Un dia como un gaucho

After a low-key day in Mendoza, I wanted to take advantage of the beautiful outdoors and the spectacular Andes mountains nearby, and my dorm-mates offered the perfect opportunity. Staying with me were a slightly older group of guys from Greater Buenos Aires, and they invited me to join them on what I like to think of as a Gaucho Adventure. (Gauchos are classic Argentinean cowboys.)

We left town around 2pm, driving west towards the Andes mountain range. After taking a short tour of a beautiful canyon, we were dropped off at a camp in the foothills to begin our hike. The landscape reminded me a lot of California's mountainous desert regions, but these mountains were even higher than the Sierras. We made our climb into the mountains using a dry riverbed as our pathway, until the bed gave way to a dry rocky creek. From there we started a steeper climb on the rocky terrain until we found a tranquil valley tucked in between several peaks. It was a spectacular place that we reached, a place not unlike what I had always imagined a hidden valley in the Andes would look like. A couple of young Argentineans were camping there and I envied them because I didn't want to leave.

After climbing over 2000 meters (6000+ feet) in a few hours, we retraced our steps almost all the way back before changing direction to reach a stable of horses. We arrived about 30 minutes after sunset, and were greeted by a modern-day gaucho along the way. It was only my second time ever riding a horse, but my nervousness was easily overcome by my exhaustion and thankfulness that I didn't have to walk anymore. So, after a quick sip of Matè to give us all a pick-me-up, we loaded up and rode off.

The horseback riding was actually more challenging than I thought it would be because of the conditions. We rode for nearly 2 hours through the desert brush of the foothills, mostly by moonlight, as the sun had set long ago. Adding to these challenges, my friend Sergio started to poke some fun at me and was looking for a response. But riding a horse at night, being witty, and speaking Spanish all at the same time was far beyond my abilities that night!

When we finally got back to the camp after 10pm, the tour staff had prepared a sumptuous asado for us, including some of Mendoza's famously tasty wine. It was a perfect cap to the day in the outdoors that I had been craving for so long.

Standing on a rickety bridge spanning an impressive canyon in the Andes just outside Mendoza.


Myself and the porteños standing in the dry river bed that was our principal path during the day.


An amazing sight, a small creek being swallowed up into nothing in the sandy river bed.



The Magical Place. The valley we reached at the top of the trail.


The view back down after we started descending from our summit.


The mountains at sunset.



A real gaucho.



Not a real gaucho.


Sergio, his friend, and I, getting ready for our ride.