.

Look at the crowd at the petrol pump. The whole place is packed. Wherever I stop at a petrol pump, there’s always a crowd. I don’t know what the matter is.

Alright, Dhanu, you’ve rested enough. Let me fix this camera here. Look at that gentleman driving such an old vehicle. Maybe the 10-year-old van scheme isn’t here. Even that truck looks quite old.

It showed my speed as 18 km/h. Now there’s a toll. Let’s see how they charge here: 1100 for a motorbike, 3600 for a small car, 3600 for a big car (or a car with a trailer), 6500 for a small bus and 11,600 for a large bus or truck. That’s quite something.

They are selling cheese here – homemade cheese, made at home and sold by the roadside.

Let’s leave the highway for a while. There’s a town called Lanco. It will add half a kilometre extra, but the constant noise of trucks on the highway has started ringing in my ears. At least my ears will get some rest.

Someone has even parked cars on top of their house! Now we’ll rejoin the highway. I came through the town, and it felt peaceful. No traffic noise for a while – that helped.

A new region has started. It’s around 3:30 or 4:00 pm. I’ve ridden 105 km already. That’s great.

Let’s go through this town as well. My head is hurting more than my legs because of the constant noise. The sound of tyres is different, the sound of vehicles is different, and the sound of the wind is different. You can really feel it here.

A railway line has been running alongside me for the last 100 km, but I haven’t seen a single train – only the tracks. Let’s go inside the town; it will add 1–2 km extra, but at least I’ll get 10 minutes of peace.

The railway line looks old and unused. Some oil tanker wagons are standing there, but they are rusty. It must have been closed 20–50 years ago. Inside, it’s completely quiet. On the road, it’s just one vehicle going, one coming, one going, one coming – constantly like that.

There’s even a Unimarc supermarket here. But today we’ve reached a bigger town, so it’s fine.

Back on the highway again.

This village has written its name nicely. It looks like a small planned town. From that bridge, I’ll show you the volcanic mountain. In the last 200 km, I’ve seen five or six volcanic mountains. They’re beautiful. Mount Fuji is famous, but these aren’t, even though some of them look more beautiful than Mount Fuji. This one also looks like Mount Fuji.

I’ve parked Dhanu below. Look at this – so beautiful.

On this highway, instead of underpasses, they have built overpasses with proper fencing and lighting, so no one can jump across. They’ve managed this highway very well. This is Highway Number 5, the Pan-American Highway. It’s very famous – they say it goes all the way to Alaska.

The wind has picked up now. Maybe it will be in my favour. That would be great.

It’s around 5:30 or 5:45 pm. About 60 km are left. I’m not very confident today. Yesterday I was confident about doing 160–170 km. I’ve already done 130 km. Even if I do 30 more, it will be 160–170. But my target was 190 km. Not sure if I’ll complete it.

Still, seeing this mountain felt good. I didn’t expect so many hills today. Without the hills, I would have easily covered the distance.

There are small roadside shops here too. Near every bus stop, you’ll find a small shop.

This is today’s last climb. Around 40 km are left. It’s past 7:00 pm now, and I’m losing the strength to ride. I’ve already done 150 km. I’m looking for a place to sleep. I’m very tired.

About 45 km are left to the city. In our country, wheat was sown last month, but here wheat harvesting is happening. Some fields are already harvested; others are ready, golden in colour. It can be harvested anytime now. This is rain-fed farming – no irrigation like back home. No repeated watering or spraying. It’s pure, natural.

Reaching today seems difficult. But if I ride a bit late into the night, maybe I can make it. There’s a petrol pump 15 km ahead. I’ll go there and stop for the night.

Suddenly I felt hungry, so I ate some bread and tomatoes. 700 km are left now. Just about five days’ work – maybe even four at this pace. But I’ll take five or six days. I have time.

The next petrol pump is 7 km away. The sun has already set behind me, so I’ll have to ride 6–7 km in the dark. This is a small town, but there’s no hotel. The only one showing is a four-star hotel.

