After a few final days in Buenos Aires, we said goodbye to Argentina and flew back to the States. April was a wonderful month full of reunions, and a great reminder that we have the best friends.
Reunions
Star Gate & Arenales
After a breathtaking flight from Bariloche, we reached the northern terminus of our Argentine adventure. After a quick resupply in Mendoza, we set off to meet our Workaway hosts in the Valley of Uco (El Valle del Uco).
Frey
Frey was one of the first destinations we had decided on for our trip to Argentina. The mountain destination came highly recommended from a climbing friend, and is easily accessible from the town of Bariloche. After a 3 hour hike from the Cerro Catedral ski resort, we arrived to Refugio Frey. Within the hour, before even setting up our tent, we were off to climb “El Diedro de Jim” (Jim’s dihedral). Our introductory climb in the area was a perfect dihedral followed by a perfect crack in the granite face of “Aguja Frey,” the nearest spire to the hut. A perfect start to the week…
Siete Lagos
After a few days trapped inside recovering from a stomach bug, setting off on the road of Seven Lakes (the span of Route 40 between Bariloche and San Martin de los Andes) felt like a grand adventure. We rented a car (trusty Chevy Joy) and headed north with high spirits and lots of snacks. Just as we were leaving town, we picked up two Spanish hitchhikers who were headed to Chile – we were low on hitchhiking karma and always enjoy meeting other travelers. They had already explored the seven lakes area, and laughed knowingly when I insisted that we pull over to take in the view at the first mirador.
Cerro Tronador
Hiking to Refugio Meiling on Cerro Tronador is typically something that is done in two days, but we only had one. Unwilling to let that stop us, we began our hike at 8:30am, a Patagonia alpine start. We took a photo of the trail map, which stated Refugio Meiling – 18km and felt a mix of excitement and nerves, thinking we would be hiking 24 miles (including a detour we planned to take). The trail began in a beautiful dense forest with big trees. The sun was still making its way up, but we could already tell that it would be a gorgeous day.
Venga!
We first heard about Piedra Parada from the Petzl Roctrip, but didn’t think we’d make it there on this adventure. After talking with a lot of Argentinian climbers and seeing their faces light up when they told us about Piedra Parada, we knew we had to go. They were right. When we got off the bus, we stood in awe of the huge lonely rock in the middle of the desert. “Piedra Parada” – or “standing stone” – looks like a forgotten piece in a cosmic game.
Lavender, Hippies, and Blue water
We arrived in the evening to the hippie paradise of El Bolson. First impressions: there’s an artisan market with tons of handcrafted goods, slack lines are set up in the square with a high line across the little pond in the center, people are lounging in the lawn in the shade of the trees. Someone is spinning fire within a drum circle. Half shaved heads, dreadlocks, headscarves and lots of crystals, a hippie town indeed!
In the presence of giants
Two days of near perfect weather welcomed us to the austral paradise of El Chaltén. As our bus pulled into the town and we saw Fitz Roy and its neighboring peaks dominating the horizon as the sun set, the energy of the mountains struck us. The beauty of the landscape and excitement about tackling the next climb or trek filled the town, and no matter where we went, we overheard snippets of shared beta, retelling of gorgeous days in the mountains, and in typical Patagonia fashion, rumors of the next weather window.
Hello, Patagonia!
We thought that we’d be short on light when we arrived at around 7PM to the airport at El Calafate. However, after taking a bus to town, walking and checking in to our hostel, and going grocery shopping, we still caught the sunset at 10PM! Our time in this beautiful town was short and sweet – limited basically to our night at the hostel and a visit to the Perito Moreno glacier.
Buenos Aires
Our four days in Buenos Aires were filled with great food (empanadas, pizza, pasta, dessert!) and lot of beautiful parks and plazas. We wandered the busy streets and quaint neighborhoods (and got a bit sweaty because it was HOT). We stopped to watch tango dancers in a plaza (a milonga), and strolled through a gorgeous rose garden. Buenos Aires has many theaters, and we enjoyed an outdoor showing of the ballet Sleeping Beauty on the plaza of Teatro Colon (at least until our stomachs started grumbling). We also visited a theater which had been converted into a huge bookstore! Before leaving for the airport on our last day, we visited a local bouldering gym, where the friendly owner demonstrated tricky beta in his flip flops. After working up an appetite, we stopped in a cute cafe and shared an eggplant milanesa sandwich! The owner asked us for a note on his brand new white lockers, and we left a bit of Venice for him. All in all, we had a great time in the capital!