Nathaniel Faulkner and I had been chatting on Facebook since the Atacama Desert with the intent of catching each other to ride - then he and his buddy, Matt Hawkins, showed up at my door in Chos Malal . . . Not sure if it was a good thing but it was fun and we managed a late departure into the blazing afternoon sun feeling less than chipper. Rapidly wilting after a mere 75km and cooked by the sun, we camped in someones back yard with a well. I have been expecting the sun to decrease intensity as I move south but the sun is noticeably hotter. Turns out there is a hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica that can be as large a North America at times! People mentioned the ozone hole to me but I never gave much thought to holes in the ozone beyond "that's bad." However, on a practical level I sunburn faster here than I did at 4000 meters on the Equator.

Matt and Nat are fun to ride with and they are familiar with Binghamton. As former professional cyclists they are friends with Mike Jones - a local boy done good that I have known since he was about 15 years old. I am sure to be seeing them in the US as Matt lives in Colorado and Nat in our friendly neighbor to the north - both pass through Binghamton on occasion.
The next hot hot day sent us on a 20km detour in search of water into the small town of Abajada del Agrio but we spent several hours relaxing and swimming in the river before climbing back out of the valley into afternoon thunderstorms. As Matt commented, "I have never been so hot then so wet and cold in the same day!"
120km later we landed in Las Lajas - small but with a nice municipal campground and after buying some chicken we spent the night grilling. Once again everyone wants photos with/of the biker. I am sure to be appearing on Facebook pages all over Argentina!
But I received a sweet Argentina Copa Mundial hat for the photo op! However, most folks simply hang out the car window with their camera or cell phone.
Rolling out the next day we headed east towards the Chilean border - 50km and 900 meters higher. First I switched out my front tire for the mtn bike tire, my rear road tire having blown up the day before, and we ran a few errands around town. Nat and Matt would be heading into Chile and I would be turning south along the border on dirt route 23 through the mountains towards San Martin de los Andes.
The day was perfect ride weather . . .
cool and overcast with the promise of rain.
The climb was a relatively easy 900 meters winding up into the Andes mountains.
passing a distinctive landscape of globular lime green vegetation.
and wind . . .
topped with forests of Araucaria or Monkey Puzzle Trees or Pehuen (in Maupuche) distinct to this region of Patagonia
The cold rain drove us to seek a little dry warmth at the only available shelter, "Huskys," a family run place with sled dogs in the winter and horses in the summer situated under the ancient Araucarias - already towering ancients when Martin marched for the liberation of the continent.
The seed filled cone like branches of these same trees were sustaining the indigenous Mapuche while Columbus dipped his oars in the Carribbean.Interestingly, the Mapuche kept a precarious independence until the demands of Chilean national growth in the 1880's expropriated and looted their lands - interesting in the sense that the timing of events is similar for many North American tribes . . . and coincides with the invention of the first machine gun.
After a great home cooked meal of meat and potatoes we were seduced into a cabana with hot water and a wood stove to dry our gear.
Horses roamed over the property grazing and peeping in windows.
The next morning Matt, Nat, and I parted ways as they continued through the border and I hooked a sharp left on perfect dirt roads to continue south in Argentina - though I will be sure to see them again down the line.
I am in real gaucho country now and noticed a horse slowly tooling up pass with two dogs up ahead. Upon approaching I notice the rider is a little loose in the saddle but seems pretty stable and sure enough the young man offers me a slug of wine and cigarette as I pull along side. He was a little bleary eyed for 11am but then again his floppy beret looked jaunty and he was going to be sitting on a horse for another two days - so what the hell?
I spent the day rolling along rivers of crystal clear water and goats.
My calm was only occasionally disturbed by immense swarms of honey bees crossing the road from the numerous apiaries - no threat really but I zipped my jersey up tight and pulled my cycling cap down tight.
At the end of the day I found a perfect spot on the river bank to sling my hammock, drink wine, and cook dinner.
The next day continued for much of the same on dirt roads rolling along rivers through small towns and over a single pass - only 15km climb.
The area has some tourism but I not really sure who is going to rent this cabin . . . granted it is a beautiful setting but easily a 5-6 hour drive to a city of any size and a major population center is over 10 hours away (Mendoza) but it is obvious that Argentinians enjoy a good road trip.
Topping out on the treeless pass the signs are all a sandblasted blank but considering I have few road options it is not a concern and I drop into the trout fishing paradise of Junin de Los Andes in the late afternoon.

