Cycling into Fall: The Lakes Regions of Argentina and Chile

By Awanderingphoto

“Today I will do what others won’t, so tomorrow I can accomplish what others can’t.”

Pavement. Oh how we love pavement!!

Our last few days in Argentina (don’t worry, we will be back) were wonderful due to the easy camping and non-busy roads of waving and honking happy people, two things which are common in Argentina but very uncommon, as we are now finding out, just next door in Chile. The colors have also started to change this week which made the landscapes beautiful, and I couldn’t be more excited to be cycling through my favorite season twice in one year!

Kevin’s last Patagonian catch.

Of all the old car parts, broken bungees, and single shoes Kevin has found by the side of the road, this hat was definitely his greatest one!

Kevin in his chefs hat.

Fallow here! The colors are bound to get even darker and brighter in the coming weeks.

Kevin and I outside of San Martin.

The grasslands here remind us of Turkey and Eastern Oregon.

Kevin and dinner.

Our last beautiful camping spot on Argentina, right by a river full of fish.

Kevin being cute.

Pavement. Oh how we love pavement!!

A small rough section in between the gorgeous pavement.

Cycling after the rain.

A beautiful volcano right at the border.

After we crossed the border, the road became significantly busier and as we had lost our shoulder, we really didn’t feel safe next to all of the zooming cars which left us absolutely no room. Besides the unpleasant cycling, we have also had a really hard time camping here in Chile as every single piece of land is owned and fenced (like in many parts of the USA). Though this definitely wasn’t the case along the Carreter Austral (which is also in Chile) we have heard that from here on out that’s sort of the norm. Since we couldn’t find anywhere to wild camp, we ended up asking and then sleeping in different farmers fields during our first two nights. Though one of the fields was empty, the other had all kinds of curious animals who came to check us out including seven or eight large sheep, a very ambitious and fearless sniffling pig, a few small friendly dogs, and some kittens who just wanted to cuddle. Needless to say, I was tempted to drop my bike and move on in to become a farmer myself. We then met up with highway five, the largest (and only) highway which runs straight through the country, and though we had a huge shoulder, the cycling was boring and noisy.

All ready for the rain in my not anymore rainproof jacket and pants, and my keens with waterproof socks which keep my feet nice and warm!

Crossing a rickety bridge to find a field to camp in.

Eating lunch outside the store, a common picnic spot for us now.

Kevin’s first frat! A little piece of glass was the culprit.

We also met the Bici Clown, a cyclist who has been on the road for over eleven years! But more about him in the next post.

For a photo of the day and other updates follow me on facebook here, and for some awkwardly cropped photos from our journey, follow us on Instagram @awanderingphoto!