Unesco World Heritage Peninsula Valdés, in Argentina´s Patagonia, is one of the finest wildlife reserves in South America.  From June to December, southern right whales come to the sheltered waters of Golfo Nuevo and Golfo San José to breed and bear their young.  The southern right whales, so named because they were the ¨right¨ whale to kill, were facing extinction but now over 1100 visit these waters each year.

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That is why we travelled 20 hours by bus (and back again) to Puerto Madryn.  The whales did not disappoint.  They can be observed from the town jetty and from other vantage points around the coast, frolicking with their newborns just metres away.  To see and hear these 20 meter, 10 tonnes animals so close to the shore you can almost touch them is really something.

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Also on the peninsula are penguins, sea lions, elephant seals and dolphins, but it was the whales we came to see.

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After crossing back into Argentina from Paraguay, we followed the Paraguay River south until it joined the second longest river in South America, the Paraná, near Resistencia (a big country town with big wide streets).  Corrientes, across the river, has a bit more to offer in colonial buildings. 

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Continuing south we made stops in Santa Fe and Rosario.  Santa Fe was originally founded in 1573 but was moved to the present site in 1653 due to constant flooding.  In Rosario we finally got to taste the delicious river fish.

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The Río Uruguay divides Argentina and Uruguay.  We followed it from Buenos Aires to visit Argentina´s north east.  Fist stop Colon.  From Mercedes we caught a local bus to Colonia Carlos Pellegrini to visit the wetlands of the Reserva Provincial del Esteros Iberá.

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Further north in the province of Missiones are the Jesuit ruins of San Ignacio Miní, Loreto and Santa Ana.  Between 1603 and 1767, the Jesuits founded 30 missions in this part of South America (15 in Argentina, 7 in Brazil and 8 in Paraguay – 7 of them are World Heritage sites).  The missions were laid out around a huge central plaza, the church on one side and rows of long houses for the indigenous on the other sides.

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This stunning wetland reserve in Northeast Argentina, unspoiled by tourism, is the second largest wetlands in South America and home to countless birds and animals.  The name Iberá means shiny water in the Guarani language.
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Walking through the forrest, monkeys can be seen high up in the trees.  Capybaras munch on grass, oblivious to humans.  Timid deer don´t hang around too long.  An armadillo showed itself and a little bird carried on building it´s oven like nest of clay.
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From a boat, gliding quietly among the floating islands of aquatic plants, caimens and anacondas can be seen basking in the sun.  A vast array of birds have also made this protected area their home.
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The sleepy little village of Colonia Carlos Pellegrini, 8 blocks by 8 blocks, is the perfect place to watch the sun setting over the lake.

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The impressive Iguazú Falls between Argentina and Brazil, consists of some 275 separate falls.  The most spectacular is the Devil´s Throat, a powerful torrent of water plunging down a narrow gorge, wetting viewers with rising mist.  On the Argentine side there are many walking trails to view the falls from all aspects.

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We took the thrilling boat ride under the falls getting completely soaked.  We encountered monkeys, coatis, caimen, birds and many colourful butterflies in the park.  Our day finished with a tranquil float down a calmer part of the river sunnounded by jungle.

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We continued north from Salta to San Salvador de Jujuy (1200 meters) and on to La Quiaca (3440 meters) on the Bolivian border.  The highway through yet another spectacular gorge (quebrada) is dotted with little adobe villages populated with indigenous people.

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Purmamarca (2190 meters), a staging post on the Inca Road, is surrounded by multi-coloured hills, has a lovely adobe church facing the square and a lively handicraft fair.

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Large colourful mosaics made from flowers, seeds, leaves and moss depicting Easter scenes lined the streets of  Tilcara (2460 meters).  The local Festival de Doma (a bareback wild horse riding competition) was new experience for us.

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At 12 midday (mas o menos) in Humahuaca (2990 meters), a life-size statue of San Francisco Solano emerges from the clock tower to bless the people below.

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And now onto Bolivia ….

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Salta boasts the finest colonial architecture in Argentina and is the place to experience a Peña, a restaurant serving local food together with traditional music and dancing. They say the best empanadas come from Salta and we agree.

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The Museum of High Altitude Archaeology displays the three “Llullaillaco Children”, together with offerings, found frozen at 6,700 m. above sea level in 1999. These were Inca sacrifices to their gods. Very eerie.

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We took the train to the clouds (Tren a las Nubes), the first trip in 5 years, a 16 hour excursion through the Quebrada (gorge) del Toro up into the mountains. The 217 kilometre route crosses 29 bridges, 13 viaducts, 21 tunnels, does 2 complete circles and 2 zigzags to reach an altitude of 4200 metres and then does it all over again on the way back.

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A truly spectacular bus ride up a narrow winding road took us to the little pueblo of Cachi with its cobblestone streets and adobe buildings.

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The high altitude and dry climate of the Calchaqui Valley make it ideal for growing grapes, especially the Torrentés, a unique Argentine variety.  The white Torrontés wine is called ¨the liar¨ because it smells sweet like a rose but tastes dry.

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We stayed in Cafayate,  the biggest town, at Rusty K Hostal run by a lovely young couple.  It has a vine covered courtyard where we joined the other guests for the weekly asado.  At the heladería we enjoyed the Torrontés and Cabernet ice cream.

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A few kilometres north is the Quebrada de las Conchas with stunning coloured rock formations and to the south are the ruins of Quilmes where the local villagers resisted the Spanish for more than 130 years.

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We are moving into the baking hot north west of Argentina where siesta goes from 1pm to 6pm.

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The historical centre of San Miguel de Tucumán has many fine old buildings which are spectacularly lit up at night.

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Leaving behind the vast fields of sugar cane, our bus began the climb to Tafí de Valle (2000 metres up), winding through jungle and into the clouds.  Lovely little Tafí lies in a fertile valley surrounded by high mountains.  It is famous for cheese made from old Jesuit recipes.  We stayed in the 200 year old adobe Estancia los Cuartos with  original furniture and friendly llamas.

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