To Los Penitentes Arg Day 51 Jan 30 14

 

On the road by 7.30 stopped for a cafe and posted yesterdays  blog…….tried to fuel up but service station out of fuel……..about 80k to border…..I run out, on reserve, stop in Los Penitentes which is just a cluster of Hotels and a few restaurants one with hostel accomodations. I book to use up my 285 pesos….the room is dorm, 4 bunks with washroom down the hall…..cost 100 pesos. This place is actually a Ski Resort 40 k from Chile and 120 k from Mendosa. I checked 1 of the hotels 1st but they wanted 565 pesos. Pears…… Grapes for vino  maybe mellons…I did see a truck at the motel loaded with them……. Scenery changes when I hit #7 road winds through the valley between mountains, at times it twists back and forth across a river which offers White Water Rafting though the colour is brown. The defunct rail line runs parallel and at times disappears into the hwy I am on… Rail tunnel     haunting past  

 I am in the  hostel with the coke roof…..it has a nice restaurant and bar……my ride is parked in the cafe which is closed for the season…….. my room…. military like wash room…lol Ski hill from my window and hotel across the hwy…..the lift goes to the top ridge in 2 stages……

I will organize my papers for the border crossing tomorrow….no wi fi here so will try and post on the road…………

Chilecito Day 50 Jan 29 14

 

Kilometres today 0, rest day and do some laundry…….no bidet in my room….so put on my riding pants cranked up the shower and lathered my pants with body wash and rubbed them down….then went through the rinse cycle…. drying next to the barbeque……..

One of the reasons for hanging around was constipation…..it had been a couple days since the last movement and my systems likes a comfortable environment for such an event……..it completely shut down in the pampas…….nothing happened yesterday upon arriving here nor this am…..I can only liken the feeling to a woman having a breached birth. Tongs came to mind but didn’t have any, maybe that motto oil I was carrying but that might not be good for me as it was synthetic….O I had a can of sardines in natural fish oil that might do the trick but how do you apply it………..I guess the mind and the body nervous about my intentions decided to let the log jam burst….I am now one happy camper..

Tomorrow I will take Ruta 40 to # 7 south of Mendoza….this will take me through Uspallata towards Chile….the hwy then becomes # 60 which I will follow towards Valparaiso. Hope to find a place affordable for a couple weeks and explore the area from one spot……….Bolivia and Peru and the desert area of southern Peru and Northern Chile don’t interest me……………Hot is not to my liking…….especially in riding gear…….

Don’t plan on an early dinner in most of Argentina as Restaurants open at 8 or 9 pm here……last night my neighbours started the barbecue at 10.30……

Must be more than 1 Chilecito…checked Google Maps and shows it North Mendoza…I am south of Mendoza 74k…….

South Malargue to Ruta 40 & 143 Day 49 Jan 28 14

 

Not very stealth looking in the morning…the road is just beyond the green above the tent…LOl….about 40 more k of gravel and some pretty country.    to the left the drop is over 100 feet…no guard rails……happy I stopped last night. Las Salinas…..salt lake in the distance…looked like it was being harvested. Bus stop in the middle of no where……. This part of the highway is down hill though it doesn’t appear to be in the pics and winds down through the rocks

1. Tonight I am in a hotel somewhere on 143…..I think it is the same name as the hotel…..will clarify that when I get internet……less than 200k south of Mendoza.   note the grapes in the vines….today I drove through citrus & vino orchards…..may relax in this village another day….the room which is very comfortable is only 120 pesos……as I got Black Market pesos 10 for 1 US dollar that’s $12.00 bucks……  This place was hidden in a small village and a gentleman and his little son on a Honda 50 cc led me to it….again our conversation was hand gestures and our native tongue………

Zapala to 74 k South Malargue Day 48 Jan 27 14

 

Antonio returned with his bike repaired before I departed….he has a new tube and tire……still 2 missing spokes……I expect he will pass me on the road as his bike is faster than mine……..

The scenery was more of the same…..flat…pampa lands and mountains in the distance…… I would find the foothills before night……around Las Lajas, I fill up with fuel ,buy more water and a sandwich for lunch later…here I meet an Argentinean couple….though we don’t speak each other’ language they show me the trips they have taken around South America…they have them printed on their T Shirts including their current 2014 trip…we exchange Blog Spots…do a photo and bid one another Chow and go off in different directions.  I would run out of fuel late afternoon and  almost consume all of the extra I was carrying before finding an out of the way station where I spent 130 pesos……but I now had peace of mind……..soon I ran into Repo ( Gravel ) for 80k or more……I would have to retire for the night as it got dark before I could cross……..did meet 2 fellows on bicycles crossing this stretch and one motto heading for Ushuaia…..again an exchange in each others languages as to how much repo we had to cover…a handshake and we were off…..    it’s getting on into the evening…I need a place to camp….secluded…would be almost dark before I halted.

Zapala Day 47 Jan 26 14

 

 I am awaken by screeching birds in a nearby tree….it’s likely about 5am…..soon roosters are crowing so I crawl out of my sleeping bag……I actually had a decent sleep under a an umbrella of stars that was awesome……..Antonio, is working on his tube….the sun is hot……a young lad comes around and asks if we would like to come around into the shade….this is welcomed and we move……a nice breeze is blowing through the trees…..Antonio learns that the boy is vacationing with his Uncle and learning to ride horses and herd the families sheep….its Sunday and the son and wife and grand daughter of our host’s arrive……..the son takes over the project…the tube is in bad shape….numerous holes are fixed some with bicycle patches. The valve stem which has a tear near its base is removed and a new valve at different location is inserted……..this couple spends an hour or more fixing the tube……finally Antonio installs the rim and we are off….I sense some concern from the son who fixed it whether it will hold up….after all we didn’t have the right patches in all places…….we go 20 k of the 70 k we need to get to Zapala and the tire is flat……go to inflate and learn that the valve stem is different and won’t work with our pump. I suggest flagging a truck but Antonio is stressed out and wants to think about the situation….suggests I go on to Zapala and see if I can get a tube at a Service Station….I try 2 to no avail ….all tell me everything is closed its Sunday……I buy a bottle of spray in foam that might work with the other tube, a bottle of water and return……Antonio is not there…..this is a good sign …means he got a lift but will I locate him in a town of 40,000……yes, he is on the bypass of the city. I meet a couple Policia and ask in sign language where I might find a place to sleep….they escort me to a hotel and I unpack then  go back and we load Antonio’s gear onto my bike and he walks/rides his bike the 4k to the hotel……