Mendoza to Northern Patagonia

I finally tore myself away from Mendoza before I started looking for a job . . . but not until 3 in the afternoon - still managed to knock out 110km though. I passed by an uncountable number of small vineyards but only one huge sunflower field late in the day.
The riding was fast with the only hazard being the huge storm cells that built up in the afternoon and renown for their large hail but I rode between all of them. The provincial government has periodic shelters erected to escape from the hail and they made for shade as well on the treeless plains.
The giant cumulus make for some spectacular sunsets over the vineyards.
The landscape reminded my of Colorado except for the ever present Andes and vineyards.
Even the small tree filled towns - I camped the first night in the small town of San Carlos at a friendly hostel recommended to me by Daniel, the hostel owner in Mendoza. Argentinians camp a lot so campgrounds are pretty much everywhere - including municipal campgrounds in many towns and cities. I love being able to camp but walk to the supermarket to buy a hunk of flesh to throw on the parrilla (wood grill).
While I finally managed to get out of Mendoza, I stopped a day and half (260km) later in San Rafael for yet another late late night hanging out grilling with Argentinians. Also, met an American ex-pat, George, from Florida on my way into San Rafael living there with his family. We talked about how he enjoyed living in San Rafael despite Argentina's interminable struggle with inflation. George invited me to his home but after checking into a hostel full of Argentinians I was enjoying drinking mate and working on my Spanish. I, also, met a couple Argentinian cyclists that will be a nice connection when I reach Buenos Aires. I think this means go fast downhill . . . I like it but not much of a hill - sign must have been put up by flatlanders.
After San Rafael the country becomes pretty dry with small towns spread out. Camping is easy beside the road if you can find shelter from the wind but water is scarce. However, I had more Argentinians stop to offer me water, cold soda and ask if I needed anything in two days than the entire two months in Chile - good thing I needed it - like I didn't need it in the Atacama . . . Along the way folks began telling me about a couple ahead of me that started in Alaska - eventually I caught up with Harry and Ivana at a roadside shelter where we ducked out of the wind, had breakfast together, and we rode together for the next couple days.They have been on the road from Alaska since 2008 - go to http://elmundoenbici.com.Also, been running into Argentinian nationals out touring which is a first for any country but evidently bike touring is very popular here - besides the fact that Argentinians like to travel in general.They are checking out my bad ass ride!
Route 40 is the route 66 of Argentina but still the major/only north - south route on this side of the country. However, at times the road turns into a rough dirt road that may have been formally paved but has since been ground back into gravel. The rough riding has been the demise of my Schwalbe tires after 15,000+km of hard touring - they got a rest in Peru where I used my mountain bike tires a good deal but I am very impressed with how durable they were.I blew a hole straight through the casing and now have it booted and buttressed but it is only a matter of time before the tire blows again and I predict I will be rolling into Bariloche in 600km on my mountain bike tires. Good thing my sister and Matt are coming on vacation to Argentina and can bring me a new pair of tires to finish out the trip - along with some new bike shorts, my fly rod, coffee and peanut butter!Patagonia is living up to its reputation for fierce winds but at least they move around so it is not a continual head wind . . . the side winds blow me straight across the road making for strenuous riding wrestling with my handlebars leaning sideways for hours while I barreling down hills at 60+kph waiting for the rear tire to blow again.
While the country is dry water flows down from the Andes and collects in high valleys or out in the plains. Riding along the Rio Grande into northern Patagonia volcanic peaks dominate the scenery and the region has one of the highest concentrations of volcanic cones in the world and at times rivers carve narrow little canyons through lava rock. The rivers and lakes are prime fly fishing territory and seems more people here use fly rods than spinning gear - a bit of a switch from home. I am really looking forward to having my fly rod so I can catch some fish because I don't seem to have a clue with spin gear unless I am catching walleye in the Susquehanna River. Nevertheless, a beautiful place to camp and I still enjoyed waving my rod around at all the fish swirling on the surface eating something other than what I had to offer. They were obviously feeding on rising nymphs but you cannot imitate those with spinning gear . . . oh my kingdom for a 5wt and nymph rig! Eventually, I had to climb up and out of the Rio Grande valley and spent several days looking at the same volcano from all sides as I traversed around it.Passing through rolling plains and climbing into high valleys with very few people around.Higher up animals are grazing for the summer and in the winter they will be brought back down into the valleys to graze.
I talked briefly with a gaucho who lamented that a three year dry spell has made grazing difficult and diminished the herds of cattle but I still see lots of goats in the hills.I rolled into the green tree filled valley of Chos Malal for a rest day and writing after a 700+ km stretch. Chos Malal is a quiet little city and former provincial capitol but not for over hundred years now. Nevertheless, fairly prosperous due to the energy industry now controlled by the provincial government. I had an interesting conversation with a store clerk who was studying to be provincial police officer - evidently the province has the best pay and benefits for civil servants in Argentina, teachers and police, due to taking control of the energy industry from multinational corporations. Perhaps Peru could take a lesson from the Neuquen Province of Argentina . . .