COVID-19: a Challenging Time for Overland Travellers

The Pandemic of COVID-19 is affecting the whole world in ways never before experienced. It’s been an incredibly challenging time for travellers and tourists around the world, trying to get “home”, or not. We explained in our first post how overland wanderers , and other long-term travellers, are affected differently to tourists on holiday.

12 more stories of overland travellers facing the challenges due to COVID-19. Each one has to find their own way to deal with lockdowns and border closures.

12 Stories from Overland travellers

In this post, we will share overland traveller stories, ranging from shattered dreams to incredible endurance to good fortune, as they deal with the problems of being far from home during this time of universal crisis. And there are the ever-present helpful people they encounter along the way.

From adventure of a lifetime to a broken dream

It takes a lot of planning to have a year away from work to travel long-term. It must be such a disappointment to suddenly lose the possibility of continuing only partway in.

We are Jenny Malyon and Gus Mill from Scotland. Last year we started a year out from work to travel around Europe and South America. We rented out our home and converted a VW Crafter Van into a camper, then we shipped the van to Montevideo, Uruguay in December.

3 months later, we had travelled across Uruguay and down Argentina to Ushuaia. We were making our way back north when the coronavirus reached Argentina. You can find more of that story on Facebook or Instagram .

We had hiked the beautiful Tres Lagos trail from El Chalten and were looking forward to another hike the next day. But in the morning, we woke to find that the police were turning people back from the town and that all the trails were closed. In fact, all the national parks had closed and there was talk of an imminent lockdown.

Suddenly, the coronavirus was serious; people were starting to be aware of their social distancing and there was a queue of cars and vans leaving the area. We made the decision to move north and find a good spot to wait out the lockdown.

A day when overlanding was all fun: hiking the famous Torres del Paine National Park in Chile.

This wasn’t part of the plan! Our van in port, ready to be loaded on a ship back to the UK – 5 months early!

However, after 2 days on the road, there was a knock on our van door. Mask-wearing police firmly escorted us out of the town we’d overnighted in. They couldn’t tell us where we could go, just that we had to leave now. The next few days were similar: we could buy fuel, but the police at each town moved us on and we had to find hidden spots off the road to spend each night.

Argentinians were being advised to report all foreigners to the police; the UK government was advising all British citizens to leave. It began to get a bit scary.

We made the decision to book flights home and make for Buenos Aires. 5 days, 3000km, 30+ police checks, and one cancelled flight later, we made it to the airport. Our van is now on a ship home and we are staying with relatives, trying to get our house and jobs back 5 months earlier than planned.

We hope that we will be able to travel again, but it is very unlikely that we could get another career break. Perhaps shorter trips, closer to home will have to do for the next couple of years and we won’t risk taking our van outside Europe again.

“Home” early, but still dreaming of travel

The choice was between being stranded indefinitely in SE Asia, or breaking their trip and going home to France.

We are Sidonie and Sylvain, a French couple, who started our overlanding trip in March 2019. We quit our jobs to travel for 2 years around Europe and Asia. Sidonie was employed in the non-profit sector and Sylvain was an automation and industrial process engineer. We started a blog in French (but the photos/articles sections are summarised in English)

We left home: north through Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Norway; south through Finland; east through Russia and Mongolia; then back to Russia. We took a ferry to Japan and quickly went to South Korea, from where we shipped our van to Malaysia. We spent a couple of days in Cambodia (backpacking) before getting our van back, and then went to Malaysia and Thailand.

Before COVID-19: overland travellers get out into some amazing scenery

We heard about the coronavirus when we started to travel in Malaysia in January, and the COVID-19 stopped us in Thailand. We were about to cross the Thailand-Myanmar border where our convoy was denied entry to Myanmar. At first, we thought about staying in Thailand but we had trouble renewing our temporary import permit. So we decided to go back to Malaysia, where we thought we would have more time before the lockdown.

In the end, the Malaysian government announced the lockdown for March 18^th. We managed to find a place to stay through the Overlanding Asia Facebook page . A local let us stay in his 2^nd house. We stayed there for 3 weeks, only going out for shopping because it was very hot there. A neighbour gave us face-masks after I was asked to leave a shop.

The French embassy sent us emails regularly and, after 2-3 weeks, we decided to go back home because we thought the situation in South East Asia would probably last. We managed to book a flight and arrived in France on April 13^th.

