Road trippin'

Adrian had this awesome idea to take a small U.S. highway (highway 18) from its start, in Wisconsin, to its end, in Wyoming.

You have to admit it is sort of romantic. And no, I'm not being sarcastic. Hitting a road that is not a giant 8-lane freeway is appealing albeit slower. So that's what we did.

Our first night we stayed in a motel in a tiny town smack dab in the middle of South Dakota's bottom half. When Adrian asked about restaurants, the manager/owner pointed out the two gas stations that prepare "some damn good rotisserie chicken and pizza" and then invited us to join their pool game in a garage off the main building. We picked pizza. It was damn good. Adrian added in a pickle for good measure. I'm not sure what the additional pickle accomplished, but Adrian enjoyed it.

The following morning, we questioned our decision to take smaller roads as Adrian plowed his way through drifting snow. We moved south into Nebraska and took the equally petite highway 20 the rest of the way into Wyoming. We hooked back up with highway 18 until interstate 25 for its official finish and by then the snow was gone.

That night we settled in with our friends in Denver and enjoyed a meal sans bagged pickle.

Rediscovering America

We're back. In the States that is. Not that we were gone a long time - just three months. But our time apart has made everything - the sights, the sounds, the bad television - seem so much sharper and vivid upon my return.

Our first days back in the U.S. I noticed how big we are. I live in the LAND of BIG. I'm not talking fat. I'm talking big. Some of it's fantastic - our parks, our confidence, our generosity, diversity, willingness to take risks, our ability to bounce back from failure and to persevere.

Some of it's kind of depressing - our consumption, our waistlines, our obsession with The Hills. Some of it makes me mad - our hypocrisy.

It's not all bad. For one, and for all of our griping, our political and economic systems are pretty sweet. I realize it's a simplification. We have our problems. We also don't seem to have a problem getting meat to grocery stores. (See Where's the beef? blog post)

And our people - despite our egos, our misunderstandings, our fears - are pretty damn nice. I never really thought of ourselves as the go-above-and-beyond-friendly types. But after taking a leisurely drive from Wisconsin to Colorado and down to Arizona I am convinced that there is a lot of hope in this country and a lot of hope FOR this country.

I also can't explain how great it is - a relief almost - to come home and walk around, ride the bus, take a taxi, whatever and to see our citizens and those trying to become citizens in every different shape, size and color imaginable. I'm not really sure if Americans realize how unique we are, how our strength is buried somewhere in the folds of our differences.

Final thoughts and reflections on Argentina

Here are a few observations that I may or may not have mentioned before that make Argentina and Chile such remarkable places.

1.) Perros. You know the saying "all dogs go to heaven?" Well maybe they come to Argentina instead. A dog's life here isn't easy. It's not entirely bad either. The dogs, both owned and stray ones, trot blissfully around town using people when crossing busy streets. They are well fed and more than once I've seen them walk into a store or restaurant only to be handed an empanada or leftover meat. Strangely, the dogs here seem to know what restaurant you're going to and several times during our travels a dog escorted us right to the door of the cafe or bar we were heading towards. Spooky.

2.) Translations. Argentines speak English well. They are smart people. The English translations that appear in menus, signage and governmental brochures do not reflect this. I am perplexed as to how this can happen, but as this photo shows a bad translation can be downright unappealing.

3.) Buses. Any form of transportation that is both comfortable and entertaining -can you say Bingo on the Bus - is for me. Argentina's buses are amazing and I wish the United States would get a few like them.

4.) Friendliness. People in Argentina are ridiculously nice. For example, Adrian and I were looking for a restaurant and we knew we were close. I stop into a little apartment complex and ask a guy if he knows it. He does not. He asks three or four people and they don't know either. I prepare to leave, but he stops us. He pulls out the Yellow Pages and gives us the address. He then calls the restaurant to confirm the address. He draws us a map. The restaurant was two blocks away. Stuff like this happened to us all the time.

