Days 8 & 9 -- Villa Traful and the Ruta de Las Siete Lagos

These two days of riding are the favorite of our guide on the Argentine side of Patagonia. Nearly 100km of riding along and above the shores of the seven lake chain--the Ruta de Siete Lagos. This area has been and is still being covered in ash. We could see the cloud in Bariloche, but drove through it and started out our ride on the north side of the plume.

The first day was a hard 35km on ashen gravel roads through spectacular river and lake views. Lunch was along a lovely little stream that looked a bit like the Middle Fork of the Gila if you dumped ash into the water. We finished the ride at our cabanas in Villa Trufal.

Lovely suite of cabins all hand made over the past ten years with lumber recovered from the dead and down on the property. Dave and Deniece had a cute little bungalow with stairs nearly as steep as a ships ladder. I shared a family cabin with two of the other single blokes in our group. Each cottage had its own design and charm. Much better than I can ever remember seeing in the north woods lakeside cabin rentals.

Villa Traful is small, only 540 residents. Usually they are full with tourists this time of year, but, again, the Puyehue effects are being felt. So we had the place pretty much to ourselves. The cattle wander down the street back to the barn to be milked. One family gathered at the rodeo grounds to celebrate something. Kids riding around on their horses wearing gaucho hats. Very very peaceful.

The fishing here is reported to be amazing. Exploring the lakes would be a great way to spend a few days. I could certainly come back to Villa Trufal. Day 9 has us leaving Trufal and riding along the Ruta de Siete Lagos towards Villa Angostura. Again riding ash-pumice-gravel roads to meet up with more major thoroughfares as we get to the bigger towns. I took today off from riding. Dave and Deniece are doing quite well.

The weather up until today has been sunny and warm (80s), windy on occasion. Today is breezy, a bit rainy, and quite a bit cooler. The rain keeps the dust down a bit, the cool is a nice change. Villa Angastura is yet another cute little town in the mountains. This one unfortunately appears to have been impacted more greatly than Bariloche.  Perhaps 40% of the eight block downtown has either been closed or is renovation that appears to have stopped. If Puyehue does not stop soon, I think it could be hard for this little hamlet to survive. - UnclePhool, Dave, and Deniece