In Malaysia, we met a few roadblocks but they didn’t ask for any papers. In France, we haven’t seen one single policeman. We self-quarantined for 14 days in the north of France before staying at Sylvain’s parents’ house. We need to print and fill a paper every time we want to go out of the house, but we are currently on a very big property so we only go out to go shopping.

Our van is stored in Malaysia. A shipping agent will take care of all the paperwork and the shipping. We gave up the idea of driving back home from Malaysia (Myanmar, India, Pakistan, Central Asia, Iran, Turkey…).Depending on the price and the possibility to travel, we will either send it back home or elsewhere in Europe.

The unexpected end of the Asia trip: the van is in storage in a shipping warehouse

We will wait until lockdown is over, then we will visit family and friends in France. We want to keep travelling while we have the money to do so. Depending on the borders and if we have our van or not, we will either hike in France for a few weeks, or keep travelling in Europe (UK, Spain, or to Eastern Europe).

Happy to be “home”

After a rather scary experience in Bolivia earlier in their travels, this family were happy to get on the first available flight home.

My wife, daughter and I are from the USA and have been traveling through South America since June of 2019.

We were in Puerto Natales in southern Chile, when we first started paying attention to the pandemic in early February. We sold our vehicle there and flew to Colombia, where we thought we might stay for a few months.

When we were in Cartagena, Colombia announced restrictions. Within a day, we started looking for flights to the states. At one point we had three different flights booked, but ended up getting on a Spirit Airlines flight the next day.

While we waited, walking to the supermarket or just being outside of our hotel felt very odd as folks definitely did not want foreigners there. We were seen as potential carriers of the virus. We wanted to leave quickly.

After our experience in Bolivia in November, when Evo Morales resigned and the country seemed on the verge of civil war. We drove for 24 hours to get out of the country, traveling only a few hundred kilometers on back roads and talking our way through countless roadblocks.

We had a friend traveling with us, who wrote about it . We did not want to be in a situation like that again.

Part of overlanding: you can stop by the side of the road and prepare your lunch – with a view

The premature end of an overlanding trip through South America: getting on a plane, wearing face masks

You can find more photos of our trip on Instagram .

No future plans – we call them hopes

Just 3 weeks into a yearlong trip, this overland traveller decides to stay in southern Chile with his vehicle, rather than going “home”. Here’s hoping he can continue his journey sooner rather than later.

I left Seattle Washington and my career, for a yearlong overland adventure through South America, at the beginning of February 2020. At the time Coronavirus was on the international news in China but the rest of the world seemed safe.

I flew to Puerto Natales, Chile and picked up my new-to-me 4×4 vehicle. After completing the transfer, I had two weeks for a shakedown tour through Southern Patagonia before coming back to Puerto Natales to complete the 8-day 110km O-Trek through the Torres Del Paine National Parque .

Ben’s shakedown tour in southern Chile. Hope he manages to get on the road again soon.

When I started the trek on March 7^th, Italy had the virus but nothing had started shutting down. By the time we finished the trek late on March 14^th, we found the world fully submerged in chaos. All around us borders were closing rapidly, flights were cancelled, and news was changing by the hour.

Everyone I had trekked with was in a panic, looking for new flights home or making plans on where to wait out the lockdown. As soon as plans were made, they changed; it seemed everyone was on their own, and the airports and airlines were in complete chaos.

As soon as plans were made, they changed; it seemed everyone was on their own, and the airports and airlines were in complete chaos.

The following Monday, March 16^th, Argentine borders were closed and a few days later, ferries traveling north were closed to foreigners. I was now locked down in Southern Chile with no means of moving my vehicle north. I was two days back from the trek and three weeks into a yearlong trip and I needed to either escape home to the United States (putting my trip on hold for a year, likely indefinitely) or wait out what was coming in Puerto Natales.

I decided to stay because traveling through virus hotspots (Santiago and International Airports) seemed like a bad idea, I had time available (I didn’t plan to be back until November), and my return “home” would be to my parents’ house in Boise, Idaho (they are in good health but are in the category of “at risk”). Most people I met on the trek made it home, though for some it took 30-60 hours, many of which were spent at airports and buses hoping for a seat to open.

