Tag: Bariloche

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Last of Argentina…

I planned to write this post earlier, but time flew by. So here’s the last of Argentina. What I loved about Bariloche was that it’s always close to the water and there are many beaches. This beach, and I believe all beaches in Bariloche, are with stones. Beautiful to walk along the water and I’m obviously repping my Psychonaut Explorer attire. This beach is called Playa Las Bombas and is just outside the main town.

There is a huge national park called Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi by lake Gutiérrez. From there, there are several shorter hikes you can also hike to. Refugio Frey is a popular hut nearby. One day we hiked up to the look-out spot and enjoyed the views. There is also a popular beach there so I took a little siesta there after 🙂

My favorite short hike was the one from the park to Playa Muñoz. Easy trail and about a 2h hike to get to the beach. It’s a perfect reward when you finally spot the beach. If you have to pick one day trip in Bariloche, go here! Bring a picnic and spend a day…

And where to eat in Bariloche? If I’d go back, I’d pretty much eat all my meals at these 4 restaurants. I already mentioned the restaurant Montana Grill House. Went back and ate filet Mignon and a hamburger again. Perfect!

For a quicker meal, the food truck La Cabrona. Sometimes there were two trucks, sometimes only one. The roast beef sandwich was the best!

For healthier options, the restaurant Chimi in town. Superfresh food, juices, and the desserts were some of the best! Oh, and they did have this cool Puma mural in the back 🙂

And the top notch place for steaks – Alto El Fuego. It’s in town and super popular. I ate filet Mignon there both times and it was just soooooo good. A must!

My favorite coffee spots where Cafe Delirante and Jam Rock Cafe Truck. Delirante is like a big modern coffee and work spot while Jam Rock is just a truck by the road. What I liked about Jam Rock is that they added chocolate powder, which is common in Argentina, on my cappuccino. Obviously sweet and very good 🙂 Forgot to take a pic of Delirante, but that’s me reading there in yet again, a Psychonaut Explorer shirt 🙂 Shamelessly promoting hahhaaaa…

My favorite warning sign was undoubtedly this Puma sign 🙂 There were a lot of warning signs for branches breaking off. And then just me, me, and some more me 🙂

Then we had a couple of days in Buenos Aires. I got to admit that I was not that taken away by the city. For some reason I had imagined it a bit more like Spain. We did find some good stuff though. We stayed in the neighborhood Recoleta. If I’d pick where to stay now, I’d stay in Palermo. Supercute restaurants, shops, bars and coffee spots there…

Visited the the book shop El Ateno Grand Splendid. An old theater converted to a bookstore. I love book stores by the way and there are lot of book stores in Buenos Aires.

Also found a supercool perfume shop called Fueguia. Different and unique scents.

They love pizza and everyone said we got to eat a pizza at Güerrín. From the outside it didn’t look much and I thought it might be a tourist trap. But there were so many people that I got fomo! First you enter the counter for take away. Then there was like a regular room with seating. But then a girl took us through a long basement hallway and you arrived to this!

It was packed and by the time we left, the hallway was filled with people waiting to get a table. And the pizza, one of the best! Go early (they eat late like in Spain) and definitely get a pizza here!

Had some good coffee at Bicho and cafe Gutierrez.

I liked that the airbnb we stayed at had a pool on the rooftop, Felt good to relax and fry a bit in the sun 🙂


No vacation goes without a little bit of sleazing…

That concludes my Argentina adventures. The best part about coming home? Seeing and cuddling up with Hunter of course 🙂

Got a busy week and on Friday I fly to LA wohoooo 🙂 Going to a wedding, and then my sister is joining me for a few days. We’re staying with Sandy and her family, who I also consider my extra family 🙂 Very excited about this…

Have a great week!

Puma

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Overnight hikes in Bariloche

One of my favorite things in Bariloche were the two overnight hikes. Our first hike was to Refugio Jakob. Also called Refugio General San Martín. Refugios as they call them are huts where you can spend the night.

The description of the hike lists it as a moderate hike during summer. We thought it was quite easy. Easy walking path and had some access points to the river where you could fill up your bottle with fresh water.

The only moderate part would’ve been the last part where you had to do some climbing. That part didn’t require any real rock climbing skills, just paying attention where you put your hands and feet.

When we started it was pretty sunny, but then it became cloudier with some rain. We were lucky to reach the hut right before it started to pour down. The people at the hut told us that they had closed the trail at noon since they feared it would get too slippery. 

