A trip to Los Antiguos

Having already received a three month extension in Comodoro Rivadavia back in June, it was necessary to physically leave the country to be able to get another 90 day visa. After checking out our maps, looking at hotels to stay with Winston and talking to friends, we decided to go to Chile Chico to renew our visas. Also, we were getting a little “cabin fever” hanging around Rada Tilly everyday so it was a welcome break. The five hour drive took us past some of the oil wells that supply Argentina with much of its oil and plenty of sheep farms. Our plan was to spend the night in Chile Chico, do a little sightseeing and then drive home. We were driving Mariano and Marcela’s jeep and they had supplied us with all the car documents and a notarized permission letter to take the vehicle out of Argentina. However at the border, the Argentinean Aduana (customs) said we could not take the vehicle out of the country. Although our Spanish at this point is passable, we still get somewhat confused when there is rapid legal talk to translate. Fortunately a very nice man called Ignacio was behind us who spoke excellent English and was able to translate. After a great deal of explanations back and forth as to what we needed and why, the customs officer was unrelenting. He was very sorry but we could not drive the jeep to Chile, however we needed to leave to be able to get another 90 days visa. Ignacio, who had been to the nearby town of Los Antiguos for lunch and was returning home to Chile Chico kindly offered to help. He would drive us to the Chilean part of the border, about 2 mile away, assist us in getting an entry and exit stamp from the Chileans and then drive us back to the Argentinean side to re-enter. Again, we have found by chance another Good Samaritan. Within 30 minutes we had left Argentina, entered and exited Chile and were back on the Argentinean side with the same officials who happily stamped our passports and wished us well. We then followed Ignacio into town and a beautiful hotel on the lake which was dog-friendly. Los Antiguos is a pretty town, located on the south shore of Lago Buenos Aires at the foot of the Andes. Due to its microclimate, it is an agricultural oasis, renowned for growing all types of fruit in particular cherries. There is even a three day cherry festival held in January (the height of summer in the southern hemisphere). Our room at the hotel overlooked the lake with the snow capped mountains and had a superb dining room offering traditional Patagonian food – asado (barbeque), lamb and fresh fish - it was an ideal getaway for us. Since dining in Argentina does not start until 9pm, we had plenty of time to settle in, feed Winston and walk on the promenade bordering the lake. After the cold and fierce winds which ravage Rada Tilly in the winter, the warm gentle breezes coming from Lake Buenos Aires made the walking a delightful experience. By 9pm, Winston was settled in the room on his bed and we made our way to the dining room, ravenous. Our table for two by the window gave us views of the mountains and lake now twinkling with lights and as we sipped on red Patagonian wine, we reflected our day. We had accomplished what we needed to do, namely getting our visas renewed. We had also discovered that we cannot take the jeep out of the country, saving us finding this out when we would go to Punta Arenas which is much further away and we had met Ignacio to whom we will be eternally grateful for helping us. It had been a good day topped off with a meal that lived up to all expectations.

Los Glaciares National Park - Photos

This is the link in Picasa to see our photographs of Los Glaciares National Park in Argentina. View as a slide show and enjoy. https://picasaweb.google.com/118181109521024542820/PatagoniaLosGlaciaresNatPark?authuser=0&feat=directlink

Getting the Latin Latitude Attitude

Time passes and we adjust. The good news is our transmission has made it to Valparaiso, Santiago’s port in Chile. The bad news is we need to pay the receiving company, located in Santiago, it must be paid in Chilean pesos and they can’t do a wire transfer from the States. The good news is when we were last in Punta Arenas, we met Alvaro and Monica. Alvaro is also a retired firefighter and they will help us. They will take the invoice to Bank Itau and make the required electronic deposit. That means our shipment will be released for transport to Punta Arenas for us to pick up. The bad news is it is Chile’s Independence Day or days as it turns out. Since Independence Day is actually on Tuesday September 18th, the government mandates what is known as a bridge day. If a national holiday falls on a Thursday or Tuesday, then that Friday or Monday in this case, becomes a holiday also. I am not sure what Wednesday is but, thanks to that Latin latitude attitude, this is a three day celebration. The bad news is that our new friends in Rada Tilly, Mariano and Marcella left for a vacation in Europe but the extremely good news from that is they kindly offered us the use of their jeep whilst they are gone. We can use this to take to Chile when the transmission arrives to Punta Arenas in another week or so. Other good news is winter is almost over and springtime is approaching. It is still cold and windy but not the biting cold, gale force winds that we have experienced Even more good news was something I forgot to refer back to in the last blog. We had two nieces who went to the London Olympics and both came away with medals. In addition to Haley getting the silver in an amazingly close finish in the Open Water 10K marathon swim, Alyssa; her older sister got a gold medal as she swam in the ladies 4 x 200 meter relay race. She was a late entrant and swam with the second fastest time in the morning. So, both nieces came away with medals. They have been doing the TV and interview route and had an invite to the White House, as US Olympians. It is a really interesting and exciting experience in their lives. And going back to us, we are learning to develop laid back attitude. You can’t fight a system and a way of life. Life just moves more slowly down here. With luck, next week we will head to Punta Arenas to pick up the transmission.

