[Above: The Drive Around the World team enjoys a morning underneath the majestic peaks of Torres del Paine National Park in Chile.]

Journal by Adam Burgess

No disagreement with the name -- Torres del Paine -- as I lay here almost completely immobile in the rear seat of the Land Rover. We camped our way down the altiplano of Chile with no villa stops and Internet cafes. It was nice for a change and after the first few nights without washing you become accustomed to your own grime. The sweat attracts the clouds of dust kicked up from the road by the convoy and campfire smoke lingers in everyone’s fleece but at least you have the comfort of knowing that the smell is your own for whatever good that offers. The last night at the National Park we camped near a mineral rich lake of a turquoise blue color. On the placid shore lay a badly decomposed guanaco (endangered llama-like creature), bleached white driftwood, and cobblestones.

In the evening the calm air and glassy lake took a major change as the winds began to howl through our rooftop tents. I lit a small fire between our cars and cooked two sausages for dinner. My food supply was down to 4 pieces of orange cream-filled chocolate, 8 slices of old salami, 2 pieces of cheese covered in somebody’s spilt milk, and three sausages. I swapped one sausage with Nick for a small bread roll and prepared for my sausage sandwich. While cooking the stick burned through and sausage #1 fell into the fire. A moment later the howling winds simultaneously blew my cheese onto the sand and my bread roll into the fire. I managed to overcome the obstacles by rinsing the charcoal-covered wiener and the sand coated slices of cheese with the almond-flavored tequila that Rolf had bought from Tequila, Mexico and by picking off the burnt black layer off of the roll. The tequila seemed to work fine and even improved the flavor of the sausages.

That night we drank the leftovers of the liquor people have accumulated from various stops in the Americas. Among these were rum, almond tequila, tequila gold, some horrible chemical-tasting juice bought in Argentina, red wine, bootlegged mescal from Mexico, and gin. A rough mix. The next day we woke up rather late and after a pot of Land Rover coffee and a jam-covered slice of bread we began kicking a soccer ball around in a circle. This went on for a while and we started getting quite skilled at keeping all 6 players juggling it to each other without letting it hit the ground. At about that moment I reached down to pick it up and my back completely blew out. I was immobile and could hardly walk. Existing was excruciating and now I am still lying on my back unable to lean over or walk properly. I have had others put on my socks and shoes and when I look in the mirror I am clearly crooked, my body is leaning to the right with extreme misalignment. So as the car rumbles across the dirt road leading to the “End of the World” I am considering buying a ticket to Buenos Aires and waiting there for the crew to arrive 10 days later. It will offer me time to recuperate while giving me a chance to edit together a short video for Nick to throw at some new sponsors.

Getting injured on something like this is my worst nightmare. Everyone around me is totally functional while I can only sit around in envy and pain. Being ill I can handle but being immobile is the ultimate frustration. I hope my back gets better over time because Brazil is coming up shortly and I’ve been looking forward to dancing and surfing the days away.

Logbook for February 10th, Day 102
Start: Laguna Armaga, Parque Nacional Torres del Paine, Chile
Time: 2:00 p.m.
S: 50*58.377
W: 72*43.859
Finish: Puerto Natales, Chile
Time: 9:45 p.m.
S: 51*43.597
W: 72*30.423
Mileage: 122
Notes: It was overcast and a bit drizzly when we woke up next to the lake, but it didn't dampen our spirits. We made coffee before departing for the park's entrance. Unfortunately, poor Adam threw out his back playing catch, and, after having played around most of the morning, we didn't enter the park until 3:00. Adam is in bad shape. We spent a few hours taking in some of the views, such as glaciers, mountains, wildlife (including a fox), and the famous Torres del Paines. We left in high spirits for our drive to Puerto Natales. There, after much searching, we arrived at Hospedaje Alicia. It was like being at Grandma's house. (N.O.)

Help support our cause: The LONGITUDE Expedition is the longest journey ever attempted with a focus on Parkinson's Disease. The Drive Around the World team aims to raise money for Parkinson’s Disease research by driving four certified pre-owned Land Rover Discoverys around the globe following lines of longitude. Readers are encouraged to pledge small amounts of money per expedition-kilometer via a pledge form that can be found on our Parkinson’s page by clicking here. 100% of donations received go directly to Parkinson's research and all who donate $10 or more will be entered into a raffle to win an expedition-equipped Land Rover Discovery.