We are heading further north on Argentina's quintessential Ruta Cuarenta. Pepe buzzes happily on the reasonably well paved roads (that is, the humming left wheel sound and occasional loss of power do not worry us too much at this stage).
It is 19 January and we are still very close to the bottom-end of the South America map, and thousands of kilometers from Rio, where our return flight departs in a little over 10 days. Tick-tack-tick-tack, for the first time in months, we begin to feel the clock ticking.
But little did we know how many road trip adventures were still ahead of us...! We become the very close witnesses of a guanaco accident - killing both the guanaco and the car - and give the shaken old couple a ride home - Pepe's turn to save stranded people! A little later, we are stopped by a bunch of desperate gauchos in an even more desperately looking car (Pepe is a youngster in comparison!) whom we help out with combustible so they can make it to the gaucho festival in the next city. (They looked and smelled as if they made their entire way from Buenos Aires like this!)
The Cueva de las Manos makes a wonderful road stop and a welcome break in between long driving days. Back in the hilly Lake District, Pepe reminds us to "take pride in the line behind us" :) After a memorable night by the lake, we enjoy a relaxing morning kayak stroll, before turning east for the last straight line to... Buenos Aires.
“It’s a long road, but it’s worth it.”
