Villa OHiggins Chile to San Martin de los Andes Argentina

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We crossed into Argentina at Chile Chico, a weird little gold mining town at the end of the precarious road around the southern shore of Lago Carerra.

I would bore you with yet more pictures of the lake, as it was quite amazing, but to be honest, I was too preoccupied with keeping our car on the road to take many..... it was, thankfully, clear weather, but with a 40+ knot wind it was a continual battle with the wheel..... along the way we could look back over the northern ice fields...... have I mentioned my interest in ice? Eyes on the road......

After the crossing you could not have found a greater contrast in scenery. The snowy mountains had been replaced by the Pilbara...... where's the lakes, rivers, ice and snow, lush greenery, forrests etc..... I can now see why the Argentinians resent the Chileans for taking the rain, or at least, for the Andes stopping the clouds.....

Anyway, north across the pampus, through Esquel to Los Alerces National Park where we again found lush forrests of lenga trees and pristine lakes, waterfalls and wonderful campsites. This is more like it......

And now we find ourselves in San Martin de los Andes, a cute name for a cool little place on the banks of the Lago Licar. In winter it is a ski resort, but now it is home to summer pursuits - sailing, horseriding, hiking, fishing and eating trout..... mmmm, not a bad place to spend a few days.....

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