Why is it impossible to get from North America to South America by car? (3 photos)

Pan-American Highway - a highway connecting national networks roads of the continental states of America into a single system.





Those who have a desire to drive their car from North America to South America or vice versa, face unexpected problem.

There is a highway, but you can't drive on it. Although the road goes straight from the USA all the way to Argentina. And the reason for this is the Darien Gap - one of the deadliest places on the planet.

What is the problem? Why can't you drive through the Darien Gap?

What awaits travelers in this nightmarish place?

White spot on the road map

The idea of the American road "from end to end" originated in the 19th century.

And today there is such a way. It's famous Pan American route. Due to its length of almost 30,000 km, it registered in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest highway in the world. More precisely, this whole network of roads along which you can start your journey to Alaska and finish in the village of Ushuaia on the southernmost edge of Tierra del Fuego. Incredible journey through Canada, the United States, Mexico, San Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile and Argentina allows you to see all climatic zones, incredible beauties of nature, unique cultural monuments, almost all South American capitals. Americans usually start moving along this road from the border with Mexico, but even in such an abbreviated version of the track is impressive.

But on the way the traveler gets an obstacle, because of which it is impossible to drive all the way.

Between Panama and Colombia, the track runs into the Darien Gap or Gap.



Darien Gap - a large area of undeveloped territory on the border of Central and South America. The territory is covered with selva and swamps, in which the construction of roads is extremely difficult, because of which The Darien Gap is the only gap in the Pan-American Highway.

It is 87 km of insurmountable swamps and jungle.

There is no way to make a road in this place.

All attempts to build a section of the route, all modern paving technologies have failed here.

In a few days, the swamp and jungle reduce all human efforts to nothing. And nature restores its status quo.

Since this piece falls on a narrow isthmus, it is impossible to bypass or bypass it.

An ordinary car and even specially prepared SUVs do not pass here.

So there is a track. Great canvas...before the Gap and after.

And in between - 87 km of nightmare.

Normal heroes always walk!

It is not strange, but the easiest way to go through the gap is on foot. Although "pass" is not the right word here. Rather crawl waist-deep in mud and water, break through swamps and jungles. To understand with what travelers face difficulties here, it is enough to know that 87 km on foot requires 10 to 15 days on the road.

Each step is unpredictable: you can fall into the swamp belt, slide down slippery clay or end up in water. impassable thickets, lack of places suitable for lodging for the night, poisonous plants, animals and insects.

Without special training, equipment and knowledge of the area, it is better not to meddle in the gap. The chances of getting out are minimal.

Only lovers of extreme tourism pass this zone, but and they talk about their campaign as a real heroic deed, fight with wildlife. Rumor has it that one day the group extreme bikers managed to overcome the Gap on a specially prepared motorcycles. And then part of the route people dragged bikes on themselves.

Groups also walk along the secret paths of the Darien Gap drug couriers from Colombia and illegal immigrants willing to take risks in order to move from South America to more developed countries. Authority territory do not control, more than once there have been attacks on travelers.



For those who are not ready for such an extreme, there is only one option: before the space, interrupt your journey, take the ferry with the car, go around the wild area by sea to Cartagena or another port. And already there continue on the Pan American Highway.

Forces of good against the road

Since the 1970s, there have been projects to build a normal roads through the Darien Gap. But this requires a large-scale reclamation of the site: uproot the jungle with a wide strip, drain the entire terrain, etc.

At that time environmentalists opposed the project. They stated that this will cause irreparable harm to the nature of the region. To the Darien Gap adjoining two national nature reserves protected by UNESCO. The draining of swamps will lead to the destruction of the entire ecosystem.

In the 1990s, they returned to the idea, proposing a more benign variant of intervention in the environment.

But the United Nations opposed it. The region is inhabited by tribes Indians who kept their way. They said they didn't want to so that many strangers begin to travel across their lands, destroying their traditions and lifestyle. According to international law, such communities are under UN protection.

Interpol also spoke out against the road. drug trafficking in the prevailing conditions, he is bad, but in control. If from Colombia a continuous highway appears, then a whole river of forbidden substances.