DARIEN GAP???

Ever heard of The Infamous Darien Gap?

It is a 160 km x 50 km (100mi x 30 mi) break in the Pan-American Highway that consists of swamp and rainforest. It has literally no infrastructure so it is impossible to drive thru. Also, the area is being overrun by paramilitary forces and drug lords so it can be quite dangerous to step in.

Can you drive thru The Darien Gap?

No, since there are no road connections between Panama and Colombia you can only ship your vehicle by a container ship. Here is a tour on tape:

Is there any road connecting the Panama and Colombia?

Since roadbuilding in this area is expensive and environmental cost is high, there are no roads in the Gap. There is just not enough demand to build this marshy and dangerous area to build a road. If there was a road connection it would be the longest drivable distance on Earth - from Alaska to the most southern point of South America (approximately three months).

You can eventually travel by either a plane (approximately 1 hour) or by a ship. You can even go walking. But, and it is a huge but, you would be literally breaking thru the jungle. All travel advisories clearly say DONT GO.

Here is an account: (source: http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2008/09/darien-gap-most-dangerous-absence-of.html; from an article of: 2008, Avi & Rachel Abrams, Dark Roasted Blend)

National Geographic Adventure contributing editor Robert Young Pelton and two American backpackers were kidnapped there in 2003 and held for 10 days; here is what he has to say (once they got out of there alive) -

"The Darien Gap is one of the last—not only unexplored—but one of the last places people really hesitate to venture to... It's also one of the most rugged places. The basic problem of the Darien Gap is that it's one of the toughest hikes there is. It's an absolute pristine jungle but it's got some nasty sections with thorns, wasps, snakes, thieves, criminals, you name it. Everything that's bad for you is in there."

There is also an abandoned railway built by the British gold miners in the beginning of 20 century.

(image credit: Diana Bradshaw)

Old rusty locomotives and miners equipment can still be found in the jungle.

To conclude, the place is unfriendly and is not viewed as beautiful. There is no way you can cross The Darien Gap cause it would basically be a suicidal mission. Next time you have to take an armed squad with you. :)

Future reading:
https://www.aswesawit.com/cross-the-darien-gap/

Article by Vesna Jurc.