Argentina 4×4 trip (4 Wheel Drive)

In January, a 4×4 expedition team from Malaysia went on a drive along the Patagonia of Argentina. They called themselves the 4×4 World Explorer. Comprised of retirees, businessmen, adventurers and also a group of explorers, this was their third expedition to South America. Most of them even shipped their own cars there for the journey.

Travelling across Patagonia takes approximately 4,500km from Cordo­ba to Ushuaia. The whole Patagonia journey took the 14-member team around two weeks to complete.

The journey was full of sights and sounds, colour, flavour, texture, taste and excitement. There is really too much to describe, but here is a rough sketch of the journey the team un­dertook as part of a quest to find the ultimate adventure.

Patagonia is a region on the south­ern most part of South America. Some named Patagonia as “Home of the Gods” and “Foot of the Gods”. It is

comprised of the southernmost part of the Andes mountains that is located in Argentina and Chile.

The team started their journey from Buenos Aires, the Argentinian capital, to Cordoba, the second largest city of

Argentina. From Cordoba, we headed south to the best wine-producing area in the region – Mendoza.

Mendoza is famous for producing Malbec wine, using a variety of purple grapes in the process. Malbec wine is

very popular in Argentina and Chile. One notable change in scenery in the Mendoza region was the hazy condi­tion of the landscape. We were told that it was due to the natural moisture from the ground. Perhaps the same moisture needed to grow the excellent purple grapes.

Then, we experienced a view of the famous pampas on the way to Malar­gue. The journey continued through Neuquen and Rio Grande before we camped at the beautiful Lake Alumine. Though it was summer (this is the Southern Hemisphere), it was freezing after sunset. The nights were as cold as 3 to 5 degrees Celsius. In the morning, a thin layer of frost melted with beautiful sunrise overlooking the lake.

From there, we started to enter the re­gion with many famous lakes. One town in particular with a great lake view is San Martin. As we passed that, we reached another beautiful town with a gorgeous lake view – Bariloche. There, we went to the Bariloche mountain to enjoy the full view of Bariloche town. Unexpect­edly, it snowed during our visit.

After staying for two nights at Bariloche, we went to Los Antiguos through Esquel. In Los Antiguos, we had our second camp near the lake. Much can be said about camping in the Argen­tinian countryside. The excellent pan­oramic view itself is better than staying at any hotel.

In Gregores, we had a stay over at a private ranch, to experience living like the Argentine in the Patagonia regions. We had traditional roast lamb and also marvelous sausages with bread and ol­ive oil. In the ranch, some of us took a horse ride overseeing the wild ducks and also the sheep in the farm. The ex­perience was spectacular.

We thought the best was over, but we were wrong. We reached El Calafate next, a town named after the famous Ar­gentine black berry.

El Calafate is the home of the famous Perito Moreno glacier. Named after the 19th century explorer Francisco Moreno, Perito Moreno spans 250 square km.

It is the largest glacier in the region and one of the most important tourist attractions in Patagonia. We spent a full day admiring the Perito Moreno Gla­cier at the Perito Moreno National Park by cruise and also by driving up to the mountain. Many tourists from around the world gathered here to see the natu­ral wonder.

After enjoying that, we travelled fur­ther south to Rio Gallegos. The first im­pression of Rio Gallegos was that the town was very windy! It was really quite

hard to walk around, and dust was flying everywhere.

We then went to the Tierra Del Fuego region of Argentina. Our destination point will be the southernmost city in the world, Ushuaia. However, in order to reach Ushuaia, we must enter Chile and take a ferry across the Strait of Magallen and exit Chile to re-enter Argentina.

As we were travelling on our Ma­laysian cars, entering Chile was quite troublesome with the paperwork and other hassles. Most of them don’t really speak English but thankfully our guide Booby translated nicely for us. If you’re travelling in Argentina, a good guide is a must.

Upon arriving at the Strait of Magal­len, we could see the long queue of trucks and trailers waiting to board the ferry. Surprisingly, we spotted a group of Commerson’s dolphins in the straits.

Next, we reached Paso Garibaldi, lo­cated near the sharp peaks of the Sierra Valdivieso and Sierra Alvear. Some say this is the end of the Andes mountains and the Patagonia.

Lastly, we reached our final destina­tion of the Patagonia adventure, Ushua­ia. Ushuaia has a population of 100,000 residents and it is also the nearest port to Antarctica. Ushuaia is also famous for its fresh king crabs.

Many restaurants pro­vide dishes serving king crabs or dishes using the seafood as an ingredient. Not forgetting the dolphin island near El Ha­berton, the infamous light house and also “the end of the world” train ride.

Even though it’s summer, the weather in Ushuaia was very cold. The temperature averaged 10 to 15 degrees Celsius daily, with the warmest days

reaching 23 to 25 degrees Celsius.

The whole Patagonia adventure took us around two weeks. Driving along Route 40 was the biggest challenge and we always kept extra petrol in our spare tanks. We helped stranded motorists

along the way as well. We passed plains with dirt, mountains with snow (they have snow all year long), vine­yards, volcanic dust, amazing lakes and breathtaking landscapes. Not forget­ting the many friendly Argentines and also Chileans who helped us along the way. We attracted the immediate at­tention of the locals as we were driving cars from Malaysia in their country.

I stayed in Ushuaia for nine days be­fore going back to Buenos Aires. After celebrating my Chinese New Year and spending a good 29 days in Argentina, I came back home. It was truly an amaz­ing experience. However, the team is not done yet with South America.

4×4 World Explorer are veterans in organising long distance 4×4 expedition-styled

adventure vacations. Since 1992 they have covered the continents of Asia, Europe, Middle East, Africa and the Americas. The spirit of adventure is their driving force. Do check out their website at 4x4WorldExlorer.com for their latest South America expedition.

The group might be planning to re­turn to South America in June for a full trip. They left their cars there, so they are definitely going back!
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SOURCE:
“Stepping into the Home of the Gods”
By Wilson Ng
Tuesday, May 4th, 2010
Wilson Ng is a part time blogger who loves to travel, looking for good food and spending time with his family. Do check out his adventures as well as food reviews at his website
www.Plac­esAndFoods.com
Malay Mail Online
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