4-13
I started the morning out by doing some errands. I had ripped a hole in my favorite shirt and I needed it sewn up. It was a pretty serious hole so I couldn't just fix it with needle and thread and this shirt is the best b/c it's lightweight, dries in an instant, is easy to wash in the shower, and has a collar to pop up and keep the sun off my neck while hiking...so I couldn't just go by a new shirt. Unfortunately unlike asia, where you would walk by tons of people with sewing machines or whatnot out, here I had to go looking and then it was tough to find a store that would have it done in less than a week (all the siestas and days off get in the way, as opposed to asia where they would have done it right there in front of you). And of course here it cost 10 bucks instead of 1 buck in Asia.
After having completed that, I headed out on a bus towards the Lhao Lhao Provincial park. There I rented a bicyle (to again compare asia and argentina...20 bucks for a half day for a decent mtn biked here compared to 1 buck for a full day or an old clunker) so that I could bike what is known as the Circuit Chico. The loop took me past at least 7 gorgeous lakes and past countless cute little homes (yea, even I thought they were cute). They reminded me an awful lot like homes in little austrian or swiss or german villages. Gorgeous gardens and flowersr and just cute little homes. Some on lakes and all with the mountain backdrops. Also biked by the famous Lhao Lhao hotel which is reportedly the most expensive hotel in South America, but I am not sure I believe that considering Rio is in SA. But it was definitely very fancy and they only let people with rooms enter the grounds. The fall colors were out in full force as well and the cool crisp air and scenery again reminded me of good ole Colorado falls, not to mention the sparkling and deep blue lakes everywhere. During the cycle trip, I also took a couple stops to hike. One was to hike to the top of Cerro Llao Llao which had great views looking down on the lakes and another to Lago Escondido (hidden lake), which in the summer would have been so perfect for a swim. The super nice guy who had rented me the bike, gives out little coupons. One was to an artisenal brewery for free samples. I sat with an Israeli couple there and tried the beer. And truth be told, it might be the best beer I have ever tasted. The artisenal (not sure if the english of this word is spelled the same way as the spanish) breweries are like microbreweries back home, except even smaller. It's almost like the Jovial Bison's homemade beer set up. He could definitely set up shop here with the Jovial Bison Brewery. At the end, the really nice bike shop man gave me a fancy chocolate for completing the loop with a smile.
The setting here in Bariloche and the surroundings is just so gorgeous. Add to that, South Amerida's largest ski resort 10 minutes away, one of South America's best national parks just outside of town, the lake (with it's windsurfing), all the moutnain biking access, the good food, the chocolate, the breweries, and the climate, and I could totally see this as a place I could live. Not many foreign places make me think I could live there, but this one does
One of the main reasons I came to Bariloche and the Lakes District was to do the difficult Nahuel Huapi Traverse which is 4 days of being almost exclusively above tree line as you cross the Andes in this NP.
4-14 Day 1
I rode the bus up to Cerro Catedral, the ski resort. The base area looked just like any ski area base back home and the mountain looked impressive. Lots of terrain and lots of lifts, and even a tram and a six pack…or as they call it a sextuplet. During the season now, the mountain was mainly used for downhill mtn biking. The guide suggests riding the tram to the top of the mountain to start the traverse, but I felt that was cheating, so I hiked and sweated my way up to the top. All around as far as you could see in all the valleys and the sides of the mountains were the gorgeous fall colors. Flaming reds and oranges! And of course from the top of the ski resort you had sweeping views of the lakes below. Once I left the resort I began a fun and challenging rocky traverse along Cerro (mount, if you haven’t figured that out yet) Catedral. I went over a couple passes and then descended a pit to the tarn of Laguna Schmoll and then eventually down to Laguna Toncheck where cute little refugio Frey sits. On this trek I wasn’t caring a tent, partly bc the refugios are much cheaper (13 bucks per night) than they were at Torres Del Paine (40 bucks per night) and bc it’s getting pretty cold out and my sleeping bag is only rated for survival to 35 degrees, let alone comfort. Though I did spend some okay nights at freezing temps in Torres Del Paine, and also bc they suggested having as light a pack as possible since this route is quite difficult, so taking the 6 pounds of tent and pad away would be quite helpful.
The refugio was great though. Downstairs had a fire and views of the lake and cats (to keep out the mice and to snuggle with the guests) and upstairs had tightly packed bunks with mattresses and extra blankets to add to your sleeping bag. This refugio stays open in the winter for backcountry skiers so even with the fire, it can probably get pretty cold. There is also a guy working there that can cook you meals and hot drinks if you want. The hut reminds me a lot of the little swiss challet that Bill and I hiked up to in switzerland. Camping is fun, but sometimes a nice warm and cozy chalet while in the wildnerness is welcome. I spent the evening with a purring cat on my lap and reading my novel and looking out the window at the lake surrounded by bushes with fall colors and with the Cathedral spires rising up in the background.
There was a french guy there that had this fancy knife from the french army. It was designed such that is was almost entirely hollow in order to save weight. He was proudly showing off how lightweight and such that it was. I pointed out to him, if weight is so important, why does it have a corkscrew on it? "well, how would zou open ze wine then" he said. I guess the french still drink wine in battle.
