Courtenay Katherine

El Bolson – Futaleufu

1 Comment / Patagonia Trip Nov 2023 /
Nov 5, El Bolson to Futaleufu

We packed up and left El Bolson by 10 a.m. in intermittent, pouring rain.  Within 30 minutes, we were headed out of the alpine forests and downhill into low scrub and brush, a much more arid landscape at lower altitude. And just as quickly it seemed, we began heading up again as the skies began to clear a bit, the main feature being more forest, now all manner of trees, not just alpine, and tons and tons of yellow bushes, obviously spring bloomers, lining every highway and road. We wended our way through several small Argentine border towns until we reached the border with Chile, at Futaleufu, the rain subsiding again somewhat, enough to allow us to get through immigration and customs easily with a cursory search of the truck (not in pouring rain).

As the rain steadily increased, we headed for our hotel, the Peuma Lodge Patagonia, located about an hour south of the border. The landscape reminded us of our trip to the border described earlier…lush, green countryside, a panorama of farmhouses and seemingly endless sheep, cows and horses. There were enough mountain peaks visible through the clouds and fog to know that had it been a clear day, the view would have been something altogether more spectacular. Puema Lodge is ensconced a kilometer off the main road (which really is not a main road at all) in the middle of roaring steams and a plethora of randomly sized small barns. Three big, friendly, shaggy dogs greeted us at the main gate as we let ourselves in and continued up the gravel road. It is impossible to park nearby to any of the several guest houses interspersed throughout the sprawling property, so after we settled on a spot under one of the covered barns, the flock of sheep from below came hurrying along to meet us before we went over the footbridge to the reception lodge. In late afternoon, we took advantage of the wood-fired sauna, located at the other end of the property and admired the wood-burning hot tub (except for the rain, we would have been in it for sure), and then enjoyed a very good dinner of fish and steak accompanied by an excellent Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon and turned in early.

Peuma Lodge Patagonia: Even in the rain, this is a property worth visiting. Run by a Dutch guy and his Chilean wife, the 5 separate cabins are rustically furnished with comfort and views in mind… the wood-burning stove being the only heating source, cozy bedding, plush towels, plus a view of the field and the sheep can’t really be beaten, even in the rain. And, toward the end of dinner at the main lodge, we were asked if we would like to have a staff member put a log on our cabin’s wood stove, so we would not be rushed to finish and still have a warm room when we returned (we declined, but, nice all the less!). 

For more videos, click here:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/KKoBsAgJX1y9j9GLA

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Chos Malal – El Bolson

2 Comments / Patagonia Trip Nov 2023 /
Nov. 3, Chos Malal to El Bolson

We pulled out of Hotel Terra Malal around 9:30 after a typical Argentine buffet breakfast— good, but standard; plenty of sustenance to get the car packed and on the road. The drive began unremarkably but soon the change in landscape was dramatic…it transformed gradually from high, arid desert as we dropped down into the lake district with its alpine forests, large rivers, and lots of pristine lakes. We have been to Bariloche several times before, either flown in, or arrived via route 40.  This time, in Chos Malal, the gas attendant advised (and Google agreed) we should skip the portion of 40 from San Martin de los Andes through to Bariloche. Instead, the roads would be faster and in better condition of we stayed east, arriving in Bariloche via routes 234 and 237.

The last time we drove route 40 between Bariloche and El Bolson was about 6 years ago when we still had to leave the country to renew our tourist visas. Normally, we would go to Chile for a day to do so, but one time, a friend suggested we visit him in Bariloche, make the drive a bit south to a dirt road that leads to the border, take a short hike to the customs cabin, and return. We followed his advice, in pouring rain up to our knees in mud and sheep shit…but that’s another story. The point being, this stint of 40 south of Bariloche was familiar, to a point.  Five years ago, it was foggy, and we could see almost nothing.  This time, thankfully, we were able to see the mountains and really appreciate the scenery. And the very last bit on the way into El Bolson was totally new, as we have never made it that far south. And the main story? —the forest!

Nov 3-4, El Bolson

El Bolson is a “mountain town “ in a microclimate valley, receiving virtually no snow, only rain, in the winter. The main town has become more of a city over the past 20-30 years; it is quite large and sprawling, with lots of thriving businesses and restaurants.  We had heard it was a hippy enclave back in the day, and it still has some of that vibe, but it is decidedly tamer now. From the main part of town, there are many heavily wooded dirt roads that go straight up into the foothills of the main mountain, Cerro Piltriquitron, where clearings of small farms with all sorts of livestock, grazing land and farming plots dot the countryside. Our cabana was located at the top of one of these, and we were glad to have the Amarok. All in all, we loved it and even decided we could see ourselves living here one day.

We had two nights in El Bolson, and so on our free day, we visited the Artisanal Fair in the center of town, which was rather banal. I bought a tie-dyed T-shirt because why not, and we talked with the locals, a ceramicist who wood-fires his very large kiln who had some lovely pieces, and a few others. We found that our Spanish, having improved considerably since our last trip, was quite helpful in understanding the history of the place, enabled at least a basic understanding of folks’ perspectives on the election (neither candidate), and it scored us a couple of recommendations. First, a visit to Las Golindrinas, a neighborhood 15 minutes south of El Bolson in the hills, where, the locals said, the hippy enclave had moved.  This, apparently, is what El Bolson used to be. So, we went to check it out—beautiful properties, many with farming plots nestled in wooded clearings and a whiff of the “hippie aesthetic” for sure; I’m pretty sure I saw some old vw busses and a peace sign or two– absolutely worth the drive!

