Day 62 March 16, 2012
Temuco, Chile to Villa La Angostura, Argentina
Miles 280
Border Crossing into Argentina was very easy and no charge.
Currency exchange rate: $1 USD = $4.33 Argentine peso
Lodging in Angostura at Hosteria Huellas $260 peso, very nice place, quiet, great beds
The ride today was in the mountains, rugged mountains with piles of sand everywhere. We discovered today that the radiator on Jonnie's bike was leaking. It must have gotten cracked when it went face to face with the concrete ditch in Peru. We decided we needed to try and find some "Stop Leak" to put in it. This was quite a feat to explain what we needed with our limited Spanish. We went to a motorcycle shop first. The young man in the shop was having a very difficult time understanding us and he called someone who came to the shop. We suspect it was the owner of the shop. He was not able to offer us any solutions. After we decided to try somewhere else, we left the shop, I went back inside to ask for a hotel recommendation. Well, I meant to remember the name of this shop so that I could |NOT recommend it but I have forgotten it. When I asked his reply was "the tourist office is down the street" I thanked him and his reply was "yeah, for nothing!" This is not the customer service we received during the majority of our trip or later that afternoon. We went to the information center and he recommended a mechanic. Our poor Spanish and sign language worked with the guys there. They knew exactly what we needed and told us where to go. Carl asked if he could go get it for us and he did. When he returned with a small can of stop leak like stuff he charged us $40 pesos, $20 to go get it and $20 for the can. Now, this is the type of service we appreciate.
The stop leak by the way is working great! No more leaks.
Day 63 March 17, 2012
Villa La Angostura to Sarmiento, Argentina
Miles: 506
Lodging at Sarmiento was at El Molle Hotel $75 USD
This is a new hotel, only open a couple months, and only had a couple rooms with room and plans to expand. The senora that owns it speaks good English and was very helpful and friendly. She had fairly secure parking, we parked the bikes right behind the room and Carl was able to crawl out the window to go back and forth to the bikes.
The weather is cooling down. We are wearing our electrics and liners more and all day. We pulled over on the side of the road, Carl used too much front brake and in the loose gravel, down he went. Nice slow, high side. Well, this is a switch! When it was time to leave, Jonnie's bike would not start. I had been using my electrics most of the day and the headlight. The KLR's just do not put out enough juice for that, plus there might have been a poor battery connection. We were on a flat spot, no hill insight. Carl- "I am going to have to pull you" Jonnie-"No, this is not going to happen". Carl- "what the hell else are we going to do". The rope gets tied onto Carl's bike and the other end wrapped around the lower triple tree and then to the left hand grip. With a little instruction off we go. I somehow end up in the ditch alongside the road before the rope comes off the handle grip, doing a little wee to the right and a waa to the left a couple times and up on the road and somewhere during that little dance the bike started. We went on into town with electrics and headlight off.
Argentina has great information centers. We used the one in Sarmiento to find the hotel. The gal at the information center even called and made reservations for us.
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| Argentina coast |
Day 64 March 18,2012
Sarmiento to Fitz Roy, Argentina
Miles 166
Lodging $45 pesos per person, hotel in the back of the grocery store, dirty, 2 sets of bunk beds and another twin bed, 2nd worse place and bed we stayed at on the entire trip, but the people there were very nice and helpful
It was real foggy when we left Sarmiento, the sun came out but it did not warm up much. Continued to cautiously use the electrics and turn off headlight when using them. We stopped for an accident and I realized I was not feeling well. I was dizzy and lightheaded. The police officer directing traffic noticed I was not leaving when he waved me on and came over and I told him I was not doing well. Carl came back. After awhile I was not getting better, the police officer called an ambulance. They checked me over with the sparse equipment they had; checked my blood sugar it was ok, went to take my blood pressure and the cuff would not work. The one emt (?) felt my neck and told me to drink more water and get off the bike every 2 hours and move my head, neck and shoulders. I am sure I was all knotted up in my neck and shoulders after battling the wind. We got back on and went just a few miles and I was having trouble again. I was dizzy, lightheaded, having trouble focusing. I walked around a bit and we decided to try and make it to the next town, Fitz Roy.
There was a hostel in the town of Fitz Roy and it was full, and then we found the hotel behind the grocery store. Oh my what a dive, but I could not go any further. Just when we thought our Spanish was getting better, we found out it was not. We were trying to tell the lady at the store that we needed to see a doctor and she was giving us directions. We were having trouble understanding her and she and her daughter take off to show us where to go. Just what I needed, a 6 block walk to a restaurant! Carl takes me back to the hotel and starts pouring the water and juice to me. He called my sister in law, Tracy, and got great advice from her. He was sure I was dehydrated and she agreed. Well, I did not sleep too much that night since I was up peeing all night.
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| Somewhere in Patagonia, not a lot to look at |
Day 65 March, 19, 2012
Fitz Roy to La Marchand, Patagonia, Argentina ("The land of wind and nuts")
Miles 323 with the wind blowing about 100km per hour
Lodging: $105 USD La Marchand was a hotel and restaurant out in the middle of the Patagonia. It was the owner of the hotel that said the above when I walked in and said, "Does the wind always blow like this?" This is a surprisingly nice hotel, great food, only twin beds but very comfy
The next morning in Fitz Roy I was feeling much better after drinking a gallon of water and quart of juice, and ate a bag of potato chips.
The road is straight and in good shape. But the wind howled all day. There were the cutest little ostriches and llamas alongside the road.
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| La Marchand, nice stop in the middle of Patagonia |
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| His grandfather homesteaded in the area and raised sheep. |
We are getting close to our goal. We have to cross back into Chile and then back to Argentina to reach Ushuaia, the end of the road.
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