It appears that we will part company today as we have had another heated discussion over $ 10.00 I mentioned that a blogger paid for a camp site….he asks what that was in pesos and I reply he didn’t say…so then he responds then it’s meaningless….I am travelling in Pesos…the US dollar has to relevance here….Oh …….you left home working with US or CND $ but now your concerned ABOUT COSTS IN PESOS YET YOU HAVE BEEN CONSTANTLY TELLING ME ALONG THE WAY WHAT THAT TRANSLATES TO US…..NOT A GOOD COMEBACK AS HE SAYS BASICALLY THAT i DON’T WANT TO SPEAK SPANISH SO i AM NOT IMMERSING MYSELF IN THEIR CULTURE AND JUST PASSING THROUGH…….i DON’T HAVE AN IQ OVER 160 SO SPANISH DOESN’T COME EASY BUT i HAVE MANAGED THOUGH i AGREE YOU WILL ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE MUCH BETTER IF YOU CAN CARRY ON A CONVERSATION IN THE NATIVE LANGUAGE….IT’S JUST ARGUING OVER THE PESO VS BANK RATE / BLUE RATE/ BLACK MARKET….WHAT’S THE POINT IN THE END WE ARE TRAVELLING ON MONEY WE HAVE IN THE BANK AT HOME AND SO IF YOU GET 10 PESOS TO THE US DOLLAR THAT’S GREAT VS THE BANK RATE OF 7.1 OR SO.

 I will head north and make a decision soon as to my intentions on crossing back into Chile. Antonio has found a place to get his bike repaired and is there now……..

North Bariloche to Aguada Florencio Day 46 Jan 25 14

 

Spent the early part of the morning drying out our tents and enjoying the surroundings of this scenic camp site….little did we know how this night would be spent. Likely on the road around 10 am with sunny skies and warmer temps. Our destination was Zapala about 400k away….we wouldn’t make it. The route took us through some great paved roads…then the dreaded Ripo…..with heavy weekend traffic headed to the Resort Town of San Martin…..the ripo lasted about 60k…..they are currently paving this stretch…so it will likely be completely paved by year’s end.  San Martin is at the end of this Lake. San Martin is a large Centre with Hotels, Restaurants and Bars scattered amongst it many blocks….what I found nerve racking was driving in these towns….no stop signs at intersections…not sure who has the right of way……seems like the most daring…  A dormant Volcano near La Rinconada… The landscape is mostly Pampa/ gaucho land…….we are about 70 miles from our destination when we see a couple with a Honda Translap at the side of the road….we turn around to see if they have a problem…yes out of fuel…..Antonio gives them his 4 litres and we bid them CHOW…Antonio says he got 500 pesos for about 70 pesos of fuel……..we don’t go 1 k and Antonio is wiggly up ahead….the bike has a rear flat…… We spend 1/2 hour in repairing it only to find that the tube is not properly in the tire…..another hour passes, we cannot break the bead and get the tire off….a car passes then turns around and 2 young lads ask Antonio in Espanol of course can they help….YES… they take over and in 20 minutes have the tire fixed with a spare tube that Antonio had..which also needed a couple patches……Antonio had screwed the original trying to get the tire off the second time…….Great kids…they refuse any money for their help…..though I am sure they could use some cash…their car had completely bald front tires….but here again is the kindness of strangers……We manage about 10 k and Antonio is doing a wobble again….he stops and puts more air in…..500 yards again more air…another 100 yards it is flat……we pull over in the middle of basically a desert with small shrubs and a house across the road.……its getting dark…..the tire is not going to be repaired tonight….Antonio asks if we can sleep in the building next to the road…..Yes…so we camp under a star studded sky without our tents. Antonio has taken my bike and gone up the hwy…apparently their is a mechanic about 4 k away….hopefully so…its Sunday who knows….if not its 70 miles up the road….and here I sit leaning against a brick wall typing this blog while plugged into Antonio’s bike for power.No mechanic…..Antonio is frustrated but the son of the kind home owner who let us camp shows up and takes over the project…more tomorrow as the problems continue……….LOL 

To Bariloche Day 45 Jan 24 14

 

On the road this morning about 10 am…destination Bariloche a large tourist town next to an equally large lake……this is near a crossing point between Argentina and Chile…….many pics ARE taken on route…. breaking  camp………………………….

We entered Bariloche around 4 pm…just for a look….Antonio asked if any campgrounds on GPS…yes….so we checked it out…near the lake up a steep shit road….they want 100 pesos….I don’t like the lay of the land and say no…I know Antonio wants to be out of town anyway….I turn and go back down….he is late following…he has upset his bike twice coming down and needed help getting the bike off him the second time….of course the BLAME for the mishap falls on me….I wanted to see Bariloche….next we go the wrong way to get out of town and this puts us behind almost 2 hours as we retrace our path…..we end up at a beautiful campground on a lake all to ourselves for 70 pesos…..see pics

Don’t forget to double click on the pic to enlarge……