After sunset, the whole sky turned red in every direction – 360 degrees. For the first time in this Pole to Pole journey, I reached during sunset. It’s past 9:30 pm now. Still 5 km to the petrol pump outside the city. There are petrol pumps inside the city too, but I’ll go to the one outside for camping.

A child in a car shouted “Hola” to me.

There’s a huge river below. And Mahindra – I’ve never seen so many Scorpio vehicles, not even in India, especially the pickup version.

Only 3–4 km left. Come on, Dhanu, let’s reach before it gets completely dark. I don’t want to ride in the dark at any cost.

The count has dropped below 700 km – now 699.

I could continue for another hour and reach further, but I won’t ride in the dark. I’ve taken the service road instead of the main road. Only 2 km left.

I took a shower here and had to pay 800 pesos (around ₹80). You can easily take a hot shower at petrol pumps here. There are toilets and facilities everywhere. Yesterday it was free; today I had to pay.

I haven’t found a proper place to sleep. I’ll just lay down my mattress somewhere and sleep because there’s no space for camping. The petrol pump is completely full and crowded. It runs 24 hours.

So friends, I slept here last night. It’s 7:00 am now, and the sun is already out. I spread my mattress and put my sleeping bag on top and slept there, since there was no place to pitch a tent and I didn’t have the strength to go further.

As soon as I arrived last night, I paid 800 pesos for the bathroom, took a shower, bought something to eat, and then slept here. I slept around 11:00 or 12:00 and woke up at 7:00 am.

They didn’t allow me to pitch a tent due to safety issues. I asked if I could sleep like this, and they said yes, no problem. A tent only needs a roof, and there was a roof above me, so it was fine.

Now we’ll get ready to leave. Today’s target is 170–180 km. There’s a small town called Los Angeles here; we’ll reach there. The town we were targeting yesterday is just 20 km away, but now we won’t enter that town.

We will go straight via the bypass and head directly to Los Angeles today. This mattress seems to have lost air. I don’t know how, but it feels like it leaked somewhere during the night. Maybe it touched something sharp. I’ll pack it now and then have some coffee. Here, they give you a cup and then you pour your coffee into it. I’ll have my coffee and leave before 8:00 am.

Today I want to push for 190 km, so I’ll really stretch myself. All my batteries are dead. I couldn’t find any charging point here. I kept trying throughout the night whenever I woke up. Even now, only a little battery is left in the phone. The camera has already shut down. Let’s see how I manage. I have two power banks, and both are nearly dead. All night long, trucks kept passing and disturbing me.

Everything is packed now. We’re leaving the petrol pump. Let me show you – this petrol pump is always crowded. Even at night, there’s hardly any space to stand. Now it’s early morning, so the crowd is slightly less. Look at the speed of the vehicles on the highway. The pump remains full all the time – trucks on one side and cars on the other. After 40 km, they probably have another pump of the same company. I’ll head there.

I’ve reached another petrol pump – and again, it’s crowded. It feels like people don’t eat at home; they just come to petrol pumps to eat. I’ve completed 40 km already. I’m not feeling great today. It feels strange. I’m just dragging myself along. The good thing is that the wind is in my favour, blowing at around 25–30 km/h. So I’m hopeful I’ll make it today. But all my devices are out of charge. I’m just riding fast and not thinking too much because I really want to reach Los Angeles today – not the US one, but there’s a Los Angeles here as well.

I’ll rest there today. After that, about 500 km will remain. To be honest, 26th January is coming, and I want to reach Santiago before 26 January. That’s why I’m riding faster than usual. Normally, I don’t ride this fast. You must have seen that. Another issue here is forest fires. Sometimes roads get closed because of them. So I want to move as quickly as possible.

Only 100 km left to Los Angeles. I’m riding super fast today. I’m trying to charge the camera a little from the bike, but it’s hardly working. Dhanu is going really fast. The wind is fully in my favour today. There aren’t many climbs either. I might reach by 8:00 or 9:00 pm.

