South America - Week 7

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Up early on Sunday for day trip to Moreno Glacier. Feeling sick from too much of a good time last night & managed to get a few more zzz's in on the bus drive there. Dropped off to walk to glacier - very scenic & probably helped to sweat out some alcohol. Ate lunch overlooking the glacier, then took a boatride right up to the face of it - just amazing. Even got to see it calve once or twice up close. Back at the hostel, had a quick and easy, heat 'n' eat spinach & ricotta canelloni meal for dinner. Finally had spare time, so sat on the couch all night & watched Rocky III & Desperado.


Only a few hours drive on Monday to El Chalten. Headed into town once we'd settled into the hostel, but didn't stay long as it was during siesta & no shops were open.

Stopped in at the microbrewery for a beer, which turned into a few. Some of the Kumuka truck passengers stopped in for a drink, on their way back from hiking. Charlie & I didn't bother returning to the hostel to freshen up, instead going staight to dinner from the microbrewery. The restaurant had been recommended by other groups for it's steaks, but alot of people were disappinted because there seemed to be more fat & gristle than meat on ours.

Headed back to the microbrewery after dinner with people from both the Oasis & Kumuka trucks. the place turned into a bit of a nightclub with much loud music & dancing, so we stayed until the wee hours partying.


As I didn't get to bed until almost sunup, I definately struggled to get up at eight thirty Tuesday morning, after a mere three hours of alcohol induced sleep. Was feeling very average, but had already committed to go horseriding for the day, so dragged myself along with the group. I rode a white horse promptly nicknamed Snowy, who must have been very placid, as I was the only person that wasn't given a whipping implement to use. Our guide spoke only Spanish & became most perturbed when we refused to beat the hosres at every given opportunity as instructed. I think his last group musn't have tipped well (if at all) because his surly demeanour continued until we had returned & Nikki furnished him with the group tip. I don't think he realised how much more he could have earned, had he made a little more effort with us - oh well, his loss. The day was quite fun though, we spent a couple hours going up to a lookout where we had lunch, then returned to town using the same route. I only wish we'd had chance to do more than just trot, like in the Pantanel.

Upon returning to the hostel, I enjoyed an afternoon/evening snooze for a few hours. Got up to shower & make tuna salad for dinner, before returning to bed for a well earned full nights sleep.


Felt well refreshed on Wednesday morning after my marathon sleep last night. Had breakfast, then met up with Ray for a day of hiking. We left at ten & walked to Fitzroy Mountain, where we stopped at the lake to eat lunch before heading back. Arrived home at 5:30pm, pretty tired but pleased with our achievement. Apart from some stong winds, the weather had been kind to us & the views were just amazing. The only thing we missed was the lagoon, located around from the lake, but we only learnt about this part on the way down & there was no way we were going back. After a celebratory beer, I made a sandwich for dinner & indulged in a long, hot shower before crashing out.


Departed El Chalten quite early on Thursday morning, as we had another long drive day ahead - it seems they are never ending... Had a much less windy lunch stop than in previous times & stopped in some random town to do a food shop. We arrived at our rough camp next to the river about eight, which meant our dinner of mash & beef was served quite late. Emma & I polished off a bottle of Champagne & before we knew it, it was time for bed.


Had pancakes for breakfast on Friday morning before driving through most of the day to Bariloche. We were due to rough camp, then arrive in Bariloche early the next day, however we made better time than anticipated & asked to drive the extra couple hours today so we were in town earlier than sceduled. Our hostel was full & so we drove out of town a few kilometres to the campsite, which turned out to be where the Kumuka truck was also staying.

It was my groups turn to cook & we made curried sausages with a recipe provided via the internet from a good friend of mine back home. I'd eaten them on quite a few occasions prior & loved it, but had never made the meal myself & was a bit nervous about messing it up. Fortunately Charlie was on hand to ply me with beer to calm my nerves & I soon settled into the bossy chef role.

Dinner was a hit & although we'd made enough to feed about forty people, the boys still managed to finish off the leftovers. Afterwards we played a group quiz that has been on the cards for a couple of weeks now. Each group member had to submit two questions to Di & we all got into our cook groups to answer them correctly. There was much loud discussion & arguing over some of the answers, so much so the campground received complaints about our noise levels. Although my group didn't win, we did do quite well & it was all a bit of good fun. Unfortunately I started feeling sick & so went to bed straight afterwards.


I skipped breakfast duties on Saturday morning, as I was still sick & didn't want to risk spreading my germs. My neck glands are quite swollen & it really hurts to swallow, so am self medicating with panadol & mouthwash purchased at the supermercado stop this morning.

After settling into my eight person room at the hostel, I went into town to change money, have lunch & check out the town. The sun was out, so it felt good to walk aroung & Bariloche is a very touristy town, so there are lots of shops to wander around in.

Saturday night was a bit of a non event, with most people having dinner at the hostel & watching a movie, or parts of a few with Sam in contol of the flicker... I had no intentions of going out & getting any sicker, instead opting for an early night in the hopes that a long sleep would cure me.

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