hippys and microbrews

Greetings again from Bariloche. Yesterday was spent touring the countryside south of here, with the town of El Bolson being our featured stop. About two hours or 120 km south of Bariloche, El Bolson is considered to be the hippy capital of Patagonia. Walking around town it is impossible not to notice the dreds, ponytails, and the occasional wiff of weed. This is quite different from Bariloche, where the chocalate shops and other tourist trappings have reached an almost kitch like quality. El Bolson is also known for its microbrewerys. At a local street fair I asked a woman working one of the beer stands how many microbrews originiated in town and she responded by saying ¨too many to count!¨ Amazingly over 75% of Argentine hops are grown on the farms surrounding town.

We spent the night at a refuge/cabin perched at 4600 feet overlooking the town. It involved a steep 10km drive over a rough road and than an additional steep 45 minutes by foot. It was very relaxing up there, reading New Yorkers and Sports Illustrateds, occasionaly looking out to town and the mountain ridge opposite us. We returned north this morning, hoping to do a few walkes to some local glaciers but once the rain started it only increased in strength and thus most of the day was a wash. Tomorrow, we will likely head north to the town of San Martin de los Andes.