Discovering Pan-America
A Voyage Through Time
ullivan Richardson, along with his team, drove the Pan-American Highway during an expedition that took place in the 1940s. This journey, known as the Richardson Pan-American Highway Expedition, was one of the earliest attempts to traverse the length of the highway from the United States to Argentina before the road network was built.
Richardson and his team embarked on this ambitious adventure in a Chrysler Plymouth, aiming to promote international goodwill and test the viability of the Pan-American Highway as a continuous route from North America to South America. Their journey covered a variety of terrains and climates, showcasing the challenges and possibilities of intercontinental travel by car.
Following in their footsteps, 80 years later, over 234 thrilling days, myself and the Global Convoy team of budding adventurers traversed what is now the Pan American Highway network, with the goal of seeing what has changed since Richardsons debut adventure. Setting off from Prudhoe Bay Alaska in our 2007 Bluebird Vision school bus, the intrepid team sought to see what had changed for better or for worse along the earth’s longest road. We specifically chose a yellow school bus as it is an iconic vehicle of the Americas, and they are commonly used across the North American continent.
Expedition Preparation
After driving around, the world in a £75 car, the dream of driving a bus on an epic adventure was born, and we never gave up hope. It had been at the back of our minds for some time, until we met Nik, who would become our fourth team member to make this dream a reality.
Work began, and little did we know that we would be owners of our very own bus, just a year after meeting Nik. Global Convoy Co-Founder Joel headed out to work on the bus, turning it into the ultimate adventure rig; complete with galley kitchen, roof rack and creative sleeping solutions. Meanwhile myself and Max worked on the logistics and formation of an expedition team. After a solid year of planning, sourcing a bus, converting and creating an expedition plan it was time to hit the road. We started with a test drive across the states, to get used to driving such a large vehicle and to learn the basic mechanics of the CAT C7 engine.
It was during the test drive that we really were pushed to our limits, with the transmission going in the first week. For us this was a pivotal time where serious decisions had to be made about the viability of our dream of driving the Pan American Highway. But with much optimism and perseverance, we were able to source a second-hand transmission and a mechanic willing to swap it out. Although we had a few more problems the following week, eventually the transmission worked like a dream and served us all the way down to Argentina.
From the Arctic Circle to Fin del Mundo
On the 6th of August 2023, our journey South began, with the rugged roads that form the Dalton highway. Over the course of the next 8 months we, like Richardson’s team crossed, mountain ranges such as the Andes, traversed through jungles, and vast deserts such as the Atacama. We crossed through 16 countries admiring their culture, and landscape while witnessing the impact that the Pan American Highway has had on the locals. Our total team consisted of 21 adventurers from around the world who joined for various legs helping the bus along the way.
We were warmly welcomed along the route and soon learned how iconic the bus was across the Americas. It was often referred to as “The Simpsons bus”, or associated with Hollywood movies. One of our favourite experiences was in Chile, when a passer by on the motor way, pulled off ahead of us, so he could photograph us driving by. We later found ourselves tagged on Instagram feature on a bus fan club page in Chile.
We were fortunate not to experience any major break downs, unlike our test run, however we did need to change a few tyres here and as a consequence of leaving the bus parked up in Panama for a month our alternator had corroded with the humidity and needed to be replaced.
Our core team of four made it from start to finish over 20,359 miles (32,764 kilometres) by land and a shipping route from Panama to Colombia. There were certainly many ups and downs along the way but fortunately no major injuries or arguments!
Observations along the way
In comparison to Richardson’s journey, we found both similarities and many differences. Although since their journey a road network has been formed, many parts of it still lay unpaved. The famous Darien gap is an example of a piece of the puzzle that is still missing in the connection of the Americas. Formed by dense jungle and a rugged landscape, this piece of land that connects Panama to Colombia, is still very difficult to cross. With no official road you are left to forge your own path and it is considered one of the most dangerous areas to venture into in the world. Richardson’s dream was for the Americas to be connected and from the Darien gap we can see that this is still not a reality, and it is unclear if it ever will be. With occupation from criminal groups and being one along one of the most common immigration routes, it is hard to say if a road will ever be built here and many adventurers ship around rather than risk venturing inside.
Contrasting to some areas that have not changed a great deal since Richardson’s team explored this route, we also came across many areas that have witnessed a great deal of investment. For example, Costa Rica was undriveable back in the mid-1900s, and now has some of the smoothest roads in central America. So much so that we would often find ourselves sitting in traffic; like Richardson, unable to move but for very contrasting reasons.
Will the Pan American Highway Continue to Develop?
Richardson had many hopes for the future of the Pan American, stating that “One day it will be the greatest road in the world”. But we still think it has a long way to go until it becomes something of his dreams. Although it has changed and is now one of the most popular driving routes for overlanders from around the world, it still has its obstacles. I hope that things will continue to improve for the better, but at the same time, perhaps an element of disconnect helps preserve unique culture and traditions in unreachable places.
To find out more about our route follow our Polarsteps here, or see behind the scenes here.
