Patagonian cruise, circum-Andean drive and a Pacific island hop back

[RooFlyer]

Baraloche is in the rain shadow of the Andes, somewhat arid, but is a ski town and 'adventure sports' place. Some serious mountains behind the town.



First night was at the Edelweiss Hotel, which seemed a funny name until you walked about the town. Like most of the places we stayed at, the hotel was a bit dated, but comfortable enough.




The town felt very 'Alpine', eg by the architecture in the town square. The waterfront was under developed, but nice enough for a stroll.





This may be the last update for a few days, as I make my way home, so i'll leave you with a teaser. Which of these menus do you think JohnM and I ordered the first night in Baraloche?

 

[juddles]

...... i'll leave you with a teaser. Which of these menus do you think JohnM and I ordered the first night in Baraloche?


View attachment 93365

Easy! Would have to be the seven

 

[love_the_life]

I'll plump for the 7 courses - gourmands both of you (as in connoisseur of food)

 

[LadyC]

Some great photos there! I am sure those glaciers are even more incredibly spectacular in real life.

 

[drron]

I was like you with what appeared to be leatherwood both in the sacred valley and later in southern Argentina.Around Ushuaia a lot reminded me of Tassie including fa_us which was just starting to change colour.

 

[RooFlyer]

OK ... waiting for bags to be picked up for the final legs to home so a bit more ...

So yes, obviously we did the 7 course degustation menu ...


But first a drink at a uni student type brew pub next door ... really nice on the lawn admiring the sunset




Then onto Rastro's ... We were amazed to find that we were the only ones there that night. its a top place ... I hope it isn't struggling.



The chef came out and introduced himself and then we were looked after by two very pleasant young ladies whose English was OK. Somehow I got talked into a Chardonnay, but it was unoaked and pretty nice. 'Fin del mundo' = end of the world (Patagonian)



Lake trout empanada to start, with a nice strip of crispy skin as a garnish. Then the beet and goat's cheese (foam and slices) salad. Fantastic dish.




Then prawns with avocado etc, and then poached egg (63 degrees) on sautéed mushrooms. Yum.

 

[RooFlyer]

Refer to the 'attached pic' below.

Moved onto the Patagonian Pinot Noir in time for the meat dish, Patagonian lamb.

Then two desserts. Meringue and meringue type balls cooled in liquid nitrogen - amazing textures - with iced apple and raspberry mousse.



And a nest of filled pannacotta egg on a spun white chocolate nest, with roasted peaches.



All in all an amazing restaurant experience - and all for A$200 for 2, including wine. Talk about a steal.

Argentina had recovered itself after the dodgy border experience!!

 

[RooFlyer]

The next day we headed north, backtracking a bit of yesterday afternoon's drive to join the famed 'Routa 40', which would take us up to Mendoza (or close to it). Routa 40 has somewhat the same cachet as Route 66 in the USA, for those that know about it (like JohnM ).

Here's the day's drive in two types of background:




The first thing we did was drive a loop out just west of town to see the best of the lakes. No disappointment here .. all amazing.







Again, Monkey Puzzle trees and fa_as abounded - the MPs were bearing cones of various stages of maturity. This is a young one.

 

[Major]

The Monkey Puzzle trees (Araucaria Araucana) are related to our Hoop Pine (Araucaria Cunninghamii). The Hoop Pine is native to NSW, Qld and New Guinea.

This goes back to Gondwana when the Southern Continents were joined.

 

[tgh]

I rode a horse up high in Argentina , among gorgeous monkey puzzle forest.
The brave new world has arrived as the Indians have blazed a trail into previously inaccessible country.
They rock in with chain saws drop trees whilly nhilly (proprietary spelling) , cut out the best bits for their "authentic native carving" , throw them in the ute and home they go.
The intrepid tourists on their "brave" steeds , climb "precipitous" trails for hours to find the residue…...

 

[RooFlyer]

MP forests coming up!

 

[RooFlyer]

Driving back through Baraloche we checked into the ski fields, but nothing to do there sight-seeing wise, so we carried onto the goldola ride which has a base in the town outer suburbs. Quite an impressive climb up Cerro Otto:




The views from the top are terrific:




The city, looking towards the more-arid east:



The area where we went in the morning:




... and a bonus in the complex at the top - who knew that David had a new roost?

 

[mel-world]

Hope you don't mind me adding a couple of pictures to this excellent report....


We took a different route from Puerto Montt to Bariloche last September that involved three lake crossings and better weather than you had. We enjoyed the whole trip and your report on the cruise made me want to immediately go and make a booking.





and I hope you made a visit to one of these in Bariloche - hard to miss in the main town.

 

[RooFlyer]

.... <snip>
The countryside was green and lush. We passed many trees with this flower, which looked all the world like leatherwood (as in honey) to me. I'll have to check if its related (Gondwana and all that).

View attachment 93337

I was like you with what appeared to be leatherwood both in the sacred valley and later in southern Argentina.Around Ushuaia a lot reminded me of Tassie including fa_us which was just starting to change colour.

We both get points drron .

The Patagonian plant is Eucryphia cordifolia , whilst the Tasmanian leatherwood is Eucryphia lucida .

The Eucryphia are endemic to southern temperate South America and south-eastern Australia. Together with the Monkey Puzzle group Araucaria and the Nothofagus, Gondwanaland strikes again!

 

[RooFlyer]

Hope you don't mind me adding a couple of pictures to this excellent report....
View attachment 93614

<snip>

and I hope you made a visit to one of these in Bariloche - hard to miss in the main town.

View attachment 93617

Which volcano was that?

Didn't make it to a chocolate shop. We got in late and parking was a hassle and we headed out of town early.

 

[RooFlyer]

Continuing up the excellent road system, we got onto Camino de los Siete Lagos or Road of the Seven Lakes (part of Routa 40) beween Villa La Angostura and San Martin de Los Andes, our destination for the day.



Just a bunch of gorgeous scenery and easy driving:

 

[RooFlyer]

Our destination, San Martin de Los Andes came into view.




Our accommodation, a small hotel called Le Chatelet was found pretty easily with the help of the GPS. San Martin we discovered like Bariloche has an 'Alpine' feel and theme. Much smaller than Bariloche and very pleasant to be in. The owner had good English and the place overall was comfortable, although no aircon, and the day was quite warm.





The town was nice ... even had a (volcanic ash and rock) beach, with lifeguard and sailing boats on the water.

 

[mel-world]

Which volcano was that?

Its Volcan Osorno east of Peurto Varas.

 

[RooFlyer]

Ah, yes, we missed it because of the weather. Lots of volcanos seen on the Argentine side though

 

[love_the_life]

Its Volcan Osorno east of Peurto Varas.

It's a fair bit clearer than when were there a few years ago.