I’m feeling hungry. There’s a small town 5–6 km ahead. I’ll eat something there. Before that, I thought I’d regain some energy. I left the highway and entered the town. It feels peaceful. It’s so quiet compared to the highway.

I even saw an old Mahindra Scorpio here. They haven’t launched the new model or logo here yet; the old one is still running.

On the way, I saw a pizza shop and thought the most important task is to eat pizza! I’ll also charge my phone for 10–15 minutes. It’s a Papa John’s branch. Dhanu is parked outside. It’s almost 2:00 pm now. Pizza is done, energy restored. Now I’ll continue.

Another town has come – Victoria. Around 60–70 km are left for today’s target. At this speed, I think I’ll reach in about two to two and a half hours. I might even complete the 190 km target today. With this favourable wind, I’m riding at 25–30 km/h and it feels great. Look at the strong wind – I made full use of it today.

I’ve stopped at a petrol pump for some coffee. Only 30–40 km left to Los Angeles. If I maintain this speed, I’ll reach within one and a half hours.

It’s 7:00 pm, and I’ve reached Los Angeles. It’s a beautiful and quite big city. There are supermarkets and everything here. I’m thinking of going 10–20 km further, but I decided to enter the supermarket now and buy a few small things. I bought grapes, granola, milk and some cakes. My energy was completely down. These four items cost about ₹100. Prices are slightly better now, but still expensive.

In three days, I’ve ridden 500 km. I’m surprised myself. I’ve never maintained this consistency in the last ten years. Yes, I’ve done 250 km in a single day before, but then maybe only 50 the next day. But 500 km in three continuous days is new for me. Tomorrow I’ll ride 100 km, and the day after 150 km. That means in seven or eight days, I’ll complete 1,000 km.

Inside the city, some Indian brothers met me. One of them, Kuldeep from Amritsar, recognised me because of the steel bangle on my wrist. They were cycling around the city. We talked for two to three hours.

Now I’m confused. It’s 7:00 pm, and I could ride until 9:30 pm and complete 190 km. My mind says go ahead, but my heart says stop and rest. Also, tomorrow the temperature may go up to 37–38°C, and the next 250–300 km region is known to be very hot.

So I booked a hostel in Los Angeles for $35. I’m heading there. The hostel is inside a residential building. In Chile, many houses have small hostels made from spare rooms. The owner upgraded my room. I had booked it through Booking.com for 33,000 pesos, but when I arrived, I asked him to cancel it and deal directly. He agreed. I cancelled it, and he charged me 28,000 pesos – saving about 5,000 pesos (around ₹500) because he didn’t have to pay commission.

This is my new record – 500 km in three days. Thank you all for your love and support. I know today’s video might be boring because there’s only road to show, and my camera battery was mostly dead. Now I’ll put everything on charge – phone, laptop, power banks – so tomorrow everything is fully charged. Then I’ll arrange something to eat and rest properly.

That’s it for today.

We will go straight via the bypass and head directly to Los Angeles today. This mattress seems to have lost air. I don’t know how, but it feels like it leaked somewhere during the night. Maybe it touched something sharp. I’ll pack it now and then have some coffee. Here, they give you a cup and then you pour your coffee into it. I’ll have my coffee and leave before 8:00 am.

Today I want to push for 190 km, so I’ll really stretch myself. All my batteries are dead. I couldn’t find any charging point here. I kept trying throughout the night whenever I woke up. Even now, only a little battery is left in the phone. The camera has already shut down. Let’s see how I manage. I have two power banks, and both are nearly dead. All night long, trucks kept passing and disturbing me.

Everything is packed now. We’re leaving the petrol pump. Let me show you – this petrol pump is always crowded. Even at night, there’s hardly any space to stand. Now it’s early morning, so the crowd is slightly less. Look at the speed of the vehicles on the highway. The pump remains full all the time – trucks on one side and cars on the other. After 40 km, they probably have another pump of the same company. I’ll head there.

