We met on Tinder & quit our jobs for ‘dream’ road trip – then blew £20k in just 6 weeks..it all went downhill from there

A COUPLE who met connected Tinder discontinue their jobs for a "dream" roadworthy travel but blew fractional their savings successful conscionable six weeks.

Matt Saunders, 27, and Rachel Kelly, 25, met 4 years agone aft swiping close for each different connected Tinder.

Since then, the 2 "best friends" person been redeeming up for their associated dream; to thrust from Alaska to Argentina.

The couple, who were surviving successful Clapham, South London, saved £40,000 betwixt them, with Matt redeeming independently 1 twelvemonth prior.

They've since discontinue their jobs and truthful acold person faced not lone "insane" wildlife but Mexican cartels too.

Earlier successful June, earlier they embarked connected the trip, Matt and Rachel had a motortruck and camper acceptable and waiting for them.

However, the camper went and broke and the truck started having issues.

This resulted successful Matt and Rachel blowing much than fractional of their savings connected a caller transmission and camper wrong the archetypal six weeks.

After crossing respective "fake checkpoints", organised by cartels, the mates yet crossed the Mexican borderline connected October 10.

Matt said: "On the mode through, determination were astir apt astir 4 oregon 5 checkpoints and we've been warned that immoderate are not authoritative checkpoints, they're fundamentally the cartel dressed up arsenic policemen."

They adjacent spent 1 nighttime sleeping successful the car parkland of a Home Depot in their 1997 Dodge Ram and Northland camper aft being warned not to thrust aft dark.

Their next ngo is to transverse the Darien Gap, an impassable jungle connected the Colombia-Panama borderline notorious for criminals.

Although their funds person depleted, their determination hasn't.

Rachel said: "I'm getting to Argentina adjacent if it leaves zero pounds successful my slope account.

"We cognize we privation to marque it careless of what happens, adjacent if we're not doing each the things we thought we were going to beryllium capable to do."

To amended enactment themselves, the mates person acceptable up a Go Fund Me that's attracted implicit 80,000 followers.

Matt added: "It was a spot scary for america leaving London, particularly arsenic it has taken truthful agelong to program and save.

"You've got to prehend the infinitesimal and conscionable spell retired and bash it."

Previously, Matt was moving arsenic a quantity surveyor and Rachel had a occupation with a income company.

They shared a three-bed level with 3 others earlier giving it up for a lifelong dream.

A bid of unfortunate events

Matt said: "The program was to instrumentality a twelvemonth disconnected to bash the travel and it was the champion mode for america to tick disconnected each the places we wanted to spot successful 1 go."

Once they'd saved £40,000 and discontinue their jobs, they flew to Canada and stayed with Matt's brother, Tom who lives successful Canmore, Alberta.

Tom besides acceptable them up with the motortruck and camper.

Matt explained: "We spent a batch of money connected the camper, astir £2,500, doing it up and making definite it was bully to go, and we had loads of checks done connected the truck."

On June 20, the mates near for Tuktoyaktuk, North Canada.

Then, catastrophe struck. While they were travelling southbound done Dawson City successful Yukon, their camper gave up the ghost.

In fact, it was a implicit close disconnected arsenic the extortion gave way.

But this was lone the opening of Matt and Rachel's bid of unfortunate events arsenic next, the motortruck blew up successful Valdez.

Matt explained: "Our transmission blew up connected the store floor.

"It was successful the mediate of nowhere, it's rather a tiny small municipality and it's lone got 1 mechanic." 

The mates had to crockery retired 7,000 dollars (£5,390) to hole their transmission, which took 3 weeks to complete.

Matt continued: "Most radical determination conscionable tally their car into the crushed truthful we had to wage to get it fixed.

"Fortunately our mechanic was precise benignant and helium gave america his spare location to unrecorded successful and gave america a spare car."

The caller camper besides outgo them £5,000.

Matt said: "We've been redeeming for 5 years and spent fractional our fund successful the archetypal six weeks, which wasn't ideal.

"We spent £15,000 successful 1 period and we had a fund of £3,000 a period it was decidedly a footwear successful the teeth."

Rachel added: "We were readying connected having each these amusive experiences, similar scuba diving, learning however to surf, but we conscionable can't spend that anymore."

Luckily, their GoFundMe leafage has earned them £1,300 truthful far.

Rachel said: "We were successful specified a concern wherever radical were asking america however they could donate wealth to assistance and the lone happening we could deliberation of was GoFundMe," 

Despite the disasters, the mates person had an "amazing" travel truthful far.

They've spent 3 months exploring 10 US states, specified arsenic Oregon, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, California and Utah, hiking done 17 nationalist parks on the way.

Rachel said: "It's truthful beautiful, 1 infinitesimal you're successful a desert, fractional an hr aboriginal you're successful the mountains, past you're by the sea.

"Meeting each the radical is astonishing and the wildlife has been insane arsenic well."

Matt added: "I wanted to bash a fewer unsafe hikes truthful we did Half Dome successful Yosemite, Angels Landing successful Zion National Park and I went down to the bottommost of the Grand Canyon."

What's next?

The travel up of the mates looks some costly and treacherous.

They indispensable navigate astir the Darien Gap via a boat, a jungle astatine the Colombia-Panama borderline which is intolerable to walk done owed to treacherous terrain and pack violence.

Plus, wage up a 7,000 US dollar (£5,390) charge earlier they scope Argentina.

Rachel said: "It's erstwhile you're retired of your comfortableness portion wherever you larn the astir astir the world and the radical successful it.

"You don't larn that sitting astatine a table successful London."

To travel Matt and Rachel connected societal media, sojourn their Instagram here: instagram.com/ramonthepanam/?locale

To find retired more, sojourn their fundraising leafage here: gofundme.com/f/msu65-help-us-get-to-argentina