Demystifying the Seemingly Crazy; The Cyclists Who Have Chosen to Take On All of South America By Bike

Camille Kirby is the Content Creator on the 2026 South American Epic Cycling Expedition.

The TDA bus is parked in the dead centre of the bustling Colombian town of Santa Rosa de Osos, tucked into the heart of the country’s dairy country. Men in cowboy hats and knee-high rubber boots – the unofficial uniform of Colombian dairy farmers -wander the colourful streets, stopping to chat outside bakeries and cafés.

Our vehicle sticks out immediately. Brazilian license plates. A pair of bikes strapped to the back. It’s an odd sight in a town where nearly everyone seems to know everyone else. It doesn’t take long before we’re surrounded by three young boys. One straddles a tiny bicycle while the others circle the bus, each wearing the same curious expression. They want to know where we’re from, certainty we don’t seem like we’ve come from Brazil. In my broken Spanish, I try to explain – “Trabamomos para una gira di ciclistas” – we work for a cycling tour. I lift one hand high into the air – from Cartagena – then lower the other – to Ushuaia, Argentina. “Toda Sudamérica en bicicleta” – all of South America by bike. The boys stare back, completely dumbfounded. Maybe they didn’t understand me. Then one repeats what I said, squinting with a mischievous smile. Another slowly shakes his head. “No es posible.” I laugh. “Sí, vero!”

Mike Cote and Richard Hughes cycle through the foothills of the Andes on Stage 5 of the South American Epic

It’s moments like these that remind you just how unbelievable this journey really is. When you’ve been living on the road, day after day, it becomes strangely normal to wake up, ride across mountain ranges, and end the afternoon in another town. It takes the disbelief of someone else to put our journey into perspective. Eight riders on this year’s South American Epic will pedal the entire length of the continent, from the Caribbean coast of Colombia to the southern tip of Argentina. Countless others will ride individual sections, stitching together the route over several years. Different journeys, united by the same extraordinary road. This is the South American Epic, after all.

For some riders, if they’re going to see a place, they’re going to see all of it. For American Mike Cote, South America had long been on his list – “I wanted to experience South America. Biking is unique in the way that you get to see and smell, and participate in the local roads and climate and people. You’re in the elements for the most part.” Those elements have already kept us on our toes. We began among the sweltering humidity of Cartagena and, within a single week, climbed into the foothills of the Andes, where temperatures can change dramatically from one kilometre to the next. For Maddy Holmes, from Australia, this ride has been a decade in the making – “I was supposed to cycle the length of South America ten years ago.” Life had other plans. Now she’s finally here, choosing the support of a TDA expedition over tackling the continent alone.

Richard Hughes, also from Australia, had never set foot in South America before signing up for the full journey. I ask him, why commit to riding an entire continent you’ve never even visited?, “I guess I thought… why not?” That simple philosophy seems to capture something essential about TDA expedition riders. If cycling offers the most immersive way to experience a place, then why not experience an entire continent that way?

Caroline Powell ponders on the cargo boat taking us from San Marcos to Ayapel on Stage 4 of the South American Epic.

Not everyone is choosing the long-term epic. Some sectional riders are continuing journeys they’ve already begun, others are taking their very first step, knowing they’ll spend years coming back to finish what they started. For Caroline Powell, from the United Kingdom, this section is the continuation of a dream years in the making. “I cycled Lima to Santiago in 2019, and I’ve always wanted to complete the rest of South America. I’ve been looking forward to this section for about six years, and now I’m finally here. I think I’ve wanted to be on a bike all my life, and South America just fascinates me as a continent.” Her previous journey, shared with her husband, was entirely self-supported. On the first day of this tour, she couldn’t believe she didn’t have to carry her own bags. The freedom!

For Maz Crotty, originally from the United Kingdom but now living in the United States, this is only the beginning. She plans to tackle South America ‘chunk by chunk over the next decade, returning until every kilometre is complete. Then there’s Canadian Remi Despres-Smyth, who had never cycled outside his home country before joining us in Cartagena. He’s here to experience TDA life before committing to the North American Epic in 2029. “The only place in the Global South I’ve been to is India, and I didn’t cycle when I was there.” Colombia has been quite an introduction. Few places embrace bicycles the way this country does, and the respect shown to cyclists has left an impression on nearly everyone in the group.

Two curious boys join us for lunch on Stage 5 of the South American Epic.

I keep thinking about those three boys in Santa Rosa de Osos. Maybe they believed me. Maybe they didn’t. Perhaps, to them, we were just a group of slightly crazy gringos passing through town with strange bikes and an even stranger story. But I hope they keep wondering – they went home thinking about the possibility of riding the entire continent on two, non-motorized wheels. Because impossible journeys always sound impossible – right up until someone does them.

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South American Epic

This challenging expedition offers you the best opportunity to explore the vastness and diversity of South America by bike. In keeping with the TDA...