YA LEUM.56–Campfires, no fuel in Ruta 40 and maté Argentino
We are back in Ruta 40, it was still dry, but now with more movement and a few more villages. However, each village seemed like the only place that had any people in a radius of 300 km. Small villages had a few restaurants with milanesa de pollo, grocery stores, and gas stations.
Although we did a hike for two days, we were thrilled to be on the road again to discover El Bolsón.
On the map, we found a park to camp and to have a barbecue! After all the walking, we deserved it.
We stopped in one of those villages to buy some groceries and to prepare the barbecue. Lettuce, meat, tomatoes, bread, potatoes, peppers… we shopped at one of those grocery stores like the ones I have right in front of my house. It was hot, quite hot, and we started a conversation with the owner of the grocery store. Mathieu never misses a chance to talk with people and me neither…
While Mathieu was cheerfully practicing his Spanish with some shades of French, a man talking on the television got my attention.
The man on TV had a deep and sweet voice and an Argentinian accent that steals my heart.
I was ecstatic, looking at the television. Who was that man who was saying profound and wonderful words about the Argentinian art?
I asked the store owner about him and he told me his name. At that time, I only memorized his surname as the owner said “he is an Argentinian actor and writer… but I do not know much about him”.
That was when I searched about Argentinian artists and I found an Uruguayan poet and writer with whom I fell in love — Eduardo Galeano. He was not the one I saw on the television but he was the poet, romantic, and nonconformist artist I was looking for. Sometimes, reading and hearing Eduardo Galeano was similar to listening my father.
“Ojála podamos tener el coraje de estar solos, y la valentia de arriesgarnos a estar juntos”.
I started to know about the South American culture, which existence was a mystery to me. A culture of warriors, poets, and fearless people who spoke about the dictatorship, politics, and the social injustices that existed in their times.
The majority of the Argentinians travel with their tent and a grill because there are parks everywhere, you can always find a place to have a nice barbecue. Argentina has plenty of nature, empty spaces, and vast areas to explore. We found a park, right above the lake, which was perfect for camping.
Although there was a lot of space, there were plenty of people too. We did it like the locals: a bonfire, an Argentinian wine bottle, and grilled one of the most delicious meats I had ever eaten by then!
It is true, Argentinians really have some of the best meat in the world!
We stayed like that, resting under the trees, in the shadow, near the lake, until it was time to leave.
The trip through Ruta 40 continued! One of the most important things that a driver has to know while traveling through Patagonia is to accurately calculate the necessary amount of fuel needed, because there is only gas stations at every 300 km. A gas station at every 300 km, imagine this!
We nearly made it… 7 km away from a village, we went out of gas. For some reason, I thought that situation was very funny. Before we went to ask for help, I still ate my sandwich, and only then did we asked a van driver for help, who stopped when he saw us on the roadside. Fortunately, it did not take long before someone stopped.
It seems like it is quite common there… so, he towed us to the closest village and we manage to solve the situation without further problems.
Before we arrived at El Bolsón, we looked for a place to spend another night in one of the countless parks that are in its surroundings. We found a small park, with just a few travelers. While I set up the tent, Mathieu went to look for some firewood with someone he met at the park. A couple of our age came to greet me.
An experience I will never forget.
An Argentinian couple, looking friendly and like real travelers presented introduced themselves and, after asking my name, dropped the question:
“Do you want to share a maté?”
That was the sentence I heard the most during my time in Argentina.
“Of course, I want to drink mate with you!”.
They talked about their trip, where they had been, and where they wanted to go. They said they were stage actors and that they had just finished their classes. They shared with me that they traveled with very little money and during the trip they sold bracelets or did other small works. Yet, since they were nearly out of money, they were going back home, to Buenos Aires.
And we stayed there, talking for as long as the maté lasted.
When everyone ended their maté, they kindly and politely said goodbye and went back to their tent.
I was delighted!
I understood the exact Argentinian concept of compartir un mate.
We only spent a night at the campsite. Then, we continued our trip. We stopped in a small village called Esquel just to drink a coffee. It was nearly impossible to find anything open. Once again, it seemed like we were in a ghost village… When we stopped the car to get some money from the ATM, we saw a man sitting on the sidewalk, looking quite desolate and worried.
We asked him if he was alright and he answered, with a kind smile on his face, that he came to Esquel due to a work meeting but his car had a problem.
“Since today is Sunday, they can only pick up the car tomorrow! Yet, I have to get home today and all buses have already left the town” — and it was just 2 p.m.
His village was on our way and, obviously, we offered him a ride! He insisted on paying but we never accepted it. He was so happy that it is impossible to imagine!
During the trip, he told us how the oil exploitation was destructing Patagonia. I had never heard about this reality he was now sharing with us…
The further we went north, the greener the landscape became. We were about to arrive at El Bolsón.
El Bolsón is a village in the province of Rio Negro, located on a valley. This village is known for its friendly inhabitants and its rich and beautiful nature. It has lagoons, forests, and mountains, there is something for everyone.
We spent the night in a park with plenty of trees, close to the village. In contrast to the previous park, this one was quite known and huge. It had an extension of 5 km, surrounded by a lake. It was ideal for a few days of holiday camping.
We cooked another assado, drank another bottle of Argentinian wine, and spent the night around our small bonfire. It was small, at least when compared to everyone else’s bonfires! You could roast marshmallows there, just like in the movies.
We were so used to making bonfires with pinecones and logs lost on the floor that on the following day we lighted a campfire to make coffee and roast some peppers for the trip.
The next and last stop was at Bariloche. This city, which also belongs to Patagonia, is located inside the Nahuel Huapi National Park, close to the Andes. Around Bariloche, there are even more activities for adventurers than in El Bolsón. The view over the mountains and the river is astonishing. It reminds us of some European cities. In fact, this city is known as the Switzerland of South America.
There were wooden houses, many stores selling chocolate, lakes, tracks for walking, and ski slopes. We looked like tourists traveling through Europe.
Bariloche was our last stop before we returned to Buenos Aires. We had another 1600 km ahead of us!
After this landscape and the rich nature of Nahuel Huapi National Park, we returned to Ruta 40. Arid, lonely, empty… just like we knew it.
We were told that 400 km away from Bariloche, we were going to pass through a city called Neuquen, a region that is known as La Pampa.
I will never forget it.
An infinite road, 300 km straight ahead! The roads seemed endless! 300 km of monotony, sometimes interrupted by a car going in the opposite direction.
The area of La Pampa is so, so plane, that you can see cars 7 km away from you, something we actually experienced.
It was night already and we saw the lights of a car coming in the opposite direction. That car only crossed our way 30 minutes later…
In the region of Neuquen, we also gave a ride to two other travelers who spent a night with us. We continued to sleep in the car and they, who were friends, set their tent right next to us.
Two actors, who were older than us, with amazing energy and joy! We continued our trip to Buenos Aires and once we finally got to our destination, we drank a cerveza we have been wishing for the entire trip.
A cerveza for us to get to know each other a little more and for Mathieu and I, to celebrate the end of a 7000 km trip through Patagonia.
We rested for two days in Buenos Aires and left on a bus adventure towards Rio de Janeiro…
February 2018,
Patricia Assis
