Last days in Argentina

Moving on from Torres del Paine, we crossed the border back into Argentina and the towns of El Calafate, El Chalten, and San Carlos de Bariloche. Theme of the last few days has been plenty of exercise, lots of ice, and beautiful scenery.

Starting with El Calafate, the main reason for visiting was to go and see the Perito Moreno Glacier which is fairly close by. Trip on the truck over there was a bit of a struggle (again) as we´d had a very drunken night out in the town the night before (no surely not, I hear you gasp in amazement!). Managed to sober up for the boat trip to the glacier with the aid of a very large cup of coffee and an even larger slice of cherry gateau just before boarding. Sailed failry close to the ice which is an impressive sight. Up to 60m high above the water, there is another 120m hidden beneath the surface. Then a chance to walk along the shore for some good views across the ice, and a bit of time spent waiting for a photo of a chunk of the glacier to plummet into the lake (no hope - the ice stayed firmly in place where we were looking of course.

El Chalten had an ice theme about it too as 3 of our group (Rich, Emily and yours truly) joined some other trekkers for a hike up to and onto the Glacier Torres. Walk was great with wonderful views of the mountains ahead and included a river crossing by Tyrolean traverse (basically being harnessed to a cable and pulling yourself across upside down. Glacier itself was really cool - crevasses, pools, beautiful blues and whites. Plus we also got to do a bit of ice climbing with ropes, ice axes, and crampons. As an additional bonus, it didn´t cloud over until we had left the ice.

Day 2 in El Chalten and another long walk. Two of us set off to get to the view point of Fitz Roy mountain. Both made it, despite the exertions of the past weeks and the fact that Jen was still suffering from a blistered heal suffered in Torres. More amazing views, steep climbs, and good weather when needed (i.e. on the way to the view point). 24k later and we were back at camp in time to relax for a little while before heading out into town for food and more alcohol (the town has its own brewery, so we had to sample some - it would have been rude not to). Should have two whole days on the truck to recover and catch up with some sleep.

So much for two days to recover. Admittedly we did get over two days on the truck but seeing as one of the places we camped was on the edge of a town with bars, inevitably, we ended up going out to drink (and play pool for a change). Staying in a hostel in Bariloche, so get a real bed for a couple of nights. Well, actually a bunk in a cramped dorm. In El Calafate I lucked out by being assigned a dorm with space and its own washroom. This time, I think the guys are probably in the most cramped dorm in the hostel. Add to that the fact that the only window is very small and faces a hill at the back of the hostel, then there isn´t much light either. Very jealous of the rest of the group as they are either in rooms facing the front of the hostel with loads of daylight streaming in or across the street in cottages.

Anyway it looks like I won´t be using the dorm much anyway. Had a great meal away from the main tourist section of the town last night, followed by beer and dancing at an Irish bar back in the centre (Wilkenny´s). More exercise today in the form of moutain biking. Beautiful area of the country with hills, lakes, and mountains and a circular bike trail taking in some really good views of everything (and 3 microbreweries - Jen and me restricted ourselves to visiting just one of them but I suspect the other four riders will make the most of the opportunity!) . Bit of shopping to be done this afternoon, then suspect there will be another quiet night in tonight (not).

Torres del Paine

First stop back in Chile is to spend a few days in Torres del Paine National Park. Lots of mountains, lakes, glaciers, beautiful terrain to explore. And, at last, the chance to get some exercise. Spent all three days trekking to various viewpoints to see the amazing mountain scenery and the Glaciar Grey. As well as enjoying the views, it was great to have the chance to stretch the legs and see if they still work (they do). Managed to cover a lot of kms and also gave the chance to detox a bit after Ushuaia.

1st day´s walk was to a viewpoint called the Base del Torres to look at the Torres (towers) themselves. Quite a surprise when you reach the final ridge of the walk and see just how tall the rock stacks are. Great view around the park too.

2nd day was a walk to the Grey Glacier. Walk was not quite as spectacular as day 1 but the glacier was well worth the effort. It´s been a long time since I went near one - think the last time was on a school trip when I was about 13 or 14.

