Bariloche, Argentina

Bariloche is absolutely beautiful and really can’t be seen or described any other way. Situated on the shores of a large freshwater lake and ringed by jagged Andes mountains with forested slopes and snow-capped summits it is very reminiscent of the Canadian Rockies. With downhill skiing nearby, wood and stone alpine buildings lining the main streets, and probably more chocolate shops per capita than grocery stores, it also feels very European (particularly Bavarian Swiss and German) than some of our previous Argentinean destinations. Comparisons aside however, our two nights/three days spent exploring the city of 100,000 and the surrounding landscape were highlights of our three-week old South American trip.

To get there we boarded yet another overnight bus first from Mendoza to the city of Cipoletti near Neuquen, and then another daytime bus to Bariloche. All told we spent 22 hours in transit between the two buses and a 3-hour layover, which was the unfortunate result of our second bus being 2 hours delayed. We were prepared for such a long voyage with snacks and ear plugs however, and we arrived in Bariloche without incident. The best part of the drive was watching the landscape slowly rise from dry flat scrubland to mountainous windswept Patagonia. This area slowly became more forested and the road more curving until the city of Bariloche came into view at a distance sitting below massive mountains with a blue sun-kissed lake in the foreground. 

Arriving in the city we checked into a great little hostel downtown called Gentle de Sur where we had a pre-booked double room with private bath, which turned out to be our favourite accommodation of the trip thus far. The room was cozy and heated (a huge plus considering some of the other dodgy cold rooms that we had in Bolivia). It was also conveniently located next to a supermarket where a 950ml Quilmes Crystal Argentinean beer (the equivalent of 3 bottles of beer back in Canada) or a bottle of Argentinean red wine could be purchased for $2.50 US (no joke).

Our first night in the city we explored the commercial area and then had a great dinner while observing the fashion trends in Bariloche. It seems that snowsuits from the 1980’s (combined pant and jacket suits in bright orange and turquoise colours – “onezies” as we like to call them) are either back in vogue or Argentineans in town to ski for the first time and without winter gear had to settle for whatever the ski resort rented out to them. Unfortunately we may fall into that same category when we go skiing and snowboarding in Chile - if so pictures may or may not be attached depending on the brightness of fluorescent colours worn.

We awoke on the second day to crazy gusting wind and overcast skies – the first inclement weather encountered on the trip. But being so far south on the continent and in the midst of the South American winter it was somewhat expected so we basically spent the day lounging around the hostel – sleeping in, reading and catching up on journals and the blog under warm covers. It felt like a home on the road and we thoroughly enjoyed our day off. To celebrate we went to one of the numerous fondue restaurants peppered around the city. We had a great time dipping fried potatoes, bacon, onions and bread into hot cheese.  It tasted fantastic and we both left the restaurant wishing fondue was once again popular in Canada. We finished our evening with a sampling of free and purchased gourmet chocolates from some of the numerous chocolate shops. 

Our third day was by far the best as we boarded a city bus and traveled 20km outside the city to Cerra Campanario. It is a mid-size forested mountain that has a chairlift to the summit and even better, the distinction of being one of the planet’s top ten views according to National Geographic. The magazine didn’t lie – the view from the top was unbelievable: water, mountains, snow and islands all pieced together perfectly and capped by a bright blue sky. We were actually planning on visiting the mountain the day before but decided against it with the overcast skies and gusting wind which probably wouldn’t have made the chairlift safe. It was the right decision and while cold from the winter temperatures and high altitude summit we loved every minute of it. Even the ride back down the mountain on the chairlift was great as we watched the view one last time only from a different angle than we were used to (it was the first mountain descent via chairlift instead of using skis or snowboard for both of us).

Arriving back in Bariloche we rushed to the bus station where we caught another bus to take us to the nearby town of Villa La Angostura. The hour drive was very scenic as we followed the lake and mountains to the small Bavarian-styled village where we lodged overnight. The highlight of our evening was a furry friend that we named “Bert” (an English sheepdog desperately in need of a bath and trimming) who followed us for nearly a kilometre from the bus station to our hostel and then slept outside the door. He was adorable and we gave him a few crackers which he thoroughly enjoyed. While we have encountered numerous dogs throughout our travels, and most often in packs, they have generally been friendly. Bert was no exception and we enjoyed his brief companionship. Our evening ended over a nice dinner and an early rest as we had tickets booked to bring us to the border and the city of Orsono, Chile (5 hours west) and later Pucon, Chile (4 hours north) via bus the next morning.