Cindie's Northwest Argentina Daily Journal
Travel Writing, Blog, Travelogue
La Quiaca, to La Cueva, (border with Chile) Argentina
(December 9, 2003 - January 22, 2004)

In La Quiaca we found a bank machine with an extremely long line.  It took me longer to get money out of the ATM then it did to cross the border.  Our exchange rate was 2.92 Argentinean pesos for 1 US dollar.  By the time we had finished with the bank we were both hungry for lunch.  We stopped at a restaurant and had a steak and salad for lunch.  I can not tell you how good that salad tasted, fresh, green with a dash of oil and vinegar.  The steak was too much for me to eat so I saved it for dinner.  We finally left town about 1:00 pm, Argentina time.  The wind had picked up and we even had a little rain.  Lucky for us we had a tail wind.  The terrain was rolling and we were still on the Altiplano.  The road was paved for the first 15 km, then we had a dirt section for about 5 km.  They are working on this section so within the year the entire road should be paved from the border on down to Salta.

We camped 5 km from Abra Pampa, it would be our last night on the Altiplano.  It rained some during the night and we watched a wicked lightning storm go by.

Tim's back is better but still not back to normal, at least he did not have to carry our gear up a stairway today.

ascend 265 m (870 ft)  descend 145 m 475 ft

We arrived in Humahuaca and found the campground.  It is located across the bridge on the right, it does not have a sign.  We were charge 6 pesos ($2) to camp for the night, we had a hot shower but no electricity.

We have finally arrived in a modern country some of the things we noticed, they refrigerate their meat, we can drink the water, the electrical wiring is done correctly, we have hot water to name the big changes.  Also people are not extremely poor.

ascend 415 m (1360 ft) descend 920 m (3015 ft)

We met Sacha in the grocery store and he showed us his father's art studio, Utama, located on the square.  I had my first mate tea.  Very tasty, I did not realize that it would keep me up all night.  Sacha directed us to a very good restaurant.  We both ordered steak, a salad, and spinach.  We also shared a beer and the entire bill was 19 pesos ($6.50).  Wow I will eat well in this country.

We met Garret, Krista, and Andy at the restaurant, we decided to stay another day and go hiking in the hills nearby.

ascend 105 m (340 ft) descend 535 m (1755 ft)

The hike was beautiful, I felt like we were back in Arizona, I felt very much at home.  The cactus were in bloom and the streams were running.

Later, back at the hostel, we found out that Andy returned to the hotel after a couple of hours and then went back out to find us.  We never did find him.  I was disappoint that we did not have a chance to talk to him.  He just finished his degree in Chinese studies, he spoke Chinese, amazing, and I wanted to hear about the mysterious country.  Ah maybe later.

As we were taking a break two motorcyclists stopped to visit.  Arno and Cian have been traveling for the last 14 month in Mexico, Central America, and South America.  They told us about the youth hostel Terra Oculta.

After we descended into the canyon the vegetation changed to lush greenery, the smells were fantastic, my eyes enjoyed the color, my lungs were filled with oxygen, finally, and the wind had stopped.  We moved on to Jujuy and had lunch.  We were told that there was a camp ground in El Carmen so we decided to move on.  Jujuy had quite a bit of traffic and we were taking the mountainous way to Salta.  A man stopped us on the road and told us we needed to go the other way, the highway, because this road was very curvy.  We continued on.

We passed acres and acres of tobacco fields.  We finally found the camp site, it had a huge pool and the local kids were having a blast.  It was great to see people enjoying themselves, especially kids.  In Bolivia, the kids do not have anytime to enjoy themselves, they are working.

I am not sure how much we descended, at least 800 meters, I lost the log.

We arrived in Salta in the afternoon, it was steamy hot, but it was Sunday so the traffic was low.