I feel lucky to have found a hostel (Puma House) with other travelers, all in a similar situation. The hostel has officially closed and we are now long-term guests, but we could not ask for better or friendlier hosts to wait this out with. We fill our days shopping, cooking, helping build new furniture around the Hostel, and practising Spanish. Two other travelers share my love of climbing and the small crag outside of town is frequently visited.

I have not yet had to deal with VISA extensions, but I know it’s possible and applications are being processed. Luckily, my vehicle is a Chilean native with no need for a TIP. I am happy to have stayed in Chile and Puerto Natales has remained a relative safe haven with only 9 recorded cases. At the hostel we have given up making future plans instead we call them hopes.

Lockdown in Puerto Natales, this is Ben’s “Corona/Hostal family”

Ben thought he’d be a year without climbing, but now he goes almost every day.

I hope to travel north when I’m allowed to do so, but I know I may not be welcomed in the places I try to visit so my trip is potentially over already. There is nothing to do but wait and see what happens and to enjoy the beautiful location we find ourselves in.

Travel as we have known it has come to an end, the future will be different and the only way to know how different is to experience it as it happens.

I hope my story doesn’t come across too sad; it’s true my trip as I dreamt it won’t be happening but now I get to experience things I haven’t planned. I’ve gotten to know my “Corona/Hostal family” a lot better than I expected; I figured I’d be a year without climbing and now I get to go daily. So every closed door opens new opportunities for adventure.

This was meant to be my year to travel

Just set off on her adventure and now she’s “stuck” in Cusco. No question of going home and leaving her precious bike behind – or giving up her dream. We hope it works out for you, Kyra.

Kyra Eddy from Perth, Australia (born in New Zealand).
53 years young.
My dream was/is to travel.
Blog – Respiration Required

I left Perth for Sydney on 20^th Jan 2020, and rode 4900 km. I left Sydney for Santiago at the beginning of February, also flying the bike over, which arrived 5 days later.

I heard a little bit about the virus in China when I got to Chile.

Kyra, with her loaded bike on the Carreterra Austral Chile, living her dream.

I was riding for about a month through Chile, camping and hostels, and then across to Argentina. I was awaiting a package, so I had to come back to Santiago 11 days later. I had a plan to get to Peru to go to Machu Picchu, so I rode a couple of days getting into Peru on March 5^th; to Cusco for 10^th; got to Machu Picchu on the 13^th. I arrived back in Cusco to an announcement on Sunday 15^th for lockdown the next day.

I have been here ever since – 39 days. Now two more weeks have been added – to 10^th May. Motorbike and I have safe accommodation here. I don’t want to go home as I have the year off to do my solo world trip on my KLX250 road and trail bike aka String Bean.

Australia has only organised a flight from Lima by taking a tourist plane: $5000 economy and $10000 business. It sold out. There is no way to get to Lima, plus I would have had a lot of paperwork to organise my bike. If it overstays, Peru is known for confiscating motorbikes never to be returned. I read there was a flight on 14^th April as well.

I am hopeful I can ride around Peru or South America. America looks like it will be too dangerous to go into. 49000 dead so far.

My only worry now is the poor resorting to robbery. I’ve felt safe prior to this pandemic, travelling solo. People are generally great, generous and kind. They are also really helpful to someone learning the language. I have loved my motorbike trip till now; a 30-year dream to travel. I have 2 daughters at uni in Australia. This was meant to be my time and my year.

I am resilient and positive. This too shall pass. Part of my 21-day abundance meditation I’ve now finished. 2 audiobooks down and half a novel I’m savouring.
PS Thank goodness for my Sudoku book.

Locked down securely with her bike in the Hostel Estrellita, Cusco, Peru.

When this is over, I may have to look at my safety and travel with anyone heading my way. Don’t know yet what that will be as plans will probably need to be flexible.

In lockdown, I have fixed my carby with the supervision of a qualified mechanic.

info block: Temporary (Vehicle) Import Permit

Stranded in Brazil, right near the beach

It doesn’t sound too bad, does it? But Dan would probably rather be continuing his journey. For him, going “home” is also not an option – not if it means leaving his bike behind.

