Dylan Wickrama Between 2010 and 2013, Dylan Wickrama was on a world trip on his motorcycle. He left with no plans and he had a tight budget. On his trip he covered 210,000 km and road through 80 countries, starting in Switzerland and ending in Argentina. His RTW trip wasn’t about speed, distance or setting records, but it was about exploring the world, meeting people and discovering places. After 3 years on the road, he reached the Darien Gap in Panama. Considering his options, Dylan came up with a plan to get around the Darien Gap to continue his trip. And that plan involved water, his motorcycle, some oil drums and bamboo poles. Dylan wrote a book about his adventure called When the Road Ends. It’s available on his website and on Amazon. Website: http://www.ride2xplore.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ride2xplore/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/samarawickrama05 Darien Gap - Jungles, Snakes & Geurillas Where is the DARIEN GAP? The Darien Gap is also know as the DARIEN ISTHMUS, an isthmus being a narrow strip of land connecting two larger areas with water on either side. You will find the Darien Gap on the Pan American Highway, nown as the “longest motorable road in the world” in the Guiness Book of Records, a popular route for many motorcyclists. The Pan American Highway can be as long as 48,000 km depending what route you choose to take through Canada and the US, with the most popular routes averaging about 30,000 km. Adventurers often start in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska and end in Ushuaia, Argentina, or the reverse. There is no official route in Canada or the United States, but all Interstate Highways in the US have been declared as part of the Pan American Highway. The official Pan American Highway spans from Laredo, Mexico to Buenos Aires in Argentina. Between Panama and Colombia, on the border of Central and South America, you come to the Darien Gap,  just over 160 km (99 miles) long and about 50 km (31 miles) wide of jungle, mountains, swamps and rivers. The only sensible options are to go over it by plane or around it by ship A Few Basic Facts About Darien Gap: There are no roads, only foot paths or trails, no street signs. Exotic wildlife abounds, the likes of which most of have never known, such as jaguars, wild boars and venomous snakes. It's hot, muggy, the forest is thick and the mosquitos atrocious. Dangers are everywhere, there are risks of encountering drug smugglers, poachers, guerrillas and paramilitaries in the Darien Gap, which is also a refuge for murderous outlaws. The Darien Gap is home to indigenous peoples known as the Embera-Wounaan and the Kuna. Why Not Build a Road? In 1971 and 1992 efforts were made to allow a road to be put through the Darien Gap, but both were stopped due to environmental concerns, of which there are many. There is evidence that the Gap has prevented diseased cattle, which cause foot and mouth disease, from spreading in to Central and North America. The indigenous people are concerned that a road may destroy their cultures.  There is the threat of making the Darien Gap more accessible for drug trafficking and the resulting violence. And there is also the need to protect the rainforest. The Darien Gap has been said to be a natural barrier which protects North America.  Crossing the Gap For centuries, the Darien Gap has been a destination and challenge for many explorers and adventurers, and the exploration of it has usually been met with disaster. However, there have been many successful attempts at crossing through the Darien Gap, by two wheel drive and four wheel drive vehicles, rocons, motorcycles, bicycles and by foot. There have been several notable “first of it’s kind” crossings. The first successful crossing in a vehicle was in 1960 in a Land Rover and Jeep. An arduous journey moving an average of only 200 metres or about 650 feet in an hour. It took them nearly 5 months to cross the Gap, as they made their way through the jungle clearing the bush by hand, crossin