As we head north, the heat and humidity gets more oppressive each day. Traveling along lines of longitude is quite strange as in 3 short weeks we've gone from freezing Antarctic to the hot and sticky tropics.

More annoying than the hordes of mosquitoes we now encounter are tour trucks cruising this section of the South American gringo circuit. It is basically a Saga coach tour but supposed to feel more 'hardcore' because it's in an adapted truck - even though they can't go off-road without getting stuck in the mud!

They overrun municipal campsites and terrify animals on nature tours - "Shall I grab the tail of that caiman, Giles? Haw, haw, haw!" - consequently one of our main objectives is now to avoid them at all costs!!!

Next stop is the Pantanal for animal spotting in the flooded marshlands before a refreshing 30+ hour bus haul to reach Rio in time to meet the Tourneys for Carnaval.

Check our Latest Adventures section below for pictures and stories from Chile or Antarctica.