The Lake District is just on the northwest side of Patagonia and it may have been my favorite of the regions I visited in Argentina. On the west side you can creep into the Andes where you'll quickly reach the Chilean border. There are beautiful alpine lakes everywhere here in the longest continental mountain range on earth (4,300 miles). I jumped off the bus early with my friend Lili because El Bolson, a great base for hiking in the region, was too beautiful to pass up! That's one of the greatest benefits of backpacking and not overplanning. You can just get off wherever you want when you have the right gear.
This is the "refugio." I stayed here one night before heading to the summit, or "el cumbre." I met two guys from Buenos Aires here when I arrived around 9pm, in the freezing rain. They were planning to head to the top in the morning as well, so we teamed up! Neither of them spoke English... At all. I know enough spanish to get along, but most of the time we either looked like we were playing charades, or laughing so hard we couldn't even speak. We always seemed to find a way around the language barrier though.
Cerro Lindo
Nikko, Myself, Roberto
El Cumbre - Cerro Lindo 
The right conditions can make coming back down a lot more fun, and easy!Glisading
We were having a little too much fun
When we got back to the refugio, a man had arrived with his 3 sons and 2 mules. These places are so cool. There is always a person "working" there and when I came in wet, cold and late that first night, he was cooking fresh bread in the wood stove. You have to share a mutual interest to even make it to places like this, so you end making real friends.
It was very hot coming back down to Rio Azul, which you see here.
We were having a little too much fun
When we got back to the refugio, a man had arrived with his 3 sons and 2 mules. These places are so cool. There is always a person "working" there and when I came in wet, cold and late that first night, he was cooking fresh bread in the wood stove. You have to share a mutual interest to even make it to places like this, so you end making real friends.
It was very hot coming back down to Rio Azul, which you see here.The water was close to heaven after 3 straight days of sssstrenuous climbing/hiking.
Villa La Angostura
Villa La AngosturaLake Nahuel Huapi
Of course you know I had to eventully make my way to the wine country! Oh yes, Mendoza. I believe the bus ride from San Martin de Los Andes was around 17 hours. I arrived at 8:45am and of course I met 2 guys who invited me to go with them on a wine tour, by bike. It was too good to pass up, and it was one's birthday. I had no choice!
Mi gusta Vino Tinto!
Aged in Oak barrels
Jose de San Martin, an Argentine general, lead his "Army of the Andes" through these mountains to Chile where they fought and eventually prevailed over the Spanish in 1818, liberating Chile from Spanish rule.
Anconcagua
Aged in Oak barrels
After the wine tour and sleeping in a hammock because the hostel didn't have any beds left, I rented a car with a girl from the Netherlands, and a dude from Tennessee. We took off the next morning to see Cerro Anconcagua. If you don't know what that is, it's only the highest mountain in North and South America at 6,962 m, or 22,841 ft
Long straight roads out of Mendoza
Into the Andes
Jose de San Martin, an Argentine general, lead his "Army of the Andes" through these mountains to Chile where they fought and eventually prevailed over the Spanish in 1818, liberating Chile from Spanish rule.
Anconcagua
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