Third day was the most strenuous of the three as we headed along by a lake and then quite steeply up hill to a spot almost completely surrounded by mountain peaks, snow, and ice. Lots to see and got some great photos. Also got very wet on the walk back long the lake when the heavens opened. Very glad of the wood burning fire in the hostel when we got back: a) to warm up and b) to dry off some of the drenched clothing before we got on the catamaran back to our campsite on the other side of the lake. Pity two of us managed to burn walking socks on it!

Now heading to El Calafate and the Glaciar Petito Moreno.

To the end of the world

Moving on from BA and heading south. First stop was at the Peninsula Valdes and a day spent enjoying the scenery and the wildlife. Got to see penguins, elephant seals, sealions, and orcas. Missed out on the orcas hunting :( but did get to see them swim close in shore. If anyone remembers the David Attenborough series "The Trials of Life", the peninsular is where they filmed the sequence of orcas swim up to the beach and grabbing sealions. It´s the only place in the world where that happens. Spent quite a bit of time sitting in the roof seats of the truck. This is what everyone inside the truck looks like from above:

Next stop was to an even larger penguin colony. Around about 1000 birds, and most of them right by the path you walk along. Then into Chile (for the 1st time) and across the Straits of Magellan on a ferry. This was a great trip - the boat was surrounded by dolphins swimming along with us.

Then back into Argentina again for our final stop on this leg at Ushuaia right on the southern tip of the continent. From here onwards the only way is north. A day trip into Tierra del Fuego gave us the chance of a little bit of trekking. Also included was a visit to "the end of the world" in the park and a passport stamp to prove we´d been there. Also had a couple of wild nights around the town itself at a local club on day one and then an Irish Bar for St Patrick´s Day the night after (we have one girl from Ireland in our group, so obviously we all had to help her celebrate). In between the two, we managed to squeeze in a boat trip out on the Beagle Channel to see more sealions, fur seals, cormorants, and a lighthouse (not the southernmost one in the world). It was a bit of a struggle to get up this morning and be on the truck for 7am. Too much of a struggle for quite a few of us - the drunkards from the night before all got piled onto our new minibus (Carmen is still being repaired in Cusco). Think the drivers had a nice peaceful morning - we all slept right the way through to the Chilean border (for the 2nd time).

And now once again we say goodbye to a few people and get some newbies on the truck.





P.S. Truck life can be quite tiring:

Bad bus in big bad BA

Greetings from Buenos Aires. Finally we´ve reached a city where the temperature is bearable (but only because it is raining today - rest of the week has still been far too warm).

Have been a great time here. Lots to see, lots to drink. Difficult to find the right balance between the two. Think drink has won, especially when the bar next door to our hotel serves litre bottles of beer for 6 or 7 pesos (not much more than a pound!) and the landlady seems to keep the place open as long as there are still customers in the bar.

Anyway, we arrived here a day earlier than planned due to the accident and will also leave a daily than on the original schedule (but with a full truck of 24 people instead of 2 trucks of 12 each). Glad to have the extra time in the city. Started off the time with a bit of boozing in the Dark Bar next door to the hotel - would have been rude not too when it is so close - headed off to some swanky restaurant in the city centre (which set the trend for the week - veggie options: omelette or salad), and finished day 1 in an Irish bar just down the street because it was the only place open after midnight.

Having survived that, Tuesday morning was spent seeing lots of bits of the city when we took a coach tour. Excellent guide and lots to see: Palermo, Recoleta, La Boca, Plaza de Mayo amongst others. We confused Florencia, our guide, a little when all of the Dragoman gang looked out of the left of the coach whilst she was describing something on the right as we headed down to La Boca. We had spotted our two trucks parked up at a repair shop. This brief trip gave lots of ideas for what to do for the rest of the week.

Tuesday evening saw some time back in the Irish Bar to watch some Champions League football, then off to the Docks area for another smart restaurant and another salad. Wednesday was the first opportunity to explore the city on our own. Plan to try and cover most of the area we did on the city tour didn´t work out because I had to spend some time at an Olympus showroom getting a dud camera battery replaced. Did manage to visit Plaza de Mayo and the area around it, including the cathedral, and then walked on down to Retiro and finished the afternoon at the English Tower. The whole group had a trip to a tango show planned for the evening, but I had other initial priorities: i.e. the search for a bar that was showing the Arsenal Champions´League game. This was planned to be shown as live at 7pm local time. This clashed horribly with the departure for the tango show which was set for 8:15. Talked to the hotel reception about where the tango venue was and headed up there early in the hope of finding a bar showing the game. Got a real result when I found the tango place had a big screen. Had a chance to practice my Spanish, and talked the bar staff into tuning it in for the football. Only saw the first half there (they closed briefly to set up for the tango), so had to repeat the exercise at a bar over the road. Ended the evening back in the Dark Bar for a very long drinking session. Ana and Eduardo kept the bar open until 5am for us!

