Bariloche: Rain on our Parade

The views from the bus into Bariloche may be the most picturesque we'd seen, but the treat we got at the bus terminal was definitely a different wecolme than we'd had in any other city.

Welcome to Bariloche:

Bariloche Bus Terminal

We were pumped to spend the next month snowboarding on Cerro Catedral and returning to our little house in the woods. We had barely settled in to the adorable home when we decided to head out to El Bolson for the weekend. After at least one heatless night in Bolson, we were all very excited for our first experience with legitimate central heat and we invited everyone to crash at the house for a sleepover...

Our very own Casa Rosada

Little did we know that rain was on the horizon, and had no intentions of leaving for a very very long time! When the rain began, it went on for days. It poured all night long and we awoke everyday to more rain... light rain, thunderstorms, heavy rain, drizzle and then more rain! Needless to say, there would be no snowboarding on cerro caterdral and all other activities were doomed to be done wet! At least we had a warm house, buried in the woods, a few hundred meters from Lago Gutierrez to cozy up in. Around the lake are various campgrounds and trails, one which leads to a beautiful waterfall, another up to a lookout point at the top of the mountain, and another about 10 kilometers away to a mountain house, Refugio Frey. We explored our lago and the wonders it had to offer. Unfortunately the refugio is closed during winter (and somehow the over 6 mile hike, all uphill, in the rain, did not sound as appealing when you couldn't dry off and stay overnight, having to turn around and hike the 6 miles down).

Lago Gutierrez

We made the best of it and spent a few days in town, exploring the restaurants, swiss style chocolates and ski shops. We took the bus up to the famous Llau Llau Hotel and feasted on their popular Llau Llau tea, which includes all you can eat on the amazingly beautiful pastry table. After many hours and a "taste" of nearly everything in the spread, we could have rolled ourselves back home. We also visited caves formed by the area's former volcano, sliding through tiny passages to reach the largest inner cave with a hidden laguna. We decided two weeks of rain had taken it's toll on our spirits and with no snow on the horizon, it was time peace out of Bariloche. We decided to rent a car, head back down to El Bolson for the feria artesanal (one more time!) and then turn back to drive the infamous Ruta de Los Siete Lagos.