On our last day in Los Antiguos we ventured further south along the now all dirt road of Ruta 40. They are in the process of paving this section and we could see some evidence of progress but it looks like years of work lie ahead. Our destination was the Cuevos Los Manos (Helen's blog) and this would be the furthest south we would get. Tierra del Fuego would have to wait for another day. There were no kilometer markers to document our furthest point but 14 kilometers shy of Bajo Caracoles or 48 degrees south of the equator.
The next day we retraced our path back north a full day's drive moving back up to the lush edges of the lower Andes (more trees, fauna, wildflowers). Stayed 3 nights in Trevelin, a small town just outside of Esquel of Welsh descent, cute little buildings and Casas de Te. Some kind of head cold caught up with me there so our first day was very tranquillo - Meghan tells the rest in her blog.
From Trevelin we headed north, taking a detour from 40 through Los Alerces National Park. It rained steadily and was cold so the clouds kept us from seeing the peaks of the park and our views of the lakes were limited. A nasty day in a beautiful place... too bad, but we really haven't had too many rain days the entire trip. Once we left the park and headed NE the weather began to break a little, we drove on past the last permanent residence of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (although we never saw it) and caught 40 again taking us up to El Bolson. Got there intime to settle into our cabana before the rain caught up with us again. We went downtown to a brewpub for pizza and beer before calling it a night. Also learned that the hole in our windshied really was a hole and water gets in when it rains alot.
Friday it rained all day... steady r
ain all day except for a short break around 4pm and the girls and I got our for chocolate and helado and a short hik in the mud at Cascada Escondida, not far from our place. Saturdayteh weather cleared and looking up we noticed that the rain was snow on the mountains. Blue sky, valleys and white mountains... very nice. We drove out of town to Lago Puelo National Park for the day. Most of the hiking trails were closed to to rain but we did hike to the mirador over the lake were we at our picnic lunch and also walked along the boardwalk through the very wet Bosque de la Sombra. Back in town, we strolled through the craft market there, sampling some fresh juices and beer amongst the local hippies. It felt like Asheville. Sunday we said goodbye to El Bolson and headed north back to Bariloche with a detour to Mt. Tronador. We returned for a last night with our friends at Bosque de los Elfos for a last night and will be catching the bus to Mendoza Monday and Tuesday.
The next day we retraced our path back north a full day's drive moving back up to the lush edges of the lower Andes (more trees, fauna, wildflowers). Stayed 3 nights in Trevelin, a small town just outside of Esquel of Welsh descent, cute little buildings and Casas de Te. Some kind of head cold caught up with me there so our first day was very tranquillo - Meghan tells the rest in her blog.
From Trevelin we headed north, taking a detour from 40 through Los Alerces National Park. It rained steadily and was cold so the clouds kept us from seeing the peaks of the park and our views of the lakes were limited. A nasty day in a beautiful place... too bad, but we really haven't had too many rain days the entire trip. Once we left the park and headed NE the weather began to break a little, we drove on past the last permanent residence of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (although we never saw it) and caught 40 again taking us up to El Bolson. Got there intime to settle into our cabana before the rain caught up with us again. We went downtown to a brewpub for pizza and beer before calling it a night. Also learned that the hole in our windshied really was a hole and water gets in when it rains alot.
Friday it rained all day... steady r
ain all day except for a short break around 4pm and the girls and I got our for chocolate and helado and a short hik in the mud at Cascada Escondida, not far from our place. Saturdayteh weather cleared and looking up we noticed that the rain was snow on the mountains. Blue sky, valleys and white mountains... very nice. We drove out of town to Lago Puelo National Park for the day. Most of the hiking trails were closed to to rain but we did hike to the mirador over the lake were we at our picnic lunch and also walked along the boardwalk through the very wet Bosque de la Sombra. Back in town, we strolled through the craft market there, sampling some fresh juices and beer amongst the local hippies. It felt like Asheville. Sunday we said goodbye to El Bolson and headed north back to Bariloche with a detour to Mt. Tronador. We returned for a last night with our friends at Bosque de los Elfos for a last night and will be catching the bus to Mendoza Monday and Tuesday.
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