It’s always such a sweet feeling after hiking a few hours and then finally spotting the hut! This one was located beautifully by a lake. (I actually think almost all of the refugios in Bariloche area are located by a lake or water).

It was great to be able to order some hot chocolate on arrival and we also booked the 3 course dinner that was served at 8pm. You could bring your own food or cook with a camping stove if you had one. The use of the kitchen was not allowed. The pumpkin soup was really good and I ate it before I remembered to take a pic of it. Then it was a lentil stew with vegetables and the dessert was amazing!

We got our own room. I had to take a cat nap after the snacks and chocolate lol… Maybe too much fresh mountain air too…

Looks cold, but it actually got too hot and had to remove clothes. The only downside of this refugio I would say that the bathrooms were located a bit of a walk away from where you sleep. I had to go pee at night and half way up to the bathroom I started imagining pumas in the bushes. Too scared to scan around with the flashlight on my phone in case I’d spot two glowing eyes approaching me. I got half freaked out and just jumped off the trail and squatted and then made it back as fast as I could. Alive!

You could also buy breakfast which was toast and cereal. We skipped that and only had hot chocolate, tea, and some snacks we brought with us before hiking back.

Definitely recommend this hike and a stay at the refugio. It’s beautiful and it took us about 5h both ways with some breaks. Cost of the stay is 5000 ARS pesos/person. Dinner 4500 ARS pesos/person. Breakfast 2500 ARS.

The second overnight hike was to Refugio Laguna Negra. Also called Refugio Italia or Manfredo Segre. This trail is listed moderate/hard during summer months. It’s 10,5km and says it takes about 4-6h to hike it. Comfortable trail to hike on. The toughest part is the last 2-3 km in the end that is steep uphill. I loved this trail and it pretty much followed a river the whole way.

The weather was sunny and it was great to take breaks, eat snacks and listen to the river.

The uphill part was sweaty. When you start the climb there is a sign. Didn’t understand it first and had no wifi so I couldn’t use Google translate. I think it looks like the stick figure is holding a rolled up magazine. But then we started spotting piles with logs next to the trail and figured out they were asking you to bring a couple of logs with you…

I marked the trail in between the red lines snaking its way up.

The views when you are getting towards the top and the end are amazing!

The 2nd picture above is the last part of the trail before you finally get over the ridge and see the lake and hut. So beautiful!

This hut felt a bit more rustic. You went up the small ladder and there are mattresses lined up in bunk-beds. You pick your spot first come, first serve. Nice view from the bedroom window though 🙂

Since it was still sunny and and hot, we sat outside enjoying the lake view, catching some sun, and reading. I tried to befriend the bird too, but it was only interested in my muffin leftovers…

Also got 3 rounds of one of my favorite games, Yatzy. I’m a sore loser in games and take them way too seriously hahahaaa…

Here they also offered dinner. Pretty much the same options as at Jakob, but here you could also get pizza. Opted for pizza and it was so good!

The hut was only lit by candles at the table and it was great chatting with other hikers. Slept pretty good and the kitchen opened at 8am. Skipped breakfast and only ordered coffee. Since Argentina won the World Cup, you could pretty much buy anything with the football team on. One couple had this thermos for example 🙂 Beautiful lighting in the morning…

Beautiful day hiking back as well…

I loved this trail. There was so many great spots by the river where you could sit down and enjoy the nature. Cost of the stay is 5000 ARS pesos/person. Pizza 3500 ARS pesos. 

If you plan to visit and hike in Bariloche, this is a great website with info about shorter or longer hikes. Also with links to the refugios since it is necessary to book your stay in advance – https://www.barilochetrekking.com/

The longer hikes also sometimes require you to fill out a form online. You tell them on who is hiking, where, when and the dates. This to make it easier to plan rescue missions in case it would be necessary. Apparently you have to pay for the rescue if you didn’t submit the form before hand.

Also as I mention in the previous post, hiking gear is expensive here and the selection is a bit limited. I would try to bring what I need from home.

I wish we would’ve had the time for one more overnight hike. Well well, next time 🙂 Will have more post about the rest of Bariloche and Buenos Aires coming 🙂

All the best, Puma

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Patagonia – Argentina

Arrived in Buenos Aires on Tuesday night. Luckily my face recovered pretty good and I looked pretty much like my passport picture even though I was still swollen.

Only had time to check in at the Airbnb and grab a coffee (and snap a semi nudish pic) in the morning before it was time to head to another airport and catch a domestic flight to Bariloche.

