Route - 4000 km from Buenos Aires - Puerto Madryn - Bariloche - Junin de los Andes with train, bus and car

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I am planning a trip!

(G) Buenos Aires - (B) Bahia Blanca - (C) Puerto Madryn - (D) San Antonio Oeste - (E) Bariloche - (F) Junin de Los Andes - (G)Buenos Aires.      (distance covered > 4000 km)

What first started as a day or two fishing trip got evolved to a backpacking trip covering more than 4000km, involving train, bus, car, bike(?) and of course walking. If you would have asked my if this what I had in mind, when I walked to the local fishing store a cold winter day in Stadshagen, Stockholm, to acquire my first fly fishing rod, the answer would probably been somewhat more modest, in parity with a local lake or stream. Given that I never had done backpacking  nor fly fishing before, I thought, why not unite the two? I am certainly in the correct place for it; Argentina and Patagonia are ideal for it.

My goal was to fish for a couple of days in what is oftentimes referred to as trout fishing capital, Junin de los Andes, so I could just have taken the direct bus from Buenos Aires but, why make it easy (and less fun)?  So I figured, hey, I've got plenty of time and since arriving to Argentina (almost a year ago when this post is written) I have barely traveled. What I have done, apart from learning Spanish  is evaluating destinations and travel options. To my own surprise, I chose to travel with train!

While the Argentinian trains may not be the given choice to travel around in 8th biggest country in the world, there is something romantic about trains, at least from the my very cozy spot in the sofa. Well on board the train, the reality may strike me as the distance from (A) Buenos Aires to (B) Bahia Blanca of 680 km is covered in nothing less than 14 hours. That give us barely an average speed 50 km/h. The fastest man alive reaches around 37km/h, 100m sprint that is. The worlds fastest train, CRH380A,  reaches 486 km/h. 

Luckily, I am allowing myself to travel in Pullman class, including air condition and reclinable seats for only 140 ARS (~ 30 USD) - a report about that experience to follow.

In Bahia Blanca, I will spend a day, not knowing yet what do and see, but I will have a lot of time to read the guide book I am bringing along. Besides, I kind of like the name of Bahia Blanca, so it got to be interesting.

After strolling around in Bahia Blanca, I will be taking the long distance bus to (C) Puerto Madryn, Patagonia, which departs at 20.30 on Wednesday, arriving at 06.00 the following morning. I have heard a great deal about the comfortable buses in Argentina and finally I will have the chance to familiarize with one my self. To be on the safe side, I choose the best available class, which is CAMA (translation: bed) which means that you can recline the seat, making it flat, like a bed. Looking forward to seeing that for my self, as I usually have difficulties sleeping in buses, air planes etc.

The following day, on Friday, I take bus north to a small town called San Antonio Oeste, still in Patagonia. I will only have one hour between my arrival until the night train takes me to Bariloche, the famous Argentinian ski resort, surrounded by Andes close to Chilean border. As I will travel between seasons (being the summer and winter seasons), I don't expect that there will be too much activity, so I will have good possibilities to see the surrondings, watch the famous architecture, which I heard can be compared with the one from Swiss villages by the European Alps. Last and not least, they say the chocolate is fantastic!

How good it may sound, I plan on heading north to Junin de los Andes, already the next day, on Sunday, and I have decided to rent a car, which will be absolutely a good bargain in the low season. I plan on driving the famous route of "siete lagos" (seven lakes) where the scenery suppose to be magnificent. If everything goes well, and if the mother nature's beauty doesn't keep me stopping every 10 minutes to enjoy the view, I should be in Junin de los Andes in the evening, ready to explore the promising fishing waters. Writing this, I am putting expectations of great catches - it may be somewhat embarrassing if my fishing luck isn't with me :)

Keep 'em fingers crossed!