muratonbike

Cloudy day, bright in the morning. Kept close to the lake.

A pretty boring and hot day on asphalt with occasional views. Apparently I'm in the Lagos & Volcanos region. Met an Australian and a family of five from France with three kids going south.

Climb to Paso Cardinal Antonio Samore in the early hours of the day. Check-out from Argentina is very quick as usual. 50km to Chile check-in. My trail mix is confiscated. Beautiful tropical forest on the other side: Parque Nacional Puyehue.

Hot day. Busy highway. Saw ten cyclists going south. One stopped to talk, an Argentinian heading to Esquel. Views are hazy on lakes and on western mountains. Camping Unquehúe is now almost full and more expensive: 25mil. Found a shady site but it won't last.

Back North. Overnight flight. Unpacked and assembled at airport exit in the morning. Went to Bariloche for a spare tube, disappointed. At Dina Huapi, checked in to the same campground, Club Danés. Slept for twelve hours straight.

Beautiful sunrise hit the tent early. 7:30 on the road. Very excited for the final leg to the “end of the world”. The return path looks entirely different under clear skies. But the dogs are the same. A cyclist passed by when I stopped at the RN3 junction, Swiss couple I heard about in Tolhuin. They are faster than me. The scenery today is majestic. The wind is light and the traffic is agreeable. The city itself was a let down. Ugly and industrial. Went straight to the “fin del mundo” sign for a photo. Met “Fuji” the Japanese cyclist, he came all the way down from Alaska and now going back up on the East coast to Brasil, mad dude. Checked in to a campsite just before the rains hit hard.

Dry and warm morning. I think there was a caracara nest nearby. On the road by 9:30. Caught some wifi signal across the estáncia. The road to the junction passed quickly. Saw three egrets. 5km more to Puerto Almanza. 11am already. Several crab restaurants, but none open yet. People arriving by bus for the penguin tour. Continued west out of town. Light rain started. Thick trees on both sides of the road. After the trees, a view of Puerto Williams on Chile shores. Crab farms out on the sea. Treated myself to a crab casserole at Puerto Yagan, not sure if it was worth the price… Continued west. Passed the locked gates. After about 100m a military jeep showed up. The young soldier told me this is all military property. I asked if I can ride until Puerto Remolino. He said no. Oh well. Returned to Puerto Almanza and found a peaceful area to camp near a stream. Lots of flies.

Rained through the night and continued lightly through the morning. The road back to the highway on the south side was brutally steep, wet and in bad condition. The consolation is, when I reached the mirador at the top, that was the highest point on today's route. Sunday's crowds were gone and the traffic was relatively light. A hiker stopped me and asked if I had seen any gas stations. I gave him some water. After a scenic descent, I took Ruta J to Puerto Almanza. Rear wheel was wobbling, reason: broken spoke. OK. Front wheel started acting funny, reason: flat tire. Second flat of the trip, reason: protection strip cutting into the tube. Lesson learned, twice. Ruta J had a lot of trees on both sides and a nice hard soil surface. Two graders were working on it, too.

8:30 departure from Willie’s place. Followed the coastal path, mixed with some RN3 riding to connect the dots. Entered an estancia with lots of dogs. A helpful guy showed me the way. Was able to continue on the farm road by opening/closing the wooden gates that seperate the fields. The grassy road was surprisingly wide, maybe the remains of an old road? Scenic ride interrupted by flooded soil. Time to break out the sandals. A dead horse in a ditch, still intact. After three stream crossings, which two of them required unloading the bags, I was back at the main road. Sunday traffic looked hectic. Hotel Petrel road was full of cars, weekend visitors everywhere. After another sketchy stream crossing, I was at the famous cyclist refugio. It was in very good condition, thanks to people not messing it up. It had a large room, with windows and a lockable door. Inside, a table, a wood stove, a makeshift bed from a door laid on some styrofoam blocks. The front was facing the west and the scenic lake. A very peaceful night.

A mix of hike and bike around Laguna Negra and the reserve. Scenic trail along dense forest. Flowers. Beaver dams.