Bikes and waves in Bariloche

After our days mountaineering in the high Andes, we headed North for some (slightly) warmer climes in beautiful Bariloche, Argentina. Perhaps we're just getting used to it, but the 36-hour bus ride wasn't all that bad. Really. We boarded the bus late on Wednesday night, and spent until 8am Friday morning riding the backroads of Argentina's Ruta 40. Some of it paved, some of it not, it really could have been a lot worse. Thanks to the drowsy-formula dramamine and our fleece jackets as pillows, we weathered two nights on the bus without incident.

Bariloche is the largest city in the Lake District of Argentina, and while a bit touristy (as evidenced by the plethora of chocolate shops and fancy restaurants along the main boulevard), it provided some great views, warm sunny days and cool nights.

Our first day was spent checking out the town, eating some ice cream and walking by the lake. We had heard good things about a mountain biking tour a ways out of town, and booked that for the following day - a 22km route circling hidden lakes, lookout points and dense forests. As it turns out, and what they don't readily advertise in the brochures, the biking is essentially constant up- and down-hill. Not little rolling hills, either. The first few hills were no problem, but the fourth through twentieth mile-long hills were getting a bit tiresome. We managed to snap a few great pictures, and worked up a good appetite and a well-earned night sleep.

On our third and final full day before heading up farther North, Elizabeth had a hankering for some kayaking. It was a slightly colder, windier day than the previous few, but our guide assured us that kayaking was "a lot more interesting" on windy days. It certainly was. While both Elizabeth and I had done a small amount of kayaking in our past, we found ourselves in 20mph headwinds and 2 to 3 foot waves in the middle of a 600ft deep glacial lake. We didn't once fall out, tip over, or anything more catastrophic than get a little (read: a lot) wet, and our faithful guides assured us we weren't the most pathetic kayakers they had had that week.

Our guides, three Argentinians who spoke great English (two of which spend their winters in Lake Tahoe as ski instructors), were kind enough to share their thoughts on the best food, drinks, restaurants and various other Argentinian favorites both locally and nationally, as well as share their round of yerba mate with a couple of curious gringos. We complained about how we're going to dearly miss alfajores, cheap steaks, and amazing ice cream, while they mourned the loss of their favorite American treats; KFC, Snickers bars, and chili. (Which reminds me, I promised to send MomStanks' recipe along to them via email).

All in all, one of the best three-day stops we've made so far. We hopped another bus North towards Mendoza, where we find ourselves now. We're planning a short jaunt into Chile for a few days, then stopping for a week in San Martin (back in Argentina) for some more steaks, empanadas, ice cream and outdoor adventures before heading to meet our dear friend Megan Severs in Cusco, Peru. Time certainly is flying.

We have a bunch more pics that still have yet to be uploaded (the interenet connection here is a little spotty, so it'll have to wait for a few days) but we'll let you know when you can check them out. Until then...