The rental car guy waited at the airport with the car and we were able to get a better rate by paying him in US dollars. Not sure how many of you know about the economic situation and the inflation here in Argentina? You basically are paying double if you pay by card. Half the rate if you pay cash. We were able to exchange some US dollars to their pesos so we could get past the first day. Then I sent myself a money transfer by Western Union. There was some work to it, but finally I had cash!

It’s beautiful here. We’re staying a bit outside the main area and next to the Nahuel Huapi lake. The view from the apartment.

Walked to a restaurant close by and ate some meat, walked the beach and later indulged in a bucket of ice cream 🙂 There are so many ice cream and chocolate places here!

The next day we found a great coffee truck to get the caffeine fix sorted out.

Then took a tour around the area. You pretty much have water around you at all times. Stopped and did a hike to a lookout spot called Cerro Llau Llau. Luckily there was another coffee truck there so we could have some more coffee before ascending…

Then grabbed food and had one of the best meals here so far. The restaurant is called Montana and the meats are cooked over open fire! The plan is to go back before we leave!

There are so many great spots and viewpoints so there are many stops along the way…

On Friday we drove about 2,5h south to a town called El Bolson. Apparently a bunch of hippies came here in the 60’s and 70’s and the town definitely had a bohemian and relaxed vibe. I really liked it here. It reminded me of Salt Lake City in Utah with all the surrounding mountains…

The next day we took a hike up to Refugio de Montaña Cerro Piltriquitrón. They have a lot of gravel roads here and we had to first drive 8km up to the parking spot before hitting the trail…

Even though it was all uphill, the trail was pretty even and easy to hike. Great views over the city.

From the refugio you can continue up to a mountain top. We went up a bit, but didn’t go all the way to the top. Crazy how the weather changes as you go upwards. From hot-that-you-can-wear-shorts, to cold ass winds that you wish you brought your gloves,

Before we headed back down we stepped inside the refugio and had a cup of hot chocolate. Talked to the guy that worked there. He had been living there for the past year. He hiked down frequently to buy supplies, food and a 30kg gas tanked that he hiked up with on his back. By the way, you could also eat pizza and have a beer here. The 2nd hut is the one you could spend the night in and you can also camp up here.

4 days a week they have a market in town. For being a small town, the market was huge! But some knitted socks and a hat from a local lady and they cost like $20. Will show pics, just haven’t worn them yet.

Got back to Bariloche last night. Today we went into the main town and got some stuff for our overnight hike tomorrow. I really thought they would have more and cheaper hiking gear here since this is an outdoorsy town. Kind of like when I was in New Zealand. But there is not a huge selection and because it’s all imported it costs more too. But got what we needed and I’m so excited for the hike.

Had to eat some more ice cream too. Mamuschka, one of the most popular places in town and it was super good ice cream!

Gonna put some stuff out for tomorrow and go through it all in the morning before throwing it down in the backpack 🙂 All the fresh mountain air (and local wines & beers) here makes me tired early, so after that it’s off to bed 🙂 I think some of you might be watching Super Bowl so I hope your team wins if you’re a football fan!

Laters, Puma

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Work, trip & nap-buddy

Mostly work this past week. Yesterday I had a day off with nothing planned and I felt lost. I was bored and in a bad mood. Felt like I was wasting a day. But when I try to think of what I wanted to do, nothing came to mind. Ended up reading most of the day and then watching the series Yellowjackets. Made me realize I need to ‘practice’ relaxing… Also, that reading is never a waste of time.

Finally got the new pants put up on the website. They are so damn comfy. I could live in velour!

Then there was a birthday celebration for a friend. Had to dress up in something else other than comfy velour pants 🙂

Then the usual…

My best napping buddy. Sometimes we nap on the balcony and sometimes on the couch. He sleeps in bed with me, but somehow Hunter developed a habit of waking up between 6.30 and 7am. A liiitle too early for my preference, but now I’m almost used to it 🙂

Today I finally booked my trip to Patagonia and I feel so excited about going. I’m going the week after the next, to an area called Bariloche. Will also stay a couple of days in Buenos Aires. I will try to get in as much time hiking and in nature as possible. Looking at places to stay now and I want to stay close to the water. Woop woop!

Here’s a photo dump of me at the hair salon (again), the gym, a cute Rottweiler (I grew up with 2 of them) and the series ‘The Last of Us’ being promoted here. I watched 2 episodes and not sure if I’ll keep watching. Really enjoying Yellowjackets and last night I watched couple of episodes of ‘The Other Two’ and it’s pretty funny,

Going to a small house concert tonight, but plan to be well behaved so I can have a productive week before taking off to Argentina 🙂

All the best to you, Puma

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