Bariloche (Argentina)

Po Rute 40 jsme docela zniceni, tak jen nakoupime, odneseme pradlo do pradelny, vecere a spat.
Bariloche je prvni opravdu pekne mesto (podle evropskych meritek) co vidime. Vliv spousty svycarskych pristehovalcu je zrejmy jak v architekture, tak ve velkem mnozstvi obchodu s luxusnimi cokoladami. Predpoved na dnesek je spatna, takze nedelame zadne velke plany. Rano projdeme mesto. Po obede se pocasi probere a proti ocekavani je krasny letni den. Na odpoledne je nam doporucena kratsi puldenni tura podel jezera lesem na mensi vyhlidku. A vylet predci ocekavani. Les je krasny, smes ciprisu, vysokych listnacu a misto krovi a malin tu vsude roste bambus. Pres jezero vyhled na okolni dvoutisicovky pokrytymi lesy a snehem...
Jance uz je od predesleho dne od vecera hodne spatne, ale nechce si nechat nic ujit, tak bojuje. Po snidani zajedeme MHD az pod Cerro Campanario. Nahore ma byt podle UNESCO nejhezci vyhled sveta, tak jsme docela zvedavi. Dole pod lanovkou uz autobusy chrli fronty turistu. My jsme se rozhodli jit po vlastnich, neni to daleko, ale zato pekne strme. Po 40ti min se vyskrabeme nahoru. A vyhled opravdu stoji za to. 360stupnu jezer, lesu, ostrovu, kopcu, plazi a vysokych hor se snehovymi cepicemi. Jedine co nam kazi radost je opar ktery brani vyfoceni slusnych fotek. Tak se alespon pokochame a jdeme dolu pod kopec do pujcovny kol. Pujcujeme 2 na cely den a pojedeme okruh toho co jsme zrovna videli. Kolem jezer, pres ostrovy co jsou pospojovany mosty. Neco kolem 30km. Neni to daleko, ale zato poradne zvlnene. Rovinu tu neznaji. Po ceste se nechame zlakat slibne znici ceduli hlasajici Colonia Suiza...6km prachem a na konci jedna kavarna ve svycarskem dome a kolem trhovci s ruznymi kramy. Skoda casu, jednoznacne nedoporucujeme. Zato pristav Panuelo a hotel Llao Llao s drevenym kostelikem nam vse vynahradi. Okruh s prestavkami zajedeme za 5h, vratime kola a jdeme zpatky na bus. Je navecer a mnohem lepsi svetlo, tak se rozhodnu vybehnout jeste jednou na Campanario udelat lepsi fotky (40min nahoru a dolu, vcetne fotek je slusny cas, zase se dostavam do formy :)
Jeste predtim nez popiseme dalsi den je treba zminit, ze tento den je naplanovany Jancou a prsty v tom opravdu nemam :) Jedna se o odpocinkovy vylet na 1 den. Pujdeme hrebenovku nejvyssiho pohori v okoli...
V 10.30 uz jsme ve vesnici Catedral. Nejvetsi lyzarske stredisko jizni ameriky. Koupime listek na lanovku a behem 15min vyjedeme ze 900mnm do 2200mnm. Jeste 20min stoupaku typu krok dopredu, sklouznout pul zpatky a jsme v prvnim sedle. Vyhled je jeste lepsi nez vcera (Campanario je jen maly hrbolek hluboko pod nami). Cil nasi prvni etapy je Refugio Frey. Vzdaleny pouhe 3km, podle mapy chuze po vrstevnici, tak proc pisou vzdalenost 4hodiny?
Behem chvilky zjistujeme proc. Nejedna se o zadnou pohodovou vychazku, ale o steny a balvany 2-5m nahoru a dolu. Ja si to vylozene uzivam, Janca uz tolik ne (spis vubec ne:). Misty by se ujala i Via Ferrata, pod nami 1500m propast a technicky nejnarocnejsi hike co jsme kdy delali. Nekdy je stena hladka a nejblizsi uchyt i 2m daleko. Kazdopadne vyhledy si uzivame oba. V propasti dole se mota ricka a usti do vodopadu, ze ktereho je dalsi ricka ktera mizi v rokline mezi dvema kopci. Janca uz se vicemene smirila s osudem a tak pomalu postupujeme. Ceka nas uz jen poslednich 0.5km do Freye, ale se sestupem 400m na 100metrech vzdalenosti. Je to hodne hodne prikry. Nastesti je kamen suchy a drsny a da se k nemu prilnout jako ve Spidermanovi, nekdy tak jdeme v uhlu popirajici gravitaci. Janci kolenu se to moc nelibi.
U chaty dame obed a pozorujeme horolezce ve vezich vsude kolem. Zbyvajicich 10km vede dolu lesem, podel reky. Celkove prevyseni je jen 400m, ale Janci kolenu se nelibi uz ani to, tak pajda. Urizneme kus bambusu at ma alespon hul. Kdyby koleno vypovedelo sluzbu na pulce cesty k Frey, tak opravdu nevim co by jsme tam delali.
Les je zatim nejhezci co jsme tu videli, opravdu krasne misto. Ciste listnaty les, vsechno velikani od 30m vys. Po ceste jeste zahledneme nejvertikalnejsi louku co snad muze byt. Stromy co na ni rostou jsou skoro rovnobezne se zemi. Janca odbojuje posledni kilometry a v 6 uz cekame na bus zpatky.
Posledni den uz se jen tak poflakujeme po meste a nakoupime nejake cokolady pred cestou do Mendozy.
Zaverem si rikame, ze toto je misto kde se da opravdu bez problemu stravit nekolik tydnu a mit porad co delat. Zaslouzene je to vyhlasene letovisko a zimovisko vetsiny argentincu. Janci koleno je v poradku, bylo to jen momentalni znechuceni nad velkym prevysenim a uz se tesi na dalsi dobrodruzstvi!

