Highlights of this trip:
- Driving along the Ruta 40.
- “La Trochita” steam Train or Piedra Parada Geological Site.
- Lake Buenos Aires
- Cueva de las Manos, Archaeological Site. UNESCO World Heritage.
ITINERARY
Day 1: Bariloche / Esquel:
Option 1: Early departure in our private vehicle taking Ruta 40 South, driving besides immense lakes and passing through the quaint town of El Bolsón. This part of the road goes through some beautiful valleys, surrounded by mountains covered by native evergreen forest. We will make a detour to visit an amazing geological site: Piedra Parada and la Buitrera Canyon system. This is an ancient volcanic caldera in the middle of the Patagonian Plateau, encompassed by an amazing landscape in the semi-desert steppe region. We take lunch here and spend some time walking among these amazing rock formations. Back on the road, we continue to our overnight destination at the city of Esquel.
Option 2 (only possible if Saturday): Early departure to take the RUTA 40 south driving beside the Lakes Gutierrez, Mascardi and Guillelmo and passing through the famous town of El Bolson. Here we take the road to El Maiten. This town was originated besides the railway of “La Trochita”. We will visit the Train station and the garage where the necessary replacement pieces are handmade to keep this old steam train alive. At 2pm we will take the train historic ride. Our bus will wait for us on a rail cross to continue to our next destination, Esquel.
Day 2: Esquel / Los Antiguos:
After breakfast we leave for the longest ride of the trip that goes through sheep farming country, tiny countryside towns, endless plains and time to talk with our trip partners, listen music and take the best “mate-tea” lesson!!! Stop to enjoy the view of Lake Buenos Aires, the biggest lake in Patagonia.
Day 3: Los Antiguos / Estancia La Angostura:
This segment of the Route 40 is the most colorful of the trip. We will visit the impressive Río Pinturas and the Cueva de las Manos, one of the most important archeological sites in Patagonia. In this Unesco World Heritage site the ancient cultures left their art expression 9.000 years ago. If we are lucky with the weather we will see San Lorenzo Mt. from the road. We stay for the night in a typical Patagonian ranch, Estancia La Angostura, where we will share the dinner with the owners and learn about the hard life at the Far South.
Day 4: Estancia La Angostura / El Calafate:
Today we will drive along the most remote and dramatic segment of the Ruta 40. No men’s land, wildlife such as guanacos, rheas, hawks and eagles are the true inhabitants. We hope the best to be blest with the famous Patagonian mountain silhouette, Fitz Roy & Cerro Torre massif. We will pass by the impressive turquoise colored lakes Viedma and Argentino and its rivers La Leona and Santa Cruz for the end of our Trip.
