I left Bs As with hugs, kisses, and a handshake then took a short 1.5 hour ride to my friend`s place in Tigre.
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| Sunset in Tigre |
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| View of Water Taxis in Tigre from Rooftop |
We charted out a route that night, and I decided to head to Gualeguaychú, which was 210km according to the interweb. It was aggressive, but I figured I would have more daylight than riding in Mexico, and I was previously able to make close to those distances in more challenging terrain. We ate at a parrilla and stuffed ourselves with wine and meat, but I was left with only 20 pesos in my wallet.
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| Last photo before heading out. Best hosts ever. Thanks Julia and Nick. |
Not even an hour into my ride, I meet a guy that has a blog about dancing Tango and biking to Ecuador! http://travesiadiariosdebicicleta.blogspot.com/ We were actually talking about this guy at dinner. It was so random that he happened to stop me in the road while I was checking my map.
I have learned from my Baja experience that I should always carry cash so I decided to venture into the first reasonably sized town (Campana) in search of an ATM. Additionally, turning toward this town appeared to be a shortcut. According to my non detailed map, there is a highway through the middle of town which put my route more on a hypotenuse. Instead of a convenient bank and quick get away, I found myself roaming in circles and tangents until I crossed some industrial train tracks. The tracks were significant for two reasons. First, my rear tire pressure was so low that I felt the rim hit the track which is the cause of pinch flats. Second, these kind of train tracks are a sign that I screwed up and need to turn around. I stopped to pump up my tire and got my gear back in order. As I was backtracking, I was thinking about recommendations for other bike tourists. The one at the top of my list is to always buckle the loop on your camping gear into a pannier.
After some more aimless peddling through Campana, I found the hypotenuse but no bank. As I was appoaching a non distinct bridge, I noticed a 1.5 inch steel lip, and I did my best bunny hop manuever with the 50kg bike to avoid a pinch flat. As I was performing this stunt, I heard a funny noise like the sound of my tire blowing out. I quickly looked down and saw no damage. About this time, a truck gave me some honks. I assumed it was because I swirved a little as I was looking elsewhere, but then I thought about it a second longer and realized those were quick friendly honks. Let me digress about honking. There is the long single `what the hell are you doing in my road` honk. There is the quick double `I wish I was on a bike too` honk. Then there is the repeated quick `you dropped something` honk. When I realized which honk I was hearing, I stopped to notice that I ignored my own advice and saw my sleeping pad basking in the sun on the shoulder. I set out straight for it going the wrong way on the highway. When I was about 200 yards away, a moped stopped, the guy on the rear scooped it up, then they turned around and high tailed it down the highway backwards. Had I just been robbed? Or was this a case of finders keepers?
In any event, I cut my losses and continued northbound. I decided that I can manage my way to Iguazu without camping. Now my original plan was to make it to Gualeguaychú for today`s ride. With the punishing headwind that began as I crossed the Zarate bridge and my miserably slow 12kph pace, I change my destination to Ceibas. The city of Ceibas only exists because a pair of highways happen to cross there.
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| Check out the scenery. It is brutally flat and boring. These bridges are the most exciting part of the ride. Also, check out how low in the water the boat is cruising |
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| My bike adorned with a slightly used 'un auto menos`sign but missing my sleeping mattress. It`s quite a tight fit on the pedestrian sidewalk which reminded me of the levels in F-Zero where the magnets try to suck you into the walls. Instead of my hoover car blowing up, my panniers will rip off. |
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| Crossing Provincia Lines |
I arrive in Ceibas close to nighfall, without water or much food, and with 9 pesos. I ask every store and restaurant in town if they accept credit cards, and I get the same unsatisfying answer. With my meager 9 pesos, I decide to buy the largest and coldest water bottle available, and I quickly enjoy most of my 1.5 liters of slightly chilled water. I find a desolate gas station and post up my tent behind it. I am doing this in no light when I start to notice that I am getting murdered by mosquitos. After swatting swarms of mosquitos, I start to feel ant bites on my feet. The situation couldn`t be any worse. Or could it? I get in my tent and kill what bugs made their way into my tent while setting it up. I spread out my sleeping bag and lay down. I thought I found a flat smooth area, but I have all sorts of rocks and really terrible uncomfortable objects poking me. If only I had an air mattress, this part would be a non issue.
A friend told me that once he slept against his mosquito net and woke up with 30 mosquito bites and Dengue Fever. I therefore tried to lay in ways that would prevent me from touching the netting on my tent. This would be easy if I was inside my sleeping bag. However, there were several factors against me this night. It was hot and muggy. I was covered in a combination of sunblock and dehydrated sweat. And I wanted the extra layer of protection against the earth. Needless to say, I slept very little this night.
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While I laid there in misery, I decided to write up a pros and cons list of Bs As.
Pro - Super cheap public transit (Subte and Collectivo). Con - Many people in Bs As have bad BO. It is especially pungent on the Subte.
Pro - Grass Fed Beef and Cheap Parrillas. Con - Service is non existent, the food is very bland, Cubierto (fee per person for sitting at the table).
Pro - People are really attractive. Con - Porteñas (People from Bs As) are stuck up and can go histerica.
Pro - Rabid soccer fans. Cons - Can`t sell out their stadiums and have to wait to exit the perimeter.
Pro - Endless nightlife options for every day of the week. Cons- Really spread out because the city is very large so bar/club hopping is more difficult.
Misc Pros - Free 90 day Visa, Fernet is popular, Tasty ice cream, Really cool Ex-Pats
Misc Cons - 50 Cycle electricity, Taxi try to rip you off and give you fake money, humid with bugs, wax paper napkins
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I have made it to Gualeguaychú which is the Carnaval Capitol of Argentina. I am being kicked out of my hostel so I am not exactly sure when I will leave. However, I will continue north shortly.
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| The route I will take most of the way to Iguazu. |
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| Beach at Gualeguaychú. There is sand and a lot of people to the left, but I was in the shade and didn`t want to snap creepy photos from a distance in the dark. |
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