I’ve reached another petrol pump – and again, it’s crowded. It feels like people don’t eat at home; they just come to petrol pumps to eat. I’ve completed 40 km already. I’m not feeling great today. It feels strange. I’m just dragging myself along. The good thing is that the wind is in my favour, blowing at around 25–30 km/h. So I’m hopeful I’ll make it today. But all my devices are out of charge. I’m just riding fast and not thinking too much because I really want to reach Los Angeles today – not the US one, but there’s a Los Angeles here as well.

I’ll rest there today. After that, about 500 km will remain. To be honest, 26th January is coming, and I want to reach Santiago before 26 January. That’s why I’m riding faster than usual. Normally, I don’t ride this fast. You must have seen that. Another issue here is forest fires. Sometimes roads get closed because of them. So I want to move as quickly as possible.

Only 100 km left to Los Angeles. I’m riding super fast today. I’m trying to charge the camera a little from the bike, but it’s hardly working. Dhanu is going really fast. The wind is fully in my favour today. There aren’t many climbs either. I might reach by 8:00 or 9:00 pm.

I’m feeling hungry. There’s a small town 5–6 km ahead. I’ll eat something there. Before that, I thought I’d regain some energy. I left the highway and entered the town. It feels peaceful. It’s so quiet compared to the highway.

I even saw an old Mahindra Scorpio here. They haven’t launched the new model or logo here yet; the old one is still running.

On the way, I saw a pizza shop and thought the most important task is to eat pizza! I’ll also charge my phone for 10–15 minutes. It’s a Papa John’s branch. Dhanu is parked outside. It’s almost 2:00 pm now. Pizza is done, energy restored. Now I’ll continue.

Another town has come – Victoria. Around 60–70 km are left for today’s target. At this speed, I think I’ll reach in about two to two and a half hours. I might even complete the 190 km target today. With this favourable wind, I’m riding at 25–30 km/h and it feels great. Look at the strong wind – I made full use of it today.

I’ve stopped at a petrol pump for some coffee. Only 30–40 km left to Los Angeles. If I maintain this speed, I’ll reach within one and a half hours.

It’s 7:00 pm, and I’ve reached Los Angeles. It’s a beautiful and quite big city. There are supermarkets and everything here. I’m thinking of going 10–20 km further, but I decided to enter the supermarket now and buy a few small things. I bought grapes, granola, milk and some cakes. My energy was completely down. These four items cost about ₹100. Prices are slightly better now, but still expensive.

In three days, I’ve ridden 500 km. I’m surprised myself. I’ve never maintained this consistency in the last ten years. Yes, I’ve done 250 km in a single day before, but then maybe only 50 the next day. But 500 km in three continuous days is new for me. Tomorrow I’ll ride 100 km, and the day after 150 km. That means in seven or eight days, I’ll complete 1,000 km.

Inside the city, some Indian brothers met me. One of them, Kuldeep from Amritsar, recognised me because of the steel bangle on my wrist. They were cycling around the city. We talked for two to three hours.

Now I’m confused. It’s 7:00 pm, and I could ride until 9:30 pm and complete 190 km. My mind says go ahead, but my heart says stop and rest. Also, tomorrow the temperature may go up to 37–38°C, and the next 250–300 km region is known to be very hot.

So I booked a hostel in Los Angeles for $35. I’m heading there. The hostel is inside a residential building. In Chile, many houses have small hostels made from spare rooms. The owner upgraded my room. I had booked it through Booking.com for 33,000 pesos, but when I arrived, I asked him to cancel it and deal directly. He agreed. I cancelled it, and he charged me 28,000 pesos – saving about 5,000 pesos (around ₹500) because he didn’t have to pay commission.

This is my new record – 500 km in three days. Thank you all for your love and support. I know today’s video might be boring because there’s only road to show, and my camera battery was mostly dead. Now I’ll put everything on charge – phone, laptop, power banks – so tomorrow everything is fully charged. Then I’ll arrange something to eat and rest properly.

That’s it for today.