So I picked the town...... A small set of hills, the only separation in 


2000km along the eastern coast of Argentina (of totally, totally flat ) before our next 


main stop to the Welsh heartland & the Penguins. A perfect way to try out a 


bit of climbing and look down across the flat Pampas....





How was I to know there was a festival, how was I to know the it 


doubled the population of the town and all the buses for 4 days would be booked 


up..... 





How was I to know that all the hotels in the area would be booked up 


and search as we might, there would be no room at any hotels.... So we


stumbled ( I had to carry / drag Mel) into a campsite that rented 


out tents...... But for 20 minutes it was a scene from Challenge Anika with 


the owners finding English speakers to confirm that it was true, two people


had turned up, not only without a tent but no mats, no sleeping bags, 


no cooking equipment, not even any plates or knives or forks...... Surely 


our Spanish was wrong.....





So, an hour later and it looked like something from the ideal home


exhibition, a large tent erected for us, everything a camper could ever 


want with a wood delivery arranged for later. All we had to do was get the 


steaks and we had it made (similar to the £6,000 tents at Glastonbury last


year....) 





The main part of the trip was a 5 hour return hike up a mountain (only


1450m) which I know Mel was dreading..... but we had a stroll the day 


before and Mel seemed OK, and when it came to the walk she was off.... flying 


up the hill it was hard to keep up... a 2 hour climb up was fairly hard 


with a very gentle final 1/2 hour along the ridge of the mountain...it's like 


doing the Miners path on Snowden for 2 hours... But there were kids and 


flipflop clad ladies doing it, so I think we were rather well equipped. 


Especially as I was loaded up like a pack mule, 4 litres of water, camera and food, 


plus emergency clothes encase the weather changed... But we got there and it 


was amazing....





Shattered as we were on the way down Mel decided that we should take 


another 1 1/2 hour diversion to a water pool to freshen up. Totally freezing 


but well worth it....





So in the evening we returned shattered and tired, crashed early to bed 


to be up for the 7am bus back the next day.... Only to find as we waited 


at the bus stop that it was Sunday and the first bus wasn't for another 2 


hours, so, back to bed and a change of plan. A stroll around town followed by a 


small hill climb overlooking the town....





Returning to the campsite to pack and sadly for me a little too quick on 


the old packing front and this gave chance for the old Fat Camp Instructor 


to demand I go for an afternoon run back up the hill and back before we 


get on the bus for a few days!!!! I think there will be no rest until I'm


challenging Kate Moss for skinny malinky of the year..... Only a couple 


of kilos to go!