Penniless in Peru

Adventurer Laura Bingham challenged herself to ride across South America without bringing money—relying on her wits and the kindness of strangers.

- Hugo Aseff

It’s safe to say Laura Bingham isn’t afraid to try something new. In 2014, as a young adventurer from the U.K. with no knowledge of sailing, she talked her way onto a 38 foot trimaran and sailed across the Atlantic with two blokes and a cat named Cuba. Earlier this year she gathered up some supplies and hopped aboard a bike to embark on another long journey with a curious twist.

In 166 days she cycled from the Pacific coast of South America in Ecuador southeast to Buenos Aires on the Atlantic coast, 4,300 miles in all with a rotating cast of friends and family aboard a second bike. She did it without bringing any money, and solely relying on her wits and the kindness of strangers. The trip wasn’t just a vacation though. In all she raised about $1,500 for Operation South America, a charity in Paraguay that, among other projects, houses up to 20 young girls who have been victims of extreme poverty and abuse.

Here she tells the story of her adventure in her own words:

“So many people cycle South America [I thought] how do I make it different? And then I came up with the idea to do it without any money. Once I told people I was doing it without money I couldn’t go back on it. I didn’t spend any money from Ecuador to Lima in Peru. I was collecting bits of money which we then had to use to fix the bike. But after Lima I didn’t touch money once, until I arrived in Buenos Aires.