My name is Dan Byers and I’m from NE Ohio; Cuyahoga Falls to be precise. I’m a 59-year-old divorcée, father of one son, and an avid motorcyclist. Shortly after the 2016 election, I gave notice at my corporate job, began liquidating my possessions and cutting my ties to a life of normalcy.

In June of 2018, I left home with the goal of riding to Ushuaia and back. Initially, I made it to Salina Cruz in Mexico, where serious illness stopped me in my tracks.

Dan with Sunny (his bike) in Chile before the pandemic stopped all travel. They’re on their way to Ushuaia.

In May 2019, I left Ohio for the second attempt. After 45,000 miles of travel, I successfully made it to Ushuaia in February of this year. Shortly after arriving there, I first started hearing news reports of a virus running rampant through parts of China.

While staying with two other moto-travelers at an Airbnb apartment in Buenos Aires, we heard rumors of border closings coming. Sam, from the UK, had barely scheduled his bike’s shipment and his flight home when we heard of borders beginning to close.

Olaf, the German rider was unable to secure a shipment for his bike. As I was planning on riding all the way home, Olaf decided to ride further with me, to see Iguazu Falls. After the Falls, he decided to ride on up the Brazil coast with me before turning back to BA. As luck would have it, the borders ALL closed the day after we crossed into Brazil.

We were lucky enough to find an apartment in Joinville, Brazil that was fairly inexpensive, with an understanding, supportive owner. We stayed there for 5 weeks, self-isolating ourselves, only seeing the woman at the corner food market on occasion.

Meanwhile, I became friends with a group of local motorcyclists through FB, who knew I was looking for less-expensive, long-term lodging. One of them, Luis, has parents, who own a beach resort in Praia do Estaleiro that is closed to the public. That is where I now reside, whiling away the days, forever looking for info on the re-opening of borders.

I contacted the US Embassy in Brazil multiple times, signing up for the STEP program but, to be quite honest, all they have done is repeatedly suggested I abandon my bike here and fly home at the earliest opportunity! My motorcycle is all I own. I will not abandon her now.

There are indications that Brazil will extend the 90-day visa (and the vehicle TIP) due to the coronavirus. So I’m not worried about being “legal”. As far as conditions in Brazil, their restrictions are nominal for the most part, with their President Bolsonaro taking a lot of heat for calling the virus a hoax, etc. Schools, restaurants and most businesses have been closed, but even now are starting to reopen. I’d say about half the folks you see around are wearing masks. Masks are needed to grocery shop, and they disinfect the cart handles etc for each person. On the streets there seem to be no travel restrictions, unlike neighboring countries.

As far as the future goes, I can afford to stay here 2-3 more months and still have enough funds to ride home. Of course, that means that all borders from here to the USA re-open and allow such travel. Quite frankly, as far as exposure to the virus, I feel safer staying here than traveling by air just now or being back in Ohio, where the virus is rampant.

Dan with his bike in lockdown in Brazil. Standing next to him is Luis, who helped him find this place to stay.

Being stranded in Brazil right near the beach in Praia do Estaleiro has its perks. Mainly, the beach! Other than that, it’s been a struggle to stay positive and not abandon my journey as a result of COVID-19. I hope that someday this is all just part of the stories we tell our friends. All part of the adventure.

I usually update my Facebook page daily, so you can follow my story there. A more detailed version of my journey is on the Adventure Rider forum .

A Kiwi & a Pom – travelling the world

Now they’re “stuck” in Guatemala – and it’s not an easy decision working out whether to stay and wait it out or to go home.

I am Jennifer Cole and am a British Citizen with permanent residence in New Zealand, where I live with my partner, Dennis Brown.

We have been travelling for almost 2 years, but have gone back to NZ a few times for a break. We started from the UK, in May 2017, travelling through France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and Norway into Russia. We zigzagged through Russia, then crossed the ‘Stans and Mongolia, back into Russia and to the port of Vladivostok. From there we shipped to Vancouver.

Early days of overland travelling, Jen & Dennis parked up on the Pamir Highway Tajikistan in August 2018.

Crossing into the Arctic in Northern Canada, May 2019.

After a period of storage in Vancouver, we headed to Alaska, and to the furthest point north in Canada at Tuktuyaktuk. Then across Canada, into Maine and back west across the US, into Mexico at Tijuana; through Mexico and Belize and into Guatemala where we have been in lockdown for 5 weeks. There are details of our journey and current situation on our blog.