So, on to Thursday and I woke up to heavy rain. At least this gave an excuse for not being too energetic. Made a quick visit to the area of the Congress building. Not the best place in the rain - lots of construction work going on in the square in front of it, so very very muddy. Fortunately by the evening, the rain had let off. This was good news as I was heading off to watch River Plate play a game against Caracas in the South American equivalent of the Champions League. Had a good view from our uncovered seats. Shame the game wasn´t the best ever. Surprisingly Caracas actually one 1-0 with an early goal and although River Plate created lots of chances, they couldn´t put the ball in the net. Despite this though, the atmosphere was electric. Again headed down to the docks area for some food after the game (after midnight - South American soccer matches kick off late in the evening). Had a nice argument with an all you can eat restaurant. I turned up later than the rest and ordered a dessert only. I`ll admit to having sneaked a little bit of salad from one of the other guys and a few chips that they didn´t want, but the waitress then tried to ask the full all you can eat price. After a stand off for a while, I offered to pay if they´d bring me a plate so that I could try "all you can eat". Then another delay (in theory they had already closed 30 minutes earlier), and finally they caved in and charged me for the pancakes I had for dessert and we were free to go. Found another good bar in the middle of town - BarBar0. Drank through to 3:30 and then back to the hotel.

Friday saw the return of sunshine, so I finally headed out to Palermo to walk around all the parks in the area. Very hot by lucnhtime, so took a bit of time to chill in the Japanese Gardens. This had a large pond in the middle willed with large koi carp. Then saw the egret in the photos. Think I´m going to title them "The Optimist" - the fish were as big or bigger than the bird.

Then on to Recoleta, and the cemetery where Eva Peron is buried, before heading back down the very plush Avenida Alvear to Retiro and the Metro back to the hotel. A few more beers in the Dark Bar, and off to a club in town. And then the realisation that I hadn´t actually eaten anything all day other than a couple of cheese sandwiches, so a visit to the local pizzeria was called for at about 2am!

Our last day in the city arrived far too soon and it was only half a day as well. Word was that the truck would be ready and pick us up from the hotel at 1pm. Took the opportunity to head back down to La Boca and Camonito to get some photos and watch some of the street tango. Also managed to get myself involved when one of the dancers spotted me taking photos and insisted I pose for the camera with her. As you can see from the photo below, this was toughbut, as a tourist, it had to be done.

And then back to the hotel to await the arrival of Cameron. Had a chance for a quick sandwich over the road before settling in the hotel lobby with the other 23 now in our group. Waited for a while and then Dan appeared to say time had been put back until 2:30. Finally the truck arrived between 3:30 and 4 and we were on our way out of town.

Truck life

With apologies to Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, and Alex James (and anyone who wasn´t on the truck on our trip through Brazil).

Rum and coke is a preference of the habitual drinker in what is known as... (trucklife!)
Hangovers can be avoided by drinking all night through in what is known as... (trucklife!)
Darryl´s got blonde hair. He gets intimidated by Brazilian truckers. They´d love a bit of him! (trucklife!)
What´s that? Sue´s sleeping again! You should cut down on your night life girl. Just 1 night in 2! (trucklife!)

Chorus:
All the potholes
So many potholes
And they all link into one
Into one Brazil truck life

Did you hear that?

We get up when we want, except bush camp days, when we get rudely awakened by Nas´alarm. (trucklife!)

Dave lets Pinkie down, we pack our kit away, and think about leaving the tents. (trucklife!)

We feed the stray dogs, we sometimes feed iguanas too.
It gives us a sense of enormous well-being. (trucklife!)
And then we´re driving for the rest of the day,
Safe in the knowledge that Daz and the Hat Will get us safely to our destination.

Chorus

Trucklife - trucklife!
Trucklife - trucklife!

So it´s not about the Hat, Daz, Nas, Sue or the rest you know

It´s all about Cameron, who just u-turns round and round