Springtime in Patagonia

It’s been a long time since we’ve been in an area which has four seasons.  The region we’re in, Patagonia, is famous for adverse weather.  So our arrival here is timed with the coming of spring.

Trees and flowers are blooming and the weather is good.  The area is filled with beautiful national parks.  Officially they don’t open until November 1st, so we have them pretty much all to ourselves.

On leaving Bariloche we continued along beautiful roads past El Bolson, Argentina.

 

Riding on Route 40 again.  From Bariloche to El Bolson.

Crazy lenticular clouds are a sign of the strong wind here.

Jose Luis, our wonderful Warmshowers host in El Bolson.

Lago Puelo in Parque Nacional Lago Puelo, Argentina.

Near Cholila, Argentina.

South of El Bolson, we rode through Parque Nacional Los Alerces, Argentina.  The park wasn’t officially open, so again we saved on the (very expensive) entrance fee and barely saw any other tourists during the two days we spent there.

Flamingoes in the park.  They feed on algae and organisms in the mud or shallow water.

 

What a pleasure to ride through such a beautiful place.

You may notice lots of photos of dirt roads.  Some were in great condition … some weren’t.

And then we experienced the other thing that happens during the spring: rain.  It rained harder than we’ve seen in a long time and we got really, really wet.  Unfortunately this turned a cold we both picked up into bronchitis.  It also happens that our tent isn’t waterproof anymore, probably from all the blowing dust we’ve experienced along the way.  What a bad time to find out! 

Soaked in Parque Nacional Los Alerces, Argentina.

Lots and lots of rain.

Out of the park, drying out with Welsh tea in sunny Trevelin, Argentina.

After the park we passed through Trevelin, Argentina.  It’s a pretty but odd Welsh settlement snuggled up against the snowy Andes.  This was our last stop before heading back to Chile.  Afterwards it was only a short day to cross the Andes again to Futaleufu, Chile.

Riding towards the Chilean border from Trevelin, Argentina.

Looking back towards Parque Nacional Los Alerces on the way to Chile.

 

For our kayaking friends.  The Futaleufu is one of the most famous kayaking rivers in the world.

But all we did was rest and recover (and try to re-waterproof our tent).  We had the woodstove in our room cranked for three nights.

From Futaleufu we start riding on the world famous Carretera Austral.  Stay tuned for more rain, wind, dirt roads, and beautiful scenery.