We checked into Hostel Terra Oculta, there were no double rooms available so we took a dorm room for the night. 9 pesos ($3) per person per night

ascend 585 m (1915 ft) descend 585 m

We had a huge barbeque at the hostel, the food was great, steak and salad, all you can eat.  The wine flowed freely too.  It is amazing how the spanish flows better after a couple of glasses of wine.  I am amazed at how much beef is eaten in this country and yet people do not look unhealthy or overweight.  I have come to the conclusion that the wine that they drink with all their meals helps.  I have decided that a little wine with a steak is great combination.

It was also warm and humid.  In the morning it was cooler to ride than to stand in the sun.  We stopped for lunch at a gas station, I really was not hungry it was too hot.  It has been a while since we have ridden in this kind of heat.  We waited out the heat of the day and started looking for a campsite near the lake.  We ended up riding 5 km towards the lake.  We took the first campsite we could find. The cost was 2 pesos (0.69 cents) We had a nice view of the lake and watched the horses running free near the lake.  It rained around 4 in the afternoon, at least it cooled it down.  As we were sitting at our campsite we noticed a group of backpackers coming up the road from the lake.  It was our friends from the youth hostel in Salta, we had camped next to the bus stop.  They were as surprised to see us and we were them.  It is a small world. 

ascend 270 m (885 ft) descend 425 m (1395 ft)

We started to ride away from the house and Tim got a flat tire.  It was too hot to be changing a flat tire, ugh.  We changed the tire and pushed on, it was still hot at 5:00 in the afternoon, we made it 3 kilometers and camped in some trees.  The water was so hot in my water bottle that I decided to brew tea in them.  I needed to drink but the water was awful, not bad with the tea.  We spent the remainder of the afternoon hiding from the sun.  At about sun down we had a visitor to camp.  An elderly man who had a flat tire saw us from the road and asked us to help him fix his flat tire.  It sounds easier than it was.  First, the valves they use here are strange, somewhat like a presta valve, but the valve comes apart in three pieces.  Then we tried to give him one of our tubes and we could not get the wheel off the fork, it was rusted on.  The elderly man just sat down, rolled a cigarette and watched us in amusement. In the end we could not fix his flat.  Frustrating.

ascend 695 m (2280 ft) descend 350 m (1150 ft)

We finally found a hostel called El Hospedaje, we or more like I decided on the large room with a private bath for 30 peso ($10) per night.  It was our Christmas splurge.

ascend 490 m (1609 ft) descend 280 m (915 ft)

Right at sunset we got a knock on our door.  We opened it and it was Tony from Canada.  He had started in Salta in the morning and rode the entire 196 km to Cafayate in one day, wow.  He said he had a tailwind, what a tailwind.

We stopped at a gas station for lunch.  Tony was the object of attention of a number of women who came into the store.  We were planning to push on to Santa Maria but found a campground near the river so we decided to stay.  Tony and I went for food in town and found that everything was closed until 5:00 pm.   So we waited until everything opened to buy dinner.  Tony had his first camp out and cook out. camping cost 6 pesos ($2) per person

ascend 495 m (1623 ft) descend 145 m (475 ft)

ascend 430 m (1410 ft) descend 275 m (900 ft)

ascend 280 m (920 ft) descend 355 m (1165 Ft)

37 miles

We arrived in town right before siesta.  Everyone was getting ready to go to sleep.  This area is know for its wine, gauchos, and ponchos.  I love the hats they wear, they are usually black with a broad flat rim.  We finally found a hotel room for 20 pesos ($6.80) for our room.

