Bariloche

This was maybe the favorite trip that I have taken so far. Found a cheap flight to part of Patagonia called Bariloche because it was the offseason (close to winter, but not enough snow for the mountains).

We got lucky and had nice enough weather to be able to do some awesome hikes.

One was a quick one that went to the top of a huge vista overlook. Pic below of part of it, but it went all the way around. Was beautiful. We got lucky because we got to our Airbnb at like 5:30 pm that day and sunset was at 6:40, but the hike was super close to us. Great way to spend the remaining day hours.

Refugio Frey

The next day, we did this hike called Refugio Frey, which I think was the best hike I have ever done in my life. I was pessimistic to start because it was really cloudy and the hike was 12 kilometers (~7.5 miles) each way. It cleared up, though, and was so worth it.

The fall colors on the hike and the huge array of different landscapes in such a small area was very special. We saw huge overlooks to the lake with awesome fall colors, we walked through a path surrounded by small bushes, we were in a forest with very green and fun looking moss, we saw big mountains that had a bit of snow on them, and then we saw this big lake at the end that we were right on top of. Some pics below, but they don’t even come close to capturing it.

Was cool because there was a little cafe at the top, so we grabbed a quick drink there.

The weather held up and was just so beautiful and nice and raw in nature. Reminded me of time I’ve spent in CO, California and other states.

The trip, overall, was super relaxing and nice to get into raw nature that was so beautiful. Reminded me how much I miss and love that.

Seems like Bariloche is a big place for backpackers, since there are tons of longer trails. Definitely want to try and go back eventually because of the mountains, lakes, forests and vibe of the place