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Patagonia, Argentina & Chile, 7th March - 28th March 2010 [17 - Bariloche] |
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Saturday |
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At breakfast in the dining
room the following morning, we met the proprietor of the Gaucho Hostel, a
crazy but likeable German from Aschaffenberg who, it seemed, had done his
fair share of travelling. He showed interest and seemed knowledgeable of the
areas we had been to on our trip and the white-water rafting, offering advice as to how we could spend
remaining time in Bariloche. A Dutch girl
recommended taking bus no. 20 to Cerro Campanario, where we could hire
bicycles and cycle around some of the smaller lakes
adjacent to Lago Nahuel Huapi. First though, we had the relocation to
Hostel Arco to take care of. It seemed that Ralph and I would split from the group whom we
suspected would probably not be keen on any cycling. We headed off downtown and
changed some US$ for Argentine pesos. Upon arrival at Cerro Campanario, we
forked out the $30 (Argentine) and took the chairlift to the top of the
hill. As we ascended, we noticed the multitude of indigenous South American
tree species in the plantation beneath us, each identified by the
inscription on a corresponding wooden plaque.
The trip was well worth it and provided the most spectacular view of the surrounding lakes and mountains, reminiscent of the European Alps. Our attention was also drawn to an Israeli girl in another party, with the most incredible figure, well aware of the attention she was attracting. Half a kilometre down the road we located the bicycle hire company and a very professional, equally fetching young Argentinean brunette, sporting sunglasses, ran through the mountain bike options. The rush hour package at $65 (Argentine) applicable from midday to five, appealed to Ralph and I, though it was already around 14h30. With a plan of the route and a full rundown on dos and don'ts, we set off on the road. Stopping at places of interest en route, though we passed up on several options, we located and explored the hidden Lago Escondido in the Municipal National Park. We covered the undulating 27 km circuit in about 2 hours, a fitting end to a wonderful trip. |
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| Taking the bus back into town, we stopped off at our Cocodrilo haunt for one last empanade and beer, before returning to Hostel Arco. Ralph continued on up whilst I shopped at the supermercado for the bus ride out of Bariloche the next day. At the hostel an exhausted Kelson had take a nap. I walked in as he was chatting to Ralph, the others not yet having arrived back from their day out, grabbing a towel and heading into the shower. By the time we left for the walk downtown that evening for our final dinner together as a group at the closing stages our Patagonian adventure, I had packed my things in preparation for an early departure the next morning. Downtown Bariloche is a popular tourist destination and as such, undoubtedly commercialised, yet Kelson and Elena were keen to take us to a place frequented instead by locals rather than tourists. They had made extensive enquiries from those in the know and all had recommended La Fonda del Tio (literally The Uncle's Inn), a walk of some distance from the town centre. It was a abuzz, a hive of activity and clearly popular with local families. Harald, a carnivore at heart, ordered his umpteenth steak of the tour. With his spectacles perched on the end of his nose, he sipped his red wine and savoured every juicy morsel of his Argentine steak, demonstrating how a refined connoisseur ought to appreciate good food. |
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Patagonia, Argentina & Chile [Intro-Pre Trip] [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [GPS Tracks] Other Tour Group photos (Picasa): [1 - Kelson & Elena] [2 - Ralph] [3 - Harald] |
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Copyright © Peter Groves unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved. |
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