We’re not sure now when we first heard about the virus, but it first impacted on our journey when we crossed from Belize into Guatemala. We crossed on the very day that the border was closed to EU passport holders, so I was lucky to get in.

Guatemala was quick in introducing lockdowns, and we felt safe to sit things out. We are at Pasaj Cap in the village of San Marcos La Laguna beside Lake Atitlan. It is idyllic. We have plenty of food and no issues. There is a community of approximately 8 vehicles of various nationalities, all wishing to continue with their travel plans heading south.

Camping in Joshua Tree National Park Southern California September 2019.

Parked up under lockdown at Passaj Cap, San Marcos, Guatemala. From March 2020 until ???

However, as things continue with no end in sight, several of the group are considering leaving. US and Canadian citizens to drive home; Europeans to store their vehicles in Mexico and fly out. We are now also considering joining them and flying back to NZ. Who knows how long this will continue and what sort of world it will be for travellers once this is over.

“Settled” in Portugal

We met this German couple in Morocco last year. Their vehicle is their only home, and they’ve found a safe and secure place to wait until they can move their “home” again.

We are Robby and Stefan. Since May 2016, we have been living in our Mercedes 911 and travelling through Europe and Morocco.

Robby & Stefan in front of their large overland vehicle in Morocco – before COVID-19

At the time that Corona appeared in China, we were in Germany, where we visited family and friends for some months. We had a plan to leave our loved ones in spring and head towards Italy. I don’t know why, but one day in January, I had the idea to change our plans and go to Portugal almost immediately.

So, on the 8^th of February, we left my parents’ house and headed towards Portugal. From today’s viewpoint, I would say that is the best decision we could have made.

We didn’t think much about Corona at the time because it was in Asia, which is far away. It wasn’t in our minds that it could affect us as much as it did, and still does. So when we arrived in Portugal, we met friends and everything was just as usual.

When it became bad in Europe, we realised that it could become worse, but we didn’t panic or become afraid.

The first restrictions in Portugal came very soon. When we went to the grocery store on the 10^th of March, we saw lots of people wearing rubber gloves and face masks. In front of the supermarkets, there were security staff; only 10 people were allowed to be in the supermarket at one time. We also wore rubber gloves and tried not to get in contact with anyone, except our friends we had been with for several weeks.

In the middle of March, Portugal announced a state of emergency. That was reason enough for us to realise that things were getting serious and more stringent. Lots of other campers left the country and we also thought about it. But in the end, we decided to stay.

We looked for a property to rent with our friends. After a very short time, we were offered a house with a wonderful garden. Since the 21^st of March, we have been living here – and we love it. It’s a bit like being in a bubble.

For us, everything feels normal. We only see the difference when we go to the grocery store or watch the news. Buying food is the only reason for us to leave our “home”, because three of us are at-risk people. That’s also one reason why we decided not to go back to Germany through Spain and France. These countries were much more affected than Portugal and still are.

At the moment, we are using the wood-fired oven every week to bake bread and make Pizza. Most of the time we are outside in the garden or doing some work. We will also stay here when the restrictions lessen because we think that it will probably become worse again, and we feel very comfy in our little bubble.

Flowers and fruit trees in the garden where these overland travellers spend their time during the coronavirus lockdown in Portugal.

Not so much has changed for us; the only thing is that we can’t travel around. But that’s no problem for us. Different times need different measures.

So we think positive and try to stay healthy.

Read more about Stefan & Robby’s nomadic life (in German).

A vanlife girl on a Greek beach

We met Mandy online and spent our first couple of weeks in lockdown on a beach parked next to her after she invited us to come there.

I’m Mandy from Germany. Since 2016 I live and travel in my campervan together with my vandog Marko Polo . In my blog Movin’n’Groovin I occasionally write about my experiences on the road. Last year I wrote a book about female solo travel Van Girls .

Mandy and Marko on a hike at Voidokilia beach, overlooking ‘Ox Belly Bay’ on the Peloponnese west coast.

The first time I heard about the coronavirus crisis, I was already at the place where I am right now. I came here to visit friends who were staying here in their camper already. It is private property where we can stay and we help a bit with renovations of the small beach restaurant. That was the idea in the beginning until we heard the news about coronavirus.