5.) Stop signs. As in there are no stop signs. I don't understand this because there are stop lights and the occasional yield. But stop signs - especially in Mendoza - are conspicuously absent. This scares me, but I have learned to accept it. See video below. Note the end of the video - motorcycle versus bus.

6.) Seat belts. Nobody - including small children - seems to wear them except taxi drivers. Note the no stop signs comment above. I think the taxi drivers are on to something.

7.) Mate. It's more than a drink. It's an experience. The mate is like a loose green tea that is placed into a gourd or wooden/metal cup. Hot water is poured into the cup and the preparer drinks it out of a metal straw called a bombilla. The preparer then passes it to the next person after filling it up with hot water. It sounds simple. But it's not. Since the drink is meant to be shared, it seems to contain magic that allows me and my crappy Spanish to communicate with other Argentines.

Goodbye America del Sur

Adrian and I left Argentina a couple of weeks ago. Now that we're back - and as I look through our photos - I find myself thinking about our next trip to South America, what we might want to see and whether we would do anything differently this time around.

If given a chance to do our trip all over again I wouldn't change much. Although here is my biggest struggle: travelers want to see the best sights including Torres Del Paine, Bariloche, etc., which means every gringo in the world is coming through these towns. The result? You meet lots of cool people, but unless you make an effort you don't meet a ton of other Argentines.

Adrian and I were lucky and we made some great friends from Europe, the U.S. and South America. I watched others stick to their own cultural group and I wondered why they even bothered coming to Argentina at all.

Our Pacific Crest Trail Hike Begins Soon

We're in Tucson preparing for our attempt to thru-hike the PCT, all 2600 miles of it.

We're hoping to keep this blog updated on our progress as best as possible with the help of Kirsten's sister.

We will be keeping a detailed trail journal on a different website. The journal will keep you updated on where we are, how many miles we've hiked and feature pictures we take along the way.

Please book mark this page, as it will direct you to our trail journal.
http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=6627

This pictures shows the entire trail.

The hike starts April 30 so please keep tuned!! Thanks!

Where's the beef?

I should have mentioned this weeks ago and admit that as a travel blogger I dropped the ball.

Argentine residents and some tourists found themselves in a gastronomic predicament for three weeks last month.

Argentine farmers went on strike in March after President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner imposed a tax on exports of grains in an effort to protect consumers from inflation. The tax sparked a nationwide strike by farmers who were angered by the tax and argued it would artificially curb inflation and reduce their profits.

The result was hundreds of roadblocks throughout the country, which led to a beef and dairy products shortage. The photo above was a picture I took at a grocery store in Mendoza around March 30. Argentines are among the largest consumers of beef in the world and the shortages of meat left many in a quandary about what eat. Some Argentines I spoke to said they were eating a lot of pizza.

The strike ended April 2 when farm leaders agreed to start talks over the matter. Whether they come to an agreement is less clear. Residents I spoke to during this time were in disagreement as to whether the tax idea was a good one. And at least a few claimed the strike was more to do with the president's gender than the policy itself.

Many tourists didn't even realize there was a strike going on until it was well into its third week. Budget travelers seemed to notice it first because they were hitting up the grocery stores more often. For example, the day before I took that photo Adrian and I had a lovely dinner where we both had meat. Meanwhile, residents trying to buy meat at the grocery stores were finding empty shelves.

My favorite news source - Bloomberg News (where I worked over the summer as an reporter/intern covering the commodities market) reported today that fires started by farmers burning their fields for grazing has led to a smoke-filled Buenos Aires. Click here to read the story and find out how this is related to the strike.

Bus-voyage

There is nothing like a 17-hour bus ride to catch up on a few movies and brush up on your Bingo skills.

Adrian and I said goodbye to El Bolson and headed back to Bariloche. After a farewell Mexican meal with Janey we set off for the bus station and our much anticipated 17-hour ride to Mendoza.

The buses here are pretty sweet with fully reclining chairs, blankets and movies. But 17 hours is well a long f-ing time.

The views about an hour from Bariloche were amazing and Adrian and I are already thinking of returning. During our bus ride, one of the conductors organized a Bingo game for the passengers.

