Monday 27 November On Monday I didn’t feel like spending a full day in Puyuhuapi, there’s not that much to see and do in town. So I got on my bike for the short ride to Parque Nacional Queulat. The road was good and easy, but some 10 km in it was blocked completely because… Continue reading Cyclist Central: Puyuhuapi – Coyhaique
Tag: South America
Pinochet’s Prestige Project: Futaleufú – Puyuhuapi
I’m currently heading from one legendary road to the next. Just a few days ago I left Ruta 40 in Argentina behind, only to soon join the Chilean Carretera Austral, the southern highway that Pinochet started building in the 1970s with the goal of connecting remote settlements in the south to the rest of Chile… Continue reading Pinochet’s Prestige Project: Futaleufú – Puyuhuapi
Patagonia Is Hard: S.C. de Bariloche – Futaleufú
Seriously, how am I ever going to write a blog post without dumping hundreds of photos on you, each showing a landscape that is even more stunning than the last? This place is like riding through a postcard or a chocolate box, as others have called it. I can confirm this: The box of chocolate… Continue reading Patagonia Is Hard: S.C. de Bariloche – Futaleufú
Waterfalls and Weather Fails: S.M. de los Andes – S.C. de Bariloche
The more you walk around San Martín, the more ridiculous it gets. Just when you think you’ve seen it all they come up with a new fake German-style building and a corresponding name that just doesn’t make sense. I saw bars called “Bierhaus” or “Das Gute bier”. Yes, that’s the capitalisation they use. There are… Continue reading Waterfalls and Weather Fails: S.M. de los Andes – S.C. de Bariloche
I’ve been through the desert… Zapala – S.M. de los Andes
… on a horse made of steel. As far as horses go it’s a rather bad one: it won’t do anything unless I put all the energy in. Maybe the problem is having a steel horse called Gaucho. It might think that the roles are reversed. The advantage is of course that it doesn’t consume… Continue reading I’ve been through the desert… Zapala – S.M. de los Andes
Almost, but not Quite: Buta Ranquil – Zapala
Tuesday 7 November Tuesday started foggy, but soon enough the fog lifted and the sun was out for a bit. Most of the time it stayed cloudy. Today would be a big climbing day, so soon enough I found myself on a decently sized hill. After climbing that I descended to a small valley,… Continue reading Almost, but not Quite: Buta Ranquil – Zapala
A Rite of Passage: Malargüe – Buta Ranquil
Friday 3 November Friday’s ride is relatively short at 65 km, but it includes a climb up to about 2000 meters before descending to Bardas Blancas. Indeed the climb started soon enough, but it wasn’t too hard. There were some steep sections interleaved with easier climbs and even some downhill. The weather was sunny… Continue reading A Rite of Passage: Malargüe – Buta Ranquil
A Shortcut to What? Mendoza – Malargüe
Sunday 29 October On Sunday morning I had a lazy start. I had made a pretty big mess of my room over two busy rest days. I had bought some new stuff that needed to find a place and I wanted to reorganise some other things. Thus packing my bags took longer than usual, as… Continue reading A Shortcut to What? Mendoza – Malargüe
Take it Easy: San Juan – Mendoza
A few days before reaching San Juan the bite valve of my Camelbak broke when a dog was a little too interested in my bike and gear. It generally still works fine, but occasionally it leaks and I may lose a lot of water. Thankfully that hasn’t happened on the road so far, but it… Continue reading Take it Easy: San Juan – Mendoza
Cuarenta Is Sixty Six: La Rioja – San Juan
That sounds like an extremely bad Spanish lesson, cuarenta means forty after all. But it’s not a language lesson, this is about culture. More on that later. First we go back to the events following my arrival in La Rioja. Tuesday 17 October The first few hours of Tuesday afternoon I spent in my air-conditioned… Continue reading Cuarenta Is Sixty Six: La Rioja – San Juan