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Bariloche
Written by sophie et jeremy   
Tuesday, 19 December 2017

Bariloche is a small town situated on the shores of the lake Nahuel Huapi, and in the national park of the same name. In winter one can ski here (but not much as there aren’t much slopes) and drink hot chocolate. In summer, it’s kayak and trek heaven. We arrive in early summer, the weather is good but cold. All the walking trails are partially cover but snow in the highest part and some are still closed. Swimming is not an option...

bariloche bariloche

Not having visited a city of this size lately, we start we the basics : laundry, food (juicy steak, wine and apple pie which didn’t last long), shopping, and mechanics. The mechanic seems nice and skilful, but the parts we need are not available in Argentina... We will have to wait 15 days so Sophie’s mother will bring the parts in her suitcase.

beach beach

Meanwhile, we go and pick up Fanny at the airport, who is coming with some rare presents too : good chocolate and a new lens for Sophie’s camera. We welcome her with mate and empanadas (Nono’s empanadas, the best of the country so far) and go and visit around the bay which offers beautiful viewpoints on the lake.

nahuel huapi 1 nahuel huapi 1 nahuel huapi 2 nahuel huapi 2

nahuel huapi 3 nahuel huapi 3 road to Ventisquero Negro road to Ventisquero Negro

Once Fanny has recovered from the journey, we climb the mountain which dominates the city, to the Refugio Frey at 1800m. There’s snow here too, but the frozen lake surrounded by the cliffs is worth the walk. As a reward, we have dinner in a “parilla”, the Argentinian special : a huge barbecue with beef, lamb, pork, chicken and sausages...

frey frey

The next day we visit, the Ventisquero Negro, a black glacier (a mix of ice and crushed stones, giving it its black color) topped by a white glacier. They dissolve in a dark green lake where some ice blocks still float. Time to time, we can hear the crushing sound of a piece of glacier splitting and falling into the lake.

Ventisquero Negro Ventisquero Negro

The drive to the south has no major interests, apart from a gaucho contest / city fair with large parilla. We quickly turn off east as we head to the Atlantic ocean 1000 km further.

gaucho gaucho parilla parilla

ruta 40 ruta 40 lakes 2 lakes 2

lakes 1 lakes 1

It turns out well as Jeremy has a friend camping in Piedra parada and it’s on our way. The place is magnificent, surrounded by colored cliffs, a small petrified forest and a canyon with a lot of climbing spots. We enjoy the break and use our hammocks. After few hours of beautiful landscape, the road becomes monotonous into the Patagonia.

piedra parada 1 piedra parada 1 piedra parada 2 piedra parada 2

piedra parada 3 piedra parada 3 piedra parada 4 piedra parada 4