Keeping up with the numbers in Spanish was a struggle. And sadly we didn't win the game.

Summiting Piltriquitrón

After a day or two loafing about it was time get moving and we picked Cerro Piltriquitrón as a worthy summit to go for.

The area below the mountain is a popular spot for paragilders and after we finished our hike we were lucky enough to see one launch. In the video take a look at how much time they have to get off the ground and clear the trees below.

On day three in El Bolson, Adrian, myself and our friend Janey, got up early for once and drove out to the trailhead about 11 kilometers from the hostel. The final stretch of road up to the trailhead and dusty and bumpy, but doable in any kind of car.

The trail first took us through El Bosque Tallado or the sculpted forest, a collection of wood carvings created by local and international artists. The forest was the brainchild of sculptor Marcelo Lopez, who wanted to do something about a stand of burnt lenga trees on the trail at Piltriquitrón.

Hikers pass right by the sculpted forest on their way to the refugio and later the summit. However, the caretakers of the forest ask for a few pesos per person to see all of the carvings.

We reached the refugio about 45 minutes from the parking lot and were treated to nice views of the town below. There were a numbers cats near the refugio and within minutes of our arrival they were sitting on our laps by the overlook.

During the summer months anyone planning to hike up to the refugio and beyond should leave early in the morning and bring plenty of water. We were walking in the shade for most of the morning and as we made our descent later that afternoon we passed dozens of Argentines and other travelers who were suffering from the heat on the steep climb up.

The hike from the refugio to the summit was steep at times, especially on the last section. Anyone with some hiking experience would consider this an easy to moderate trail. And the slog through sketchy choss at the end is worth it once you reach the top.

Berries and bohemians

After a day in Bariloche it was time to get out. We were looking for a place to relax, away from the shops and tourists in Bariloche. We couldn't go far because in a few days it would be time to head back up to Mendoza. We decided a El Bolson, a small town known for its berries and bohemian attitude, would be the perfect fit.El Bolson, is probably best known for its crafts market that feature preserves made from the hordes of blackberry and raspberry bushes in the area as well as leather, wool goods and handmade jewelry.

We stayed at Refugio Patagonica, a clean, spacious and busy hostel located a 10-minute walk from the El Bolson's central park, where local artisans sell their wares every week.

Most international travelers seem to take the bus from Bariloche to El Bolson, about a 2 1/2- hour ride. We rented a car so we could explore the area surrounding the town. And explore we did. We hit up a local trout farm, took a short hike outside of town and went in search of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid's old pad (more on that later).

Renting a car in Argentina can be expensive compared with everything else in South America. The cost of renting a car in Argentina is comparable to prices in the States, although it depends on what area you are in. We rented a small fiat for about $40 USD a day.

Thanks for the gift

Before I start some international incident or accidentally portray myself as an uneducated and uncultured American here is my little disclaimer: I acknowledge its beauty and realize this statue is supposed to depict a folktale although I haven't been able to nail down the exact story yet.

Ok, back to business. I came across this sculpture of a dog and nursing two babies as I walked around Bariloche. The plaque at its base said it was a gift from Italy. Not that this isn't a striking statue that is sure to evoke conversation.

But .... I have to wonder what the city's powers-that-be said upon receiving it. Um, gee thanks.

Latin-flavored swiss

What does a bustling Argentine town surrounded by mountains and lakes model itself after? Why Switzerland, of course.

Before and after our five-day trek to Nahuel Huapi, we stayed in San Carlos de Bariloche, located in the western side of the Rio Negro province. The town is smack dab in the middle of Nahuel Huapi National Park and it's main civic center is just up the hill from the Nahuel Huapi Lake.

The buildings in Bariloche's center are made of stone and log making it look like a cross between a Swiss and Colorado ski town.

There are St. Bernard dogs and puppies milling about and for a small fee tourists can have their photo snapped with one.

Bariloche also is known for its chocolate and dozens of chocolatiers line the main street. We sampled our fair share of the chocolate treats and brought along a small stash of them for our trek.