In Lanin National Park, the centerpiece is Volcan Lanin in the Argentine Lake District on the border with Chile.

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We hired a car for 4 days to explore the lakes north of Bariloche, camping in the national parks and taking advantage of the wood fires to cook our food.

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Before leaving the area we sampled the delicious local trout washed down with Argentine Sauvignon Blanc.

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We continued north on Route 40, now paved to Bariloche, winding through beautiful green Andean foothills.  We were back in the Lake District but this time (last time) there was not a cloud in the sky as we set off hiking in Nahuel Huapi National Park.

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We took on a walk a bit harder than we expected having to scramble up big rocks, in between cracks, walk across snow and descend on almost vertical loose unstable rocky slopes.  The camping was great though.

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We were happy to arrive in El Bolsón after 2 long 12 hour days on a bus heading north on the adventurous (code word for unpaved) Ruta 40.

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El Bolsón is a hippy town with a lively craft and organic food market. The delicious berries and cherries are in season. We spent a pleasant afternoon sampling the local homemade beer, lying on the grass listening to music.

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Not far our of town is el Bosque Tallado, a forest of huge sculptures carved out of trees burnt in a forest fire. We also trekked beside the Rio Azul (blue river) up to el Cajón del Azul, a narrow canyon 3 metres wide and 40 metres deep.

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To go back in time it is possible to ride la trochita (the old Patagonian Express steam train) on a 2 hour round trip from Esquel.  It was from there we accessed the National Park Los Alerces, hiking above the tree line and were almost blown off a steep ridge by the strong gusts of wind.

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Before leaving we made a special trip to Trevelin, where the Welsh settled in the mid 1800´s, to sample a Welsh afternoon tea at one of the Casas de Té.

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We stopped in El Calafate to visit the impressive Perito Moreno Glacier, staying at the beautiful Posada Newenkelen.  The glacier is 5 kilometres wide and 60 metres high and the only glacier advancing.

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It is peak tourist season and the little town was bursting at the seams with visitors.  We experienced the full force of the Patagonian winds (95 kph), like being sandblasted while walking the dirt roads.

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Further north is El Chaltén, situated right in the northern sector of the national park.  It is possible to step out of the hostel and begin walking.  It is free to enter and camp.  We spent 4 days trekking around Mount Fitzroy (3405 metres) and were fortunate to see many wild flowers, birds and animals.  The weather was perfect to start, but deteriorated into howling winds, rain and hail by the last day.

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