San Carlos de Bariloche

San Carlos de Bariloche, usually known as Bariloche, is a city located in the southwest of the Río Negro province, Argentina. It is the Argentine Lake District’s largest city and is situated on the shores of Lago Nahuel Huapi surrounded by forests and mountains.

I was staying at the Hostel Inn where I was sharing a four bed dorm with a Columbian called Juan, an Israeli called Ori and an American called Tony. The hostel is situated on a hill with fantastic views of Lago Nahuel Huapi.

The view of Lago Nahuel Huapi from the sundeck of the Hostel Inn.

On Wednesday I rented a mountain bike and along with Tony cycled the 26 km around Lake Perito Moreno.

Lake Perito Moreno.

On route we visited Colonia Suiza which is a small village populated by Swiss immigrants. We stopped there for lunch and had a very tasty kind of vegetable strudel and trout empanadas, which are similar to Cornish Pasties only smaller.

Vegetable strudel.

After lunch we continued on to Punto Panoramico which was the highest point in altitude on the route and offered fantastic views of the surrounding lakes. Here we met two Argentinian girls called Sophia and Florencia.



Due to time our last stop on the circuit was at Lago Escondido where we walked along the short path from the main road to the lake with its small harbour.

Lago Escondido.

We arrived back at the bike rental place and after checking in our bikes sat and drank matte, a traditional Argentinian infused drink, with our new friends, although I don’t really care for it as it has quite a bitter taste. We then hitched a ride back to Bariloche in the back of a van.

L-R Myself with Sophia, Tony and Florencia.

After dinner, which is free at this hostel, I headed out for a few beers with Tony and another American guy called Jack. We weren’t out for long though as it was pretty dead and I was off Kayaking in the morning.

Having a beer with Jack and Tony.

I was picked up on Thursday morning from the hostel by Pablo, our guide for the day, and along with two Argentinians called Andrea and Arturo headed to Lago Gutierrez, a fifteen or so minute drive from Bariloche.

We arrived at the lake and were kitted out with the necessary apparel. Following a short briefing on the dos and don’ts of kayaking we climbed into our kayaks and set off. They were two-seater kayaks and I was paired with Arturo.

On the shores of Lago Gutierrez with Andrea and Arturo.

We paddled for approximately 3km along the western edge of the lake to a small shingle beach where we stopped for matte and medialunas; they’re similar to croissants only sweeter. After a half-an-hour or so break we swapped positions in the kayak and headed back to base along the same route.




On the way back to the hostel we stopped at a roadside eatery for choripan, sausage made out of beef and pork, hot off the grill, split down the middle, and served on a roll. It’s basically a sausage cob, roll or bap, depending on which part of England you’re from, and tasted absolutely amazing!

I leave Bariloche and head north to Mendoza (wine country) this afternoon. Another long bus journey lies ahead; hopefully this one will be a little less eventful than the last!