Around mid-August, MAN told us there had been a cock up in Germany and our order was delayed until early September. This was unfortunate and so we used our extra time to explore northern Argentina before heading back into Chile to collect our parts. From Salta we headed to San Salvador de Jujuy on the very narrow and twisty Route […]
Having said good bye to Ivan at Belén, we journeyed north on the famous Ruta Nacional 40 towards the wine producing area of Cafayate. On the way we spend the night at the Quilmes ruins, an ancient settlement set on a hillside with fortifications higher on the hill. We stopped next at a roadside distillery (Francine tried one or two […]
We first met Ivan, an intrepid Spanish Overlander, a year back in Buenos Aries, we were both waiting for our trucks to arrive, ours from South Africa, Ivan’s from Panama and we met for a meal in one of the city’s great cafes. We went our separate ways but met again recently, at San Antonio de Cobres, with our vehicles, […]
There we were, driving merrily along a ‘ripio’ dirt track from the Salinas Grandes salt pan to San Antonio de los Cobres, in the middle of nowhere, when there was an almighty noise from underneath Big Bertha. We stopped quickly, expecting a puncture. But no, it was something much worse, the front propshaft, along with the transfer case output shaft, […]
We were very lucky to have been able to camp in the centre of Mendoza next to the train station. From here we explored the city using the comprehensive bus and tram network. After a couple of days we decided to start heading towards the Cristo Redentor pass over the central Andes and into Santiago. Dave being Dave decided to […]
After our little foray into Chile to visit the volcanoes, we crossed back into Argentina at the minor border post at Icalma. So minor that the Chilean officials said we were not allowed to pass in a ‘camion’ (truck). After some remonstrating, because the nearest alternative was some distance, they relented and we were allowed to pass. To celebrate our […]
Driving north from Caviahue to Chos Malal we felt we were very much in Argentine Gaucho country. Around every bend, we came across another herd of sheep / goats / cows / horses being shepherded along the road, presumably to market or a more tasty field. These weren’t short drives either. The Gauchos were accompanied by pack horses and, having […]
After our horse riding adventure, we headed into Barilioche to meet Charlene, a Taiwanese friend we had met in BA whilst Scottish Country Dancing. Bariloche is a delightful town – imagine a Swiss town nestled next to a vast lake with mountains all around. You get the idea. The only unfortunate thing is that it has a reputation for break-ins […]
This is what Juan Carlos and Andrea called us after having rescued them from a sticky situation! We were on our way up to the thermal spa town of Copahue, at the base of Copahue Volcano, and had just passed 2000m altitude when we came across Juan Carlos and Andrea. They had accidently driven off the road and their car […]
Heading north from the Parque Nacional Los Alerces, we visited the lakeside town of Lago Puelo. Here we hiked up to a mirador in the NP overlooking the town, lake and mountains. The next day was Gaucho day. As complete novices, we booked what we thought was a brief and gentle two hour horse ride adjacent to the lake. However, […]