We went out for ice cream and had to wait until 8:00 pm to eat dinner.  I was starved.  Tony and I split a parrada.  The last one I had in Salta had all kinds of cuts of meat.  This one had ribs, liver, intestine, brain (yes brain, I could not eat it), and a few other delicacies.  Tim ordered a chorizo, it looked like a huge T-bone. Hmm next time I will order the chorizo. The chorizo and salad was 9 pesos ($3)

ascend 355 m (1165 ft) descend 1065 m (3495 ft)

48 m

The road was a little rolling and then flat.  We had a cool morning so we rode for 50 km (30 mi) straight without stopping.  There was not wind, a surprise for us.  The wind did not start up until 11:00, by then we had turned southwest and the wind was at our back.  We stopped for a cool drink and found another New Years party.  The kids were sober and that was about it.  At least they were not driving.  They told us that we could camp at the Balanarios (swimming area) up the road about 20 k (12 miles).  It was hot and a pool sounded great.  We arrived and the pool was empty.  However, there was a natural water way were everyone was swimming.  We camped near the soccer field. The cost was 2 Pesos (68 cents) per person. I was not feeling well, I was achy all over, kind of like a flu.

Tony looked around the area and found all the swimming holes.  I just did not feel like exploring.

71 mi

We had a head wind into Pituil, we stopped for an early lunch.  When we came out of the city the wind was at our back, yeah.  The road was flat or slightly down.  We covered the next 40 k in no time after which we had a climb into a mountain pass and then out again.  The last climb into Chilecito was a grind, it was hot, we were hungry and once again it was siesta time.  We managed to find a restaurant open at 3:00 pm.

We stayed at the first hotel we could find, Hotel Wamatinag, on the plaza.  It cost 20 peso  ($6.90) a night for Tim and I and 10 pesos ($3.30) for Tony.

68 mi

An ice cream or two a day has been the norm, there is nothing better than a couple of scoops of ice cream on a hot afternoon.

I am still not feeling well, I have a canker sore under my tongue that will not go away.  I have had it since we arrived in Belen.  I also have a slight case of diarrhea.

We stayed and went to the doctor.  I noticed that I had blisters all inside my mouth by now.  So off to the doctor we went.  One physician saw both of us for 35 pesos ($12).  The doctor was young, female and had a good bed side manner.  She checked our blood pressure and temperature.  Checked our throats and stomach area.  She said that we had a bacterial infection in our stomach she told me what it was but I can not remember.  Also, we had a viral infection in our mouth, Tim had blisters too.  Both of these were from drinking water.  We must have drank some bad water along the way from Salta.  She prescribed an antibiotic for our stomach and a cream for our blisters.  She was also concerned about us dehydrating and recommended that we rest another day before we leave on our bikes.

After all that we went back to the hotel and slept for an hour.   We think we caught this early enough not to cause dehydration but rest never hurt anyone.

We descended along the dirt road until we reached Los Tambillos, the only place we could get water for miles around.  We stopped and rested, picked up water and started down the road again.  We decided to spend the night in the area because the desert was so beautiful.  We were surrounded by red rocks and cactus.  There were flocks of parrots everywhere and we saw an occasional eagle here and there.  We happen to camp along a path used by horses to get to who knows where, they were curious and came to visit us early in the morning..

ascended 1100 m (3610 ft) descended 210 m (690 ft)

The road to Pagancillo was dirt and sandy to begin with, it improved steadily to hard packed dirt.  At Pagancillo we took a left onto Route 26.  We entered Talampaya National Park, the scenery was desert palo verde like trees, dry, dusty and a headwind.  We took pictures of the Park sign, not 5 minutes down the road my front tire blew.  I had just bought this tire in Cafayate, it did not last very long.  Once again the emergency tire was back on my front wheel.

We arrived at the park entrance.  The cost to enter was 12 pesos ($4.10) per person.  We rode the final 14 kilometers into the park and arrived hot and dusty.

We decided to wait for the tour until the next day.  They only way to see the park is to do a tour.  The cost is 120 pesos ($41) per truck, a maximum of 8 people per truck.  We thought that the camping would be included in the entrance fee but it was not.  The cost to camp is 3 pesos ($1.05) per person.  The camping area was the worst I have seen anywhere.  It is hot and not a tree for shade in sight.  We decided to stay on the restaurant porch. 