Fotky:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=51860&id=1344786025&l=be9a38afec


After Ruta 40 we are quite exhausted, so all manage is some shopping, take clothes to laundry, dinner and sleep.
Bariloche is first really nice town (by European standards) we see. Influence of Swiss immigrants can be seen in both architecture and many manufactures with luxury chocolate. Forecast for today is not good, so we don´t plan any big things. We walk around the town in the morning. But the weather picks up after lunch so we decide to take advice at our hostel and go for half a day tour along the lake through the forest to a small viewpoint. And it exceeds our expectations. The forest is beautiful, mixture of cypress, tall broad-leave trees and bushes are replaced by bamboo. Over the blue lake you can see mountains with snow on the tops.
Jana has been feeling very miserable since yesterday evening but don´t want to miss on anything so decides to fight it. After breakfast we jump on urban bus going all the way to Cerro Campanario. UNESCO considers the view from the top to be the best one in the world so we are quite anxious. Down below the cablecar tourist buses bring quite a lot of people creating long queues. We don´t see much point queueing instead of taking short walk even when it´s very steep. 40mins and we are up. The view is breathtaking. 360degrees of lakes, forests, islands, hills, beaches and big mountains with snow caps. Pity it´s bit hazy so the pictures won´t be very nice. So we head down and hire bikes from the rental just below the hill. The plan is to do circuit of what we just seen. Around lakes over the islands connected with bridges. Not too far only about 30km although all uphill and downhill. Along the way we get lured by sign saying Colonia Suiza...6km through the dust and at the end one coffee shop in Swiss style house surrounded by markets with useless junk. Waste of time. Harbor Panuelo and hotel Llao Llao with small wooden church compensate it more than enough. When we finish the circuit the afternoon light is much better so I decide to run up the Campanario hill again to take some more and hopefully better pictures. (40mins up and down, including taking of pics is a decent time. Good to be back in shape :)
Before I start describing the next day I should mention that the whole idea came from Jana and I didn´t participate in the planning :) It is a rest day trip. We´ll walk the spine of the highest mountain ridge in the area...
At 10.30 we start from village Catedral. The biggest skiing resort of South America. We buy a ticket to cablecar and within 15mins move up from 900m to 2200m. Another 20mins of steep scramble 1 step up half down and we reach the first gap. The view is way better than yesterday (Campanario is just a tiny hill far below). The aim of our first part is to reach Refugio Frey. Distance only 3km, map showing it´s all the time on contour line, so why the sign shows 4hrs distance?
We find out very soon. Today we won´t be having any peaceful walk on the ridge but climbing of walls and boulders 2-5m tall. I really enjoy it, Jana not so much (hates it would be the better word :) I think Via Ferrata would be justified in some parts, 1500m drop below us and technically most difficult hike we ever done. Sometimes the wall is smooth and closest hold 2m far. But what both of us enjoy is the views. Far below is a small river with many bends falling further down as small waterfall and disappearing in chasm between two hills. Jana comes to terms with the fate so we can slowly make our way forward. We are only half km away from Frey, but with a drop of 400m on 100m distance. It is very very steep. Fortunately is the rock dry and rough and we can stick to it like a Spiderman. Jana´s knee doesn´t like it very much.
At the Refugio we have a lunch and watch climbers in the towers all around us. The remaining 10km is all easy walk through the forest. Overall descent only 400m but Jana´s knee doesn´t like even that so she limps. We cut a bamboo so she at least has a stick to support herself. If the knee went out of order on the half way to Refugio I really don´t know what would we do. Forest is the most beautiful we´ve seen here so far, great place. Only a monoculture of broad-leave trees all 30m tall and higher. We also see the most vertical meadow there can be, trees grow nearly in parallel with the ground. Jana fights the last kms and at 6 we catch the return bus.
The last day we just wonder around the town and buy some chocolates for the bus ride to Mendoza.
Bariloche is definitely a place where you can spend couple weeks and have plenty to do all the time. That is why it is well known summer and winter resort for most of the Argentinians. Jana´s knee is all well now, it was just a momentary disgust over the steep descent, so the knee is looking forward to the new adventures!

Pics:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=51860&id=1344786025&l=be9a38afec