4-15 Day 2
I decided to get the Refugio breakfast since it was only a buck fifty, so I had fresh break made there and hot cocoa, which was quiet nice, especially since it was while watching the sunrise over the cathedral spires. After breakfast I hiked over two passes to get to refugio Jakob. It was a beautiful hike getting there with the flaming red and orange trees in the valley below. I very briefly descended into some of the trees before hiking up above them again. Refugio Jakob sits right on the picturesque Laguna Jakob which had the flaming red bushes all around it. After I settled in, I took a side hike up Laguna de los Tempanos and then up to Paso Schweitzer with more nice mountain views. It snowed a little bit that night. It was only me and a german couple and the care taker (who played guitar) there.
The next day was supposed to be the hardest and most dangerous portion of the trek. The club andino back in bariloche had tried to scare me away from doing it, but then again that is always the job of people in places like this bc they have to assume everyone is inexperienced (same issue we had in Zion NP with permits where they try to scare you). The people at the NP office in bariloche told me it was closed, which I was confused about b/c a. how can you just close a mountain? and b. usually when it's too dangerous it's bc there is too much snow and now being the fall, it's the least amount of snow. So I figured I would just wait to get there and see about it. The caretaker of the refugio spoke no english, but understood about 60 to 70% of what he said. He also told me it was closed and it also kind of sounded like he might call the NP on me if I went, or maybe it was more like he could call the park to get an update, I wasn't sure. Bc again, I figure there are so many mountains out there, how do they keep someone from just going up. I learned that it was probably more dangerous now b/c on the snowfields the snow had melted leaving only ice, which of course is harder to climb than snow. I still was sure I could do it. This traverse was totally my territory. I felt at home here. It is a whole lot like the terrain of climbing the peaks in RMNP. There are always ways to go up or down or around obstacles that are in the way. So I just new I could do it, so it hurt a bit inside to say no that I wouldn't and I was definitely bummed. In the end I decided not to do it bc I was by myself, so if something happened it could be a problem. If my bro or lucas or someone had been with me, I am sure we would have done it. And I also didn't want to break any rules. Instead, I opted for the much longer route through the valleys.
4-16 Day 3
We woke up to a very light dusting of snow. Today I walked from refugio Jakob down to Ruta 79. From there I walked along the road for a few kilometers until I reached Colonia Suiza (the swiss colony) from where I hiked up another trail up a valley to Refugio Italia. In order to continue on the traverse, I had to do this route which ended up beng 39km (24miles) Although I was bummed about not doing the traverse, the hike was gorgeous nonetheless as this time I was hiking amid the fall colors and along crystal clear rushing streams and rivers with waterfalls and all. The last hour up to Refugio Italia was very steep and it was in a strong storm of hail and sleet. At Laguna Negra, the wind and sleet were just ferocious as it seemed to be some wind tunnel. So it was very nice to again have a refugio there. It was actually closed for the season, meaning the hut warden wasn't there and all the food and stuff had been taken down, but you can still stay inside and use the fireplace and mattresses. There was another really young american couple (on an 11 month trip through SA), two girls from Argentina, and an American-Argentine couple. The girl was from Asheville, NC and worked for outward bound. We sat by the fire as the wind shook the refugio and shared Mate and peanuts.
4-17 Day 4
Weather was not great in the morning, but I still went for the traverse. Went over two passes in the fog and clouds but I could still see a bit down to the "red valleys" full of the fall colors and also to some lakes below. After a while the fog lifted a bit, and I got much better views. Even saw some condors flying about. At one point I could see this really steep and long chute I was going to have to climb up. It was even a bit intimidating for me. Much steeper than the trough on longs peak and I think at least twice as long as well and that same kind of loose scree. But once I had did it, I stood on the top of Cerro Lopez (2076m, 6850ft) with exhilerating views especially down towards Bariloche and all the lakes,including the giant Nahuel Huapi. Just fantastic. And the mountain seemed to drop straight down to the shimmering lakes below. Also nice views back behind towards the andes, although the highest ones were behind clouds. Up on the top of the mountain, the rocks on one side were layered in an icy snow that had apparently frozen on during the windstorm from last night. It was then a steep decent down to refugio lopez, where some people on the traverse spend the night, but I had enough time to make it back down Moreno lake and to the road from there and catch a bus back to bariloche where I finished the day off with a litre of Andes beer
I really enjoyed this trek. I think a lot because it was very similar to what I am familiar with back home, a lot like climbing along the continental divide in Colorado. And I also think I really liked it because it wasn't just hiking. It was more of an adventure and involved some climbing and thinking and route planning and was above tree line way up in the thin air almost the whole time. There wasn't even really a trail most of the time, just following cairns and red bullets painted on rocks. Always with great views and almost always exhilerating.
4-18
Just hung out in bariloche today kind of resting and reorganizing. Did some laundry and internet stuff and planning. I went to church this evening at the bariloche cathedral which is just gorgeous. Afterwards i headed to a buffet. It was a combination chinese place and asado. I needed to fill up after the big trek. It probably wasn't the best quality steaks you could get, but hey I am American, and sometimes you just need quantity (and cheap) over quality.
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