We noticed a white van pulled up late in the afternoon.  We first met Nestor and Maria when he offered us a cold drink.  We could not refuse, it was hot.  Nestor and Maria are from Buenos Aires and are on vacation.

ascend 350 m  (1150 ft) descend 495 m (1623 Ft)

Since our bikes were already in Nesters van we decided to go to Valle de Luna with them.  It was an hour drive, it would have taken us a day to ride there, to Valle de Luna.  They only way to see the park is in a private vehicle.  The entrance fee including the guide was 5 pesos.  They same price for everyone, unlike Talampaya.  Valle de Luna is suppose to have some very good fossils, however, the guide only showed us plant fossils and then rock formations like the submarine and mushroom rock.  They highlight for me was the concretion balls.  We were all pretty tired by the end of the tour, two parks in one day makes for a very long day.  We drove to Villa San Agustin Valle Fertil and found a campground for 10 pesos ($3.41) per night.  It was hot and difficult to sleep at night in the tent.

It was a hot day so we basically hung around the pool.  I tried to find a bank machine here but there was not one and the bank would not change US dollars.  We were stuck, I had miss calculated how much pesos we needed and we were now down to our last 50 pesos ($17).  Not enough to travel on from here to San Juan.  We asked Nester and Maria if we could get a ride to San Juan with them.  They were happy to give us a lift.  We finally found a bank machine in San Juan and then headed out to the lake west of San Juan.  It was nice to get a ride through this desert, there was not much to see after the parks, barely a town anywhere, dusty and hot, and a head wind.  It probably would be more pleasant here at another time of year, say, winter.

We found a camping resort on the lake.  It was Saturday and the place was packed.  The camping area was one big party so we chose a quieter place as far away as possible.  There was a day when I would have preferred the busy camp site but those day are gone with my younger days.

Some things I have observed about Argentineans: they love their ice cream as much as they love their beef.  They love to camp and have huge barbeques.  Unfortunately, the time to eat is anywhere from 9 to 11 at night.  I am just not use to eating that late.  I am always hungry about 6:30 pm.  Nothing is even open yet.  People are friendly here and they do not ask to many questions.  In other Latin American countries the questions were always, how many kids do you have, how old are you, and do you believe in god?  Here people respect your privacy and do not ask.

The day was heating up and the head wind was getting stronger.  Around lunch time we stopped in Villa Media Agua to have lunch.  We stepped into the air conditioned restaurant and did not want to leave.  We noticed that they also had room here.  Hmm.  very tempting.  We spoke with a local and he said that there was nothing for the next 100 kilometers (62 miles) .  We decided to take a room and call it a day.  We rolled our bikes into the room and took a 2 and a half hour nap.  When we woke up a huge storm was brewing outside.  High winds, swirling dust, lightning, thunder, and a little rain.  This area is famous for it's hail storms that can produce hail the size of a baseball.  Not something I want to witness first hand.  We were both glad we decided to spend the night in the middle of no where.

We arrived in Mendoza in early afternoon and began to look for a hostel.  We went to three hostels and they were all full.  We ended up staying at Hotel Galicia across from Plaza Pellegrino for 25 pesos ($8.56) per night.  It was hot in Mendoza and this room was hot too.

Once we turned west towards the Andes the road turned up, the wind was at our backs and the scenery beautiful.  I felt great from all the time off the bike, Tim was feeling good too, although he was loaded down with food for the next few days.

We came to Potrerillos and decided to camp.  We stayed at the ACA campground.  They charged 12 pesos ($4) for the site.  The grounds were clean but the toilets were a hole in the ground and the shower nonexistent.  I suggest another campsite.

Ascend 965 m (3165 ft) descend 310 m (1015 ft)

Uspallata is where they filled the movie, "Seven years in Tibet".  It is truly a beautiful valley. 

Ascend 700 m (2295 ft) descend 215m (705 ft.)

