Although the biggest thing I wanted to do in Bariloche was RELAX, the highlight of Bariloche was driving La Ruta del Siete Lagos. This is partly because we did the drive the day of our 9 year anniversary (yes, Dan and I have been together 9 years!) and partly because it was amazingly beautiful and relaxing.
La Ruta del Siete Lagos is about a 150km drive that takes you around 7 amazingly beautiful, interconnected lakes, and about 50 other bodies of water. And even though it's the busiest part of Patagonia, once you're out on the open road, there aren't a lot of people in your way.
You can drive La Ruta del Siete Lagos with a tour group, or you can hitchhike, but I think a car is really the best way to get around--especially if you want to actually take breaks and enjoy the scenery.
While Bariloche was definitely more tourist-friendly, getting a car last minute was still a bit of a struggle. Altuen offered to call for us, but it wasn't until we visited several places in town that we found a place with a car. We had a conversation about the contract in Spanish, which I understood 70% of, then blindly signed the rental papers. By 9am the following morning, we had our car and were off!
Driving La Ruta del Siete Lagos:
The road begins in the center of town, and most people start by heading west. (We had a 7.2km head-start, due to our hotel location.)
The whole first part of the drive, wraps around Lake Hupai, a giant, empty, glassy body of water that makes Tahoe look like a swimming hole.
About 45 minutes into the drive, you arrive at Villa Angostora, a really cute little town that was hit by a volcano in 2011, and is still in the process of rebuilding. There are some great places to stop and eat, and some good breweries. (Fodor says Australis is the best brewery in Patagonia, but I wouldn't go that far.)
Once you leave Villa Angostora, you are in the heart of the drive. 7 icy blue, crystal clear, mostly connected lakes, one after the other. The lakes wrap around the road, with plenty of places to stop and admire the view, or if you have time, get out and swim.
The views were amazing, but the thing that was most shocking to me was that there was no one on the lake. Like, we saw 5 boats the entire time we were out, across 150km of highway.
Not surprisingly, the water was like glass. And really. There was NO ONE out there. While I doubt Argentina has the money to develop much of a boating culture, if you were able to get your hands on a ski-boat out there, it would be some of the best wake-boarding ever.
The drive takes you all the way to San Martin, another little town with a formalized swimming area, kayak rentals, shops, hostels, and lots of spots for food, beer and wine.
For many people, this is the “end of the line” and you can turn around and drive back, but we had heard it was beautiful to come back the other way, on over 60km of unpaved road.
It was. Even though we got stuck behind a really slow van for about 20km on the gravel road.
All-in-all, I would say La Ruta del Siete Lagos is a must-do drive. Don't take the tour bus, don't try to hitchhike, rent a car and go. Your effort will be rewarded with beautiful lakes and incredibly majestic rocky landscapes that, unfortunately, I really can not do justice to with my current level of photography skills. You will just have to go and see for yourself.