In the beginning, we agreed simply to stay here and “wait & see” because we thought this crisis would be over within a few weeks maybe. But we were wrong. Shortly before the lockdown here in Greece, my friends decided to move into an apartment. I decided to stay here at the beach for the time being, simply because it’s a nice place and I have no better idea of where to go.

My original plan for this summer was to drive back to Germany, visit friends and family, go to some music and vanlife festivals & meetups… Well, this won’t happen. There was (and still is) no way of travelling back to Germany since most borders are closed and ferries don’t operate.

Luckily, we are staying at a private property. Outside high season it is usually no problem at all to wild camp. But at the moment the police might send you away. And this is a bit ridiculous since there is no “away”. Campsites are closed and most people can’t simply “drive home”.

I think I will stay in Greece for a bit longer, not necessarily in the same place. Since I prefer to travel and stay in nature, I think it’s no problem to stay safe and healthy.

Marko on the beach where he and Mandy are spending the lockdown period near Koroni.

Actually, I have no idea what the future will bring. I stay positive and hope that we will be able to “flatten the curve” and things will slowly get back to “normal”. Although I don’t think the old “normal” is a good idea – I’d like to see people and businesses becoming more aware of our vulnerability, and of our behaviour towards the environment.

Still at work in Argentina

He’s riding his Harley around the world and is still employed, working remotely. The pandemic has stopped him moving, but hasn’t halted his journey.

Who are you and where are you from?
My name is Marco Massari Calderone, and I am Italian.

How long and where have you been travelling?
I have been travelling for almost 6 years. I started back in November 2014; you can find my travelling story on The Journey of Dreams . I’ve also created an app to help people stranded during the COVID-19 lockdowns.

Where were you when you first heard about the coronavirus crisis?
I was in Patagonia, between Chile and Argentina, around Christmas time December 2019

Marco travelling overland with his bike on the Carretera Austral in Chile – before the lockdown.

How quickly did this country introduce restrictions, and how did you deal with them?
Argentina applied restrictions starting from the 10^th of March more or less, but there were local province decisions. The whole country went in lockdown from the 17^th of March.

Where are you now? In lockdown in that country or have you returned home?
I am still in Argentina, in Saldan, a town near Cordoba. I am staying at a friend’s house.

How have you dealt with bureaucratic issues involved in staying or getting home?
So far I didn’t have any bureaucratic issues, because the last time I entered Argentina was the 7^th of March (after hopping in/out of Chile a few times). That means that my permit lasts until the first week of June.

On top of that, the Argentinian government extended the validity of all permits by 30 days, therefore I can stay in the country until the first week of July. The TIP of my motorcycle was already valid until the 2^nd of November 2020.

Marco in lockdown at a friend’s house – time to carry on working.

How do you see the future?
I believe that travel-wise it will be difficult and unsafe for overlanders until a vaccine to COVID-19 is developed. I expect that most countries will require health-tests or vaccine or quarantine or a combination of those before letting you in from now on.

The tourism industry will be very shaken, many infrastructures will default/fail therefore the choices will be less, and prices will skyrocket because the few that survive will need to recover from the current economic losses. Tourism/Traveling will become an elite thing again, somehow.

Tourism/Traveling might become an elite thing again.

Waiting in Whitehorse

We met Julie and Marcus in Peru and then again in Colombia. They are full-time overland travellers. Thanks to helpful local officials, they are now “settled” in Canada for the duration.

We are Brits Julie and Marcus Tuck and had been overlanding full-time for six years in Cuthbert our camper-truck when we first heard of Covid-19 spreading beyond China. We had driven from Argentina up to the US Pacific North West, heading to Canada.

Julie & Marcus with Cuthbert, out in the wilds they love during normal travel-life.

Initially, we were pretty chilled-out. No biggie… just a bit of social distancing and hand-washing. But just days after we crossed into Canada, we were shocked to learn that the USA/Canada border had shut-down behind us. Hmmm… serious stuff.

Social media showed other overlanders around the world struggling to get flights home, but it was a no-brainer for us not to do this. First, we weren’t in a country where foreigners’ lives were being made increasingly difficult and unsafe. Secondly, our truck is our only home at the moment. Our house in the UK is rented out and our elderly parents are in isolation. The journey itself would put us at greater risk of contracting the virus. We had a brand-new six-month visa for Canada, so we decided to #stayhome in Cuthbert.