We had lunch at Bogedon, a little family-run place, also recommended by the locals outside of town. No tourists, great meal, and the YPF gas station right next door (no lines). We spent the rest of the day back at the cabana, watching the Bocas Juniors -Fluminense Brasil Copa game (Bocas lost) and relaxing.

Altos del Sur Cabanas: A lovely property with 5 cabanas, ours very simply but comfortably furnished with a small kitchen and living area in addition to a bedroom.  It was very quiet, with lots of birds, amazing views and family dogs to keep us company. Especially comfortable bed.

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MENDOZA – CHOS MALAL

Patagonia Trip Nov 2023 /
Nov. 2

We left Mendoza for Chos Malal around 9:30 a.m., and it was a beautiful day for a drive! By the time we reached Tunuyan, we realized the so-called gas shortage was probably not a thing.  No lines that we could see what-so-ever, ninety minutes south of our house! The same thing was true in Malargue; the gas attendant said they had seen no problems at all, and we had no line. Highlights of the drive: the clouds- just incredible as you’ll see from the photos and videos, and the schist, a metamorphic, lava-like rock composed of minerals. We had seen this before, the last time we drove south maybe 5 years ago, and it is stunning to see…as if you are at the bottom of the world or back in time, or at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. We arrived at Hotel Terra Malal around 6:30pm, cleaned up and walked a few blocks to a lovely restaurant for dinner. 

Hotel Terra Malal:  The hotel is fantastic, given it’s location, literally in the middle of nowhere in Neuquen, Argentina.  We stayed here the last time we came through when they had just opened. They have expanded to 30 rooms, redone the reception and breakfast area, and added stylish common areas, a pool and a lovely garden. Very basic rooms but it’s really the only hotel in Chos Malal.

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Mendoza, Pre-Trip

1 Comment / Patagonia Trip Nov 2023 /
Mendoza, Oct 27-30

On Friday evening we attended a lovely dinner with friends at Cavas Wine Lodge, a beautiful hotel not far from our house. Later, when Knox went to retrieve the Amarok, he found we had a very flat front tire. Thankfully, the hotel staff changed the tire for the spare in no time and we were on our way home. Obviously, however, we needed to have the tire repaired and possibly purchase new tires, given the upcoming 6000+ kilometers of driving. But, we reasoned it was probably fortunate to have happened before the trip, instead of during the trip.

We woke up on Saturday to ZONDA weather in Mendoza. These highly windy events are relatively common here at the foot of the Andes Mountains, but in recent months they have begun to worsen. If you’re interested in learning more, Knox, of course, has a very detailed paper he found and will be happy to share with you if you ask him (lol). The wind started in earnest mid-afternoon and we were hearing of high winds elsewhere, but didn’t really experience anything serious at our house.  The power went out a few times, as is usual in these storms, came back on, and went off again, but we didn’t really think much about it.

By Sunday morning, in addition to the Zonda continuing to blow and the power outages becoming more frequent and sustained, we began to learn about the serious gas shortage in Argentina…stories of long lines, closed stations, high prices, and in much of Mendoza, no gas available anywhere, and no end in sight. After talking with friends and reading the news, I, for one, began panicking just a bit: how was it that after all these months of planning our big drive south, we would find ourselves stranded at home due to a lack of gas?? And so, being the planner I am,  an alternative route naturally came to mind:  Chile HAS gas.  If we could somehow find enough gas to get to Chile over the pass, west of Mendoza (probably just one tankful), we could head south in Chile instead of going with the original plan to drive south on the Argentine side. 

As the afternoon wore on and the power went out completely, I finished planning our contingency using mobile phone data (thankfully very cheap here). The weather was still pretty nasty with tons of branches down and horrible dust in the air. Not pleasant to be outside.  But I ventured out into the yard with the dogs at some point and realized I was not just seeing Zonda in the air. I was seeing smoke, and lots of it, filling the otherwise clear dusk sky and moving easterly over the house! Turns out, the Zonda had ignited several very bad fires in and around Mendoza, including one large one burning just 10 kilometers from us on the other side of the highway that runs west of our house. Needless to say, this was not really the turn of events we expected or wanted. Knox suggested we pack a “go-bag” just in case, and we monitored the situation via TV news until they cut the power completely and by cellphone after that.

By Monday morning, after very little sleep, thankfully most of the fires were contained, but several communities had been evacuated nearby, and further west, many folks lost everything. Knox went to have the tire repaired and in search of gas. The culprit was just a small nail and the repair took just a few minutes. But still no gas, and very few open stations all with queues so long Knox was not game to even contemplate waiting. And, to complicate matters further,  because of a long weekend in Chile, more than 20,000 Chileans had been visiting Mendoza as tourists when the storm struck, and they closed the mountain pass due to weather, so all of these Chileans were seeking fuel for their cars for their return trips and waiting for the pass to open also. Perfect! Just as we were thinking of going directly to Chile ourselves. Obviously, the prospect of waiting at the border with 20,000 extra people was far from ideal.

Mendoza, Oct 31

We awoke to a beautiful, clear Mendoza spring morning. The Zonda had passed. Knox left early on a mission to find gas for the Amarok. The government had apparently begun taking measures to resolve the situation, and although there were still lots of lines and closed stations, our confidence in the possibility of scoring the fuel we needed began to grow: just one tank to go via Chile and the equivalent of two tanks (we had purchased a number of gas containers to bring on the trip anyway) to go south as planned while waiting for the gas crisis to subside. Finally, success! Knox called me and said to follow in my car with the rest of the containers. The queues were long, and they were selling only 10,000 pesos per car (about a 1/3 tank), so we both went through the line at our nearby station several times and after a few hours, we knew for sure we would be leaving to go south via Argentine route 40.

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