Museo de la Patagonia

I am glad I visited the museum at the end of my stay here as I felt in  a better position to appreciate the information. It started with the Prehistory Room in which there were a range of archeological objects, including some interesting rock art.  Next was the Native Peoples Cultural Heritage room which described the 5 different ethic groups.  The Pehuenche, who were the hunters and gatherers of Monkey Puzzle nut.

Edible nuts, know as Pinon 

Female seed cones (Pinon de Araucaria)

Canoe carved from the tree trunk of the Coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi). This was used by the Huilliche tribe.

Bongo or Huampu

The horse was a very important animal for the Mapuches and Tehuelches.

Escena de la campana al desierto

Finally there was the Natural History Room. It is evident how much they value the natural environment here and strive to find a balance between enabling people to enjoy it and to protect the balance of nature. There are many national parks in the area to protect these area, near Bariloche are the Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi and the Parque Nacional Los Arrayanes. There was a display of taxidermy, that was put together between 1939 and 1978 when they were collected for study and reference.  It enabled me to appreciate the size of the Andean Condor.  I spotted the bird which I had seen when climbing Cerro Campanario but had failed to get a good photo, the Chucao Tapaculo (Scelorchilus rubecula). It is bird exclusive to the forests in Patagonia, it pokes around the dead leaves on the ground in search of insects. Another bird, the Choique (Lesser Rhea), I had manage to photograph as it was in captivity.

Choique (Pterocnemia pennata)

I noticed this large picture on the wall at the top of the stairs, it was by the same artist, Antonio Berni, who had painted the Andean Market mural I had seen in the museum in Buenos Aires.

JUJUY - 1948 - Antonio Berni

Cerro Campanario

I climbed a small mountain today, a manageable climb by myself with good views from the top.

(Tristerix tetrandrus)

Path through the trees

There were many rosettes of this large yellow orchid, they will be amazing in a few weeks time.

Orquidea amarilla (Gavilea lutea) Orchidaceae

It took me less than an hour to reach the top, which was crowded with people who had taken the chairlift. A couple were surprised as I climbed up the rocks onto the viewing platform, commenting that I was alone (solo)! Although I only passed one person climbing up, I met a few people and two dogs on the way down.

Cerro Campanario is between Lago Moreno and Brazo Campanario, with Lago Nahuel Huapi in the distance.  There are good views of the surrounding mountains.

Isla Victoria

Laguna El Trebol with Cerro Tres Lagunas (1860m) in the background

Cerro Lopez (2076m) 

Arrayan, Chilean myrtle (Luma apiculata) Myrtaceae

Cerro Campanario viewed from Laguna El Trebol 

Exploracion Brazo Tristeza

Leaving Bariloche, I travelled 25 km by bus to Puerto Pañuelo, where I was picked up by the guide, Nicolas, who drove us though the forest to Bahia Lopez. We started our adventure on board the Kaikenpatagonia, navigating from Lago Nahuel Huapi up the Brazo Tristeza.  

Kaikenpatagonia

Lago Nahuel Huapi

Brazo Tristeza is a deep glacial fjord, it is very peaceful as it is shielded by the mountains, Cerro Lopez (2076m) and Cerro Capilla (1958m). Numerous spectacular waterfalls appear fed by the melting snow.

There was a good view of Mountain Tronador as we were lucky to have such a beautiful day for the trip. It is an extinct volcano now covered with snow and a glacier on the border between Argentina and Chile.  Three peaks are visible in the distance of which the highest is 3478m.

Mount Tronador

The wood slowly transforms into Valdivian rainforest, which is more typical of the wetter Andes to the west in Chile. However the microclimate created alongside Brazo Tristeza, with the increased humidity from by the numerous waterfalls enables this rainforest to become established.

We dropped anchor at the mouth of Brazo Tristeza, getting to shore in a small dinghy, then started our trek to the Arroyo Frey waterfall. The ground was very soft and spongy from the vast amounts of decaying organic matter. The first thing I noticed was the huge stands of a bamboo like grass, 3 - 4 metres high.  This is the Colihue cane,  a solid perennial bamboo which thrives in the forest especially when protected by the evergreen Coihue.

Colihue cane (Chusquea culeou)

Family Poaceae (subfamily Bambusoideae)

Notable trees were the Alerce and Coihue. The Alerce is a slow growing tree that can live for 3,000 years. 

Alerce (Fitzroya cupressoides) Cupressaceae

The Coihue or False Beech (Nothofagus dombeyi) is an evergreen species in the family Nothofagaceae, adapted to drought and cold temperatures. Despite the high annual rainfall, the summers are relatively dry and the trees need to protect themselves from the drying effect of the strong winds. It is the tallest of the Argentinean Nothofagus species and can live up to 500 years.  Nothofagus is often infected by the fungus Llao-llao, this can be seen hanging from the branches but it also causes the tree to produce large tumours on the trunk. Tree trunks are covered with holes made by woodpeckers as they eat the insects living on the decaying wood at the centre of the trunk.  

Tumour on the Coihue caused by infection by Llao-llao

Fruiting body of Llao-llao (Cyttaria darwini)

Although the trees were magnificent, I was keen to see some flowers and I was not disappointed.

Calafate (Berberis buxifolia) Berberidaceae

Chaura (Pernettya mucronata) Ericaceae

Flower from the Pil-pil Voqui (Campsidium valdivianum) Bignoniaceae

The damp environment was reflected in the many mosses, lichens and fungi.

Barba (Usnea sp) y Liquenes foliaceos

Helecho Punque (Blechnum penna-marina)

Arroyo Frey  waterfall

On the walk back I spotted a lizard scuttling along a dead log.  Back on board, we were ready for our lunch and cerveza.

Sharing a cheese fondue

During lunch