Review: Argentina Tour & Uruguay Day Trip, Bariloche, El Calafate, Buenos Aires, Colonia, Ushuaia, Beagle Channel Boating

Our initial 3 days in BA included seeing the city with our very capable guide and driver and then topped off with an evening cooking class.  We made a typical Argentine menu and then enjoyed eating it.  A fun experience and now with the recipes to try at home.

On to Ushuaia where the days continued to be packed with our guide making sure we saw the sights and learned history of the area, its people, flora, and fauna while driving, hiking, and boating on the Beagle Channel.  We saw the resident wildlife of sea lions and thousands of cormorants and other bird life.  Another trip via the Channel to a particular island to see 2 species of nesting penguins and the wildlife who share their nesting abode in the cycle of Mother Nature was a big treat.

El Calfate (or just Calafate as it's generally referred to) is a "new" town in what in our state we might refer to as the high desert although its at an elevation of only 672 feet above sea level.  The entire Patagonia area is deceptive in terms of elevation.  Calafate is all about the nearby stunning glaciers, which we saw up close and personal!  What fantastic works of Mother Nature!  One day (all day) was a trip on Lake Argentino catered to a few people with icebergs of every size and shape floating along right up to the glacial mass of Spegazzini; another day involved a short hike to see Pietro Moreno Glacier.  We were so close, it seemed we could reach out and touch the crystal sky blue, blue, blue ice and water. Beautiful.  Horseback riding near Calafate with our capable horseman guide on the wide open space next to a glacial lake was another highlight.  This former cowgirl appreciated the good stock rather than "trail" horses that are often available to tourists.   And, Argentine saddles are wonderfully comfortable with their padded lambskin cushion, sort of a cross between Western and English styles.  (We had fantastic weather throughout our trip, but the wind, she can blow, in Calafate - and evidently all of Patagonia!  Be sure to layer your clothing!)

Now to Bariloche, surely one of the world's most geographically spectacular areas, ready and waiting for tourists who may want to ski at South America's largest ski area, hike, kayak, paraglide, horseback ride and more.  This is an outdoor paradise.  Our activities included hiking, horseback riding and kayaking.  Each activity was catered to us with friendly care and efficiency.  I cannot say enough about our guide and her gaucho helper who provided us with good horses and a day to remember riding on the ranch ranch, preparing a cookout, sighting wildlife and providing an experience we will long remember.  This was the real, real deal!  Our kayak guides, were also fantastic; ours was not a long excursion at our request as we were at the end of our trip and wanted a bit of time to prepare for the trip home, but the experience they provided was fantastic.  We were (so!) lucky to have calm water and blue sky, it was as if they'd arranged for it.  They rolled out the red carpet for a great picnic lunch, including wine and quite the gourmet offerings.  Our hiking guide was so knowledgeable about plants and the area, what an education we got along with viewing the Andes and the lake area that will remain in our consciousness forever.