The 16 kilometers (10 mi) to Puente del Inca, took us 3 hours to ride, up hill and into the wind.  That is about 5 kilometers an hour (3 miles an hour), some people could walk faster.  We arrived in Puente del Inca, exhausted,  We decided to stay in the first hotel we saw, mentally I was spent.  The cost for Hostel Puente Del Inca was 76 pesos (26 dollars).  Out of our budget, yet we decided to stay.  About 2 hours after we arrived we saw a group of climbers coming down from the mountain.  They were staying in rooms around us, it turns out that they all were with a Mountain Climbing Club from Denver Colorado.   It was great to meet a huge group of Americans, 11 in all.  We invited ourselves to dinner, they did not mind.  We spent most of our time talking to Roger, the liberal of the group.  I also had a chance to talk to Susan and Lori (I think), the two women of the group and Andy.  They were all still pumped from climbing Aconcagua, the summit is at 6,900 meters, over 22,000 feet.  They said they hit the snow line at 16,000 feet.  Funny how our system of feet sounds so strange after using meters for so long.  I have to admit I have a better feel for feet, but I am beginning to prefer meters and kilometers to feet and miles.  We stayed up later then we wanted, but with such interesting conversations, how could we sleep.

Ascend 1220 m (4000 fT) descend 410 m (1345 ft)

We left at about 10:00 am, and no wind.  We planned to ride to Los Horcones, the entrance to Aconcagua, camp for the night, hike some, and then leave the next day.  Well we arrived in Los Horcones and the ranger informed us that the cost to camp was US$10 per person.  There was not even any shade, barely a flat spot to pitch a tent, we would of had to share a bathroom with 100 climbers coming a going, and the shower was nonexistent.  Our guide book said that camping here was free, far from it.  We had to decide what to do next, we decided to cross the border to Chile.  Of course by this time it was 1:00 pm and the winds were strong again.  On we pushed, it was only 13 kilometers to the border.  I do not mind riding up hill into the wind, what I do mind is riding through pitch black tunnels that are long and narrow.  When we came to tunnel number 14 it was just that.  Up hill, into the wind and pitch black.  We tried to hitch through it but no one would stop this close to the border.  So we waited until traffic was no where in sight.  Tim urged me on, go Cindie go, I started pedaling as hard and as fast as I could.  The tunnel went from dark to pitch black, I could not see a dam thing, I could see a light in the distance and aimed for that.  My head was swimming, I was confused, I also feared I would hit a hole in the pavement.  Finally a car coming from the other side shed some light on the road.  I was in the middle of the road and had to move over to let the car pass.  I raced to the end of the tunnel and pulled over to the side of the road, lungs bursting and adrenaline pumping.  Tim was right behind me.  Not seconds after we got out of the tunnel a truck with a load of new cars rushed by.  I was glad we did not meet him in the tunnel.  It was 2 km from Las Cuevas to the next tunnel.  I was still unnerved when we got to the next tunnel. 

We waited almost 2 hours to get a ride through the next tunnel.  Then we had to wait for our exit stamp from Argentina.  The next line was an entry stamp for Chile and then customs.  They asked me the usual questions, do you have any fruit or vegetables, well yes, but I do not want to give them to you.  We had arrived at the border a day early and we had food that we were suppose to eat.  Well they found it all, oranges and dried tomatoes.  Somehow they missed the onions in Tim's bags, it figures.  By the time we went through customs it was late.  We saw a hostel on the other side of the border and decided to stay there for the night.

Hostel Cristo de Rendour was in Chile and more expensive.  It really is used during ski season, Portillo is a kilometer away.  We agreed on a price of 10,000 pesos (US$16).  We were tired and needed a rest.

Ascend 605 m (1985 ft) descend 407 m (1335 ft)

1North and
Central America
3-30-02 to 4-17-03

2 South America
6-3-03 to 6-17-04

3 SE Asia / China
11-22-04 to
9-15-06

4 Australia
9-15-06 to 9-15-07

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