Initially, we reckoned that if we stuck to rural/remote locations, we could continue travel-life as usual. Seems a bit naïve now with the benefit of hindsight, but we wanted to reach Tuktayuktuk on the Arctic Ocean in North West Territories (NWT) before the ice-bridges/roads melt in spring. That plan soon turned to jam when NWT locked-down its provincial borders.

Reality finally kicked-in for us, when we reached the Yukon… stopping and taking a ‘rona virus stay-cation, was the only sensible thing to do. Days later, the Yukon closed its borders too and declared that all transiting travellers had to leave within 24 hrs! Bugger. Where to go?

We thought about trying to keep a low profile. Maybe they won’t notice us… yeah… right! Our Cuthbert has many fine skills and qualities but staying stealthy in a small town is not one of them.

We decided to come clean and declare our situation to the local authorities and received a very helpful response. We could stay-put if we comply with all local rules of distancing etc. Phew!

During the lockdown, Marcus busies himself with the tech stuff he loves.

And during the lockdown, Julie can watch the ‘Yukon River crack-up in the spring thaw’.

So several weeks later, we’re still here, parked-up in Whitehorse, Yukon. We’ve had temperatures down as low as minus 31 centigrade, but we’re comfortable. There are so far only 11 Covid cases in the whole Yukon Territory. Rules are (relatively) relaxed but sensible and it feels safe.

As for the future… who knows? When our initial six-month visa expires, we would like to extend it so that we can contribute to Canada’s depleted tourism industry when travel is allowed. Until then… we’ll sit here watching the Yukon River crack-up in the spring thaw and wait for the bears to come out of hibernation.

Fortunate to have a friend in Zambia

We met David & Francine last year on their test trip in Morocco. We are happy they’ve found a safe and friendly place to wait out the lockdown.

Originally from the UK, we (David and Francine) left for work in 1993 and have not lived there since. We bought our overland truck, Big Bertha, in September 2018 and embarked on our world tour in November 2018. After our six-month test trip to Morocco, we shipped Big Bertha to Namibia. We are now in month 9 of our African adventure, having toured Namibia, Angola and Zambia.

A milestone during our overland trip: crossing the Tropic of Capricorn

We first started noticing reports about COVID-19 in January. In February, we flew back to the UK to celebrate my parent’s 60^th wedding anniversary. In that month the reports intensified, but not to the extent that worried us, and we returned to Zambia in early March. The reports started ramping up almost immediately and the virus arrived in Europe. We continued our tour of northern Zambia with the intention of crossing into Tanzania in early April.

We could have crossed into Tanzania, but we knew no one there and decided we would ride this storm out in Zambia. We returned to Lusaka to camp at a farm on the outskirts. We have been extremely fortunate in meeting the owner whilst on earlier travels. He welcomed us to his property, for however long, and we have water, electricity and WiFi for a peppercorn rent. We feel part of the family here and have ample opportunity to tackle the truck’s ‘to do’ list, having access to the farm workshop.

Having a big truck has its disadvantages (see our Mud, Mud and More Mud post ). But having so much space makes the ‘lockdown’ tolerable – Big Bertha is like a small apartment.

Zambia has not yet introduced significant restrictions (late April). Although the Govt. is requesting that people stay at home and pubs/restaurants are closed; there is relatively free movement and the food shops remain open and well-stocked. People are now required to wear a mask in public. The airport is still open, although only Ethiopian Airways is providing a service.

Glad to have found a nice, secure place to be under lockdown in Zambia

Our 90-day tourist visa expired in early April. Fortunately, our friend came to the rescue and sponsored our Visitor Permit. This was a simple online process and gives us another 90 days, renewable. Big Bertha’s Carnet de Passage ends in August – we have not investigated the implications of that yet.

How do we see the future? Who knows. We are keeping our options open. Our friend is happy to look after our truck if we were to return to the UK. But right now, we are enjoying being camped out in Zambia.

info block: Carnet de Passage

And almost daily we find more stories or calls for help in various Overland Travellers’ groups we are members of:

3 mobile screen captures telling more desperate stories from corona craze effected overland travellers. (We realise that the text on these will be too small on mobile phones.)

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