Lakes of Patagonia

Meet & greet at the hotel in Bariloche. Time to set up bikes. Dinner and briefing of the tour.

The “Lakes of Patagonia” tour begins. This morning we wake up surrounded by the mountains of Bariloche and by the Lake Nahuel Huapi and we prepare for a spectacular ride. We set off with our van to the “Manso River”. Once there we will cross the river on a footbridge to start one of the best trails you can ever do! This trail takes you through local farms and forests, crossing rivers, visiting lonely Patagonian lakes, while we enjoy riding our bikes. The landscapes are worthy of a postcard, the path is at times easy, at times more technical, after doing twenty kilometers we will cross the Manso river again and we will arrive at the meeting point with the support vehicle. Time to enjoy the river beach and maybe go for a swim! We load the bikes in the trailer and return to Bariloche. Distance: 20km Type of path: Trails of intermediate difficulty.

After a short transfer by vehicle, we got on our bikes at the “Virgen de las Nieves” roundabout and immediately we start our warm up in an area of low difficulty trails. A few kilometers later, we face the challenge of the day: a climb of just over 4km up to the “Balcón del Gutiérrez” that ends up at the base of “Cerro Catedral”. After an energy refill, we return to the trails towards “Colonia Suiza”, an old town created at the end of the 19th century. Before getting there we will enjoy incredible views towards Moreno Lake. A well deserved lunch and then we continue to start touring the “Circuito chico” passing through the famous Panoramic Point, Bahía López, Lake “Escondido”, Puerto Pañuelo and the famous Llao LLao hotel. We return to the trails to our final destination where we meet our van to transfer us back to the hotel. Distance: 48km. Type of terrain: Trails, gravel and asphalt.

Today we will head to the east from Bariloche and we will leave the green lush forests of Patagonia, to slowly enter the steppe. The exit from Bariloche is done by a new asphalted bike path and by a dirt road, until we reach a small and secondary airport, where we start riding on an old gravel road. Once we arrive at the source of the Limay River, the views of the Andes mountain range and the imposing Cerro Tronador appear. We pass through places of geological and historical interest and we will be able to enjoy the changes in the flora, a great contrast to what was seen the previous days on the Manso River. In the second part of the route we will pedal along tracks accompanying the Limay River, which will always be on our left until we reach Villa Llanquin. Transfer back to Bariloche. Total distance: 50km.

We leave in our van from Bariloche to Confluencia Traful. Once there we start pedaling and getting to know the “other Patagonia”, the one that is less green, less humid but that hides spectacular shapes and silhouettes and that welcomes us with an incredible reddish landscape. We will ride through the “Paso del Córdoba”, climbing up to 1,400 meters in twenty-two kilometers through a zigzagging path that will allow us to observe unforgettable landscapes. In the afternoon we will arrive at Lake Meliquina, and stay at beautiful hotel in little Meliquina town. Distance: 53km / Type of road: gravel road.

We start riding from the hotel in Meliquina on the gravel Route 63, bordering the south shore of the lake with the same name. After fifteen kilometers we reach Route 40, in that section called “Route of the seven lakes” and we deviate in a gentle ascent towards the north. Thirteen kilometers later we leave the asphalt and turn to the east towards Chapelco Ski resort. The six-kilometer uphill continues smoothly to the base of the ski center. After lunch we will go up in the ski lifts to the 1,600m second base, from where you can admire the spectacular Patagonian landscape where the Lanin Volcano stands out. We start a great downhill back to Chapelco and from there we will take a spectacular gravel road to reach San Martín de los Andes. Total distance: 56km

The day starts with an uphill south on Route 40. After six kilometers we turn off towards a gravel road that goes to “Quila Quina”, a reserve of Mapuche origin. Then a strong ride up of four and a half kilometers and two hundred and fifty meters of elevation gain begins. Green forests and Lake Lácar will appear and disappear to our right. Once on top of the “Abanico” hill, we will go down almost the same amount of meters climbed. The panorama is unbeatable: the Andes mountains, green lush forests and Lacar lake will overwhelm you. We ride a little more to arrive the shore of Lake Escondido (Hidden lake). Time for a short refill and then start the wayback to Quila Quina where we will have our lunch. Again, resting time next to Lake Lácar in Quila Quina until taking the boat back to San Martín de los Andes. Total distance: 44km Type of terrain: Gravel and asphalt.

You can continue travelling in San Martín de los Andes or travel to Bariloche with our van (four hours of travel). You can get off at the airport or in the city center.