Time spent in Rada Tilly, Argentina.

We are doing well and have settled into the small house we are renting here in Rada Tilly. It is right across from the beach so it is perfect for walking Winston. The main problem is the wind which is usually relentless and so strong. Today is beautiful though with sunny skies and no wind. The weather thank goodness is finally getting warmer but it is much colder than last winter in Brazil. We have started to make some friends in town. Martin and Analaura, his wife have been so nice to us from the start and it is thanks to them that we have this great cottage right across from the ocean. They live in the front house but spend most of their time at their other home which is next to the vet clinic. Also Martin’s brother Mariano and his wife Marcela have become friends and are really helpful taking us around the local sights and helping with officials for motorhome. After a lot of thought and talking with custom agents here and service people in the States, we have ordered a second transmission with all the new parts needed, to be shipped from the States to us. Actually we are having everything sent to Punta Arenas, Chile which is closer than Buenos Aires from where we are located. It should arrive in a couple more weeks so we will go and pick it up, bring it back here and get the repairs done. With the help Mariano we have found a mechanic who appears to be experienced enough to do the work. Our fingers are crossed! Other than that all is well. Winston has plenty of friends here as Martin has a total of 8 labradors. They keep most of them at their other home but leave a couple here everyday for Winston to play. Winston has tremendous fun playing with Betun, a 2 year old black lab. Right now they are outside running and chasing one another. It is very noisy. Tom is sitting outside reading as it is such a nice day. Also, Mariano and Marcela have a 2 year old Jack Russell which is very cute and very energetic. After a play date with Pelousa, our slightly overweight 7 year old Beagle is exhausted.

I feel like a broken record. June 2012

As for us, our auto problems continue. We got the transmission repaired and left Rio Gallegos. Not 400 miles later in the mountains no less the darn thing started smoking and spewing transmission oil, again. Exactly the same thing that supposedly got fixed. Fortunately it happened not too far from a "winter station". Since towns are few and far between, Argentina has these stations in the Andes that they open during the winter and these stations keep the roads clear of snow and ice. We got to one but it took 5 days before a tow truck could get us out. Again fortunately, we never leave towns without shopping and filling up with gas and water, so we were ok, plus the guys at the station were super helpful. We are now in a small suburb of Comodoro Rivadavia called Rada Tilly. It is an upscale beach town. We have rented a cottage right across from the ocean from the local vet and will stay here for the winter, at least through August. In the meantime, we will decide what to do. We don't know if we trust anyone else to fix the transmission down here. Our route from here will be to head into the Andes through Chile, Peru and Bolivia and we sure as heck don't want to get stuck then. We may send the transmission back to the states to fix or Tom may fly back to the states and look for another motorhome! The problem with that is we enter a country with a temporary importation permit for the vehicle and we would need to solve that problem before attempting to import another. We are in contact with the US embassy in Buenos Aires and we are meeting with a customs official later this week to try to find out what we need to do if we do purchase another RV. To be totally honest, we just don't know what to do but renting this place will give us some time to think it through and research all our options. If you have any ideas or suggestions, we are open for advice. One happy thing that I will be blogging about is my niece swims for the US Swim Team and on Saturday she raced a 10K Open Water at Worlds in Portugal and came in first place in an international field of 41 swimmers from around the world. That earned her the only spot for this event to represent the United States at the Olympics. Her time was only 1.36 seconds faster than a Hungarian girl so she has some practicing to do but the whole family is so excited for her. Her name is Haley Anderson, so if you watch the Olympics, please cheer her on. Besides being a super swimmer, she is a great girl studying at USC on a swimming scholarship and has worked really hard. This is her dream. Go Haley!!

Motorhome mechanical woes continue

After over two years and more than 30,000 miles (50,000 kms), much of that on rough, potholed roads, the transmission went out on us. Yes, after getting what has amounted to become an almost useless service in Punta Arenas and being assured that there was no problem with it, the transmission spewed oil and smoke on highway 3, on the way to San Julian. At the time, we were about 130 miles from Rio Gallegos and perhaps 120 miles from the village of Piedra Buena. In other words, the middle of nowhere. After driving the motorhome onto the shoulder, it shuddered to a stop. Fortunately this is a well travelled highway and almost immediately two trucks pulled over and volunteered their help. It was decided that Tom would ride with one of them to Piedra Buena and I would stay with the motorhome and Winston. It was already 3pm and I knew given the distances that he would be gone at least four hours which would be dusk or nearly dark. Sure enough at around 7:30, a car pulled up and Tom jumped out. We were going to take it to Rio Gallegos and a tow truck was on its way. It was almost 2am before we arrived there and we were drained. We had passed through the town on our way to Ushuaia and it is actually only 40 miles or so from the Straits of Magellan. In the morning, the trucking office telephoned mechanics in town to try to get someone who could help us and in the afternoon, we were towed to a mechanic’s shop. They put fluid into the transmission and eventually decided that it was some seal ring that needed replacing. They also discovered that the radiator was leaking, again. This will be our 4th attempt at fixing that problem, the first time in Punta Arenas and then twice in Puerto Natales. After two days of work, the motorhome was running and everything seemed to be in order, so we left once again for San Julian. This time we did make it to Piedra Buena and as we were filling up with gas, Tom noticed – a leak. From the transmission. Same place. I could have cried. Our only option is to turn around and go back to Rio Gallegos. Piedra Buena is really nothing more than a hamlet and had no mechanic that could deal with the problem. We were also told that San Julian was much the same. Tom bought a large container of transmission fluid, filled up the truck and said we might be able to get back without a tow. Well, almost. About 35 miles from Rio Gallegos, the motorhome was spewing fluid as fast as Tom was filling it. This time a couple in a pickup stopped and they said they would tow us the rest of the way. Once in town, we again telephoned the mechanic shop and Jose; the owner sent one of his workers to get us back to the garage. This is more serious. After checking it out again, they tell us that our only option is to pull the transmission and send it to Buenos Aires to be rebuilt. Buenos Aires is 1,500 miles (2,500 kms) to the north. We tried everything. We contacted Ford Motor Company in the US and went to the local Ford dealership and service center in town. No-one could help us. We started making arrangements to send the transmission to the capital and Jose showed us a small studio apartment that he owns around the corner from the shop. There is cooking facilities, heat, hot water, television and Wi-Fi. There is no refrigerator but we can use our own in the RV. They think it will be at least two weeks for the shipment, repair and return of the transmission. I look around the small studio which will be “home” for the next couple of weeks and sigh. Oh, the joys of travel. At least the three of us are warm, safe and relatively comfortable.

El Chalten and Mounts Fitz Roy and Cerro Torre

After spending one more night in El Calafate, we made the 220 Km (about 150 mile) drive to the northern end of the park and El Chalten. Los Glaciares is a national park with an odd setup. Entering in the south to see Perito Merino Glacier which is a paid entrance and then north around Lakes Argentino and Viedma to El Chalten which is situated inside the park’s boundaries and to which there is no admission fee. In the middle is a sort of “dead zone”, where there is no road and is inaccessible to all. The lakes are fed by glaciers so they are the milky blue, sediment filled waters that we have become used to seeing. Occasionally, even being so far from the mouth of the glacier, you can still see icebergs. It really is amazing. After El Calafate, the village of EL Chalten was a surprise. It is the entire opposite of its southern counterpart, even though both really exist only to support the tourists that visit the national park. But where El Calafate is upscale and teeming with well heeled visitors from all over the planet, El Chalten is devoted to trekkers and climbers, catering mainly to the backpackers and mountaineers who come to climb its famous peaks primarily Mount Fitz Roy and Cerro Torre. It is reminiscent of an old gold or mining town from back home. We had the name of a camping facility and after a stop at the tourist office, found it easily. Located just off the main street and close to the trail leading to Mount Fitz Roy, it is small with few amenities. Kind of like the town itself. Few tourists pass through EL Chalten, even during the high season (November thru February) when climbers from around the world descend on the small village. Now, in April it is darned near deserted. But from our campsite, when the clouds clear we can see Fitz Roy, so Tom is happy. At a height of over 3,400 meters (10,800 feet) it was first climbed in 1952 and is reckoned to be one of the most technically challenging mountains on earth for mountaineers. Following Chouinard’s climb and film in 1968, it also became the basis for the Patagonia clothing line and logo. Fortunately for the rest of us there are several paths which make trekking up the mountain relatively easy. Cerro Torre is a different matter. It is a sharp craggy peak that has a top with a “mushroom” of rime ice formed by the winds. Because of this, many who claim to have climbed it did not actually reach the top, the most famous of those being Maestri. The first undisputed ascent was not until 1974 made by an Italian expedition. Since then many others have climbed and perfected the route, adding more bolts and rope. The next big controversy came this season. In January, two men, American Hayden Kennedy and Canadian Jason Kruk made the ascent and on their return back down, removed many of the bolts that had been used. Some of these bolts had been drilled in earlier expeditions close to cracks used by climbers for protection but debate remains whether the North Americans had the right to remove them. Dilemma reigns in the climbing world. Of course, this made no difference to me. Nothing on this earth would get me to traverse a mountain. We stuck to the well worn, well trekked, walking routes and that got us close enough to be happy. Unfortunately except for a few breaks, clouds shrouded both peaks for most of the time. Tom did manage to get a few photos which I will post after I sort through them all. We stayed in the village for a few days before beginning our way to Bariloche. We have also decided to go the long route taking the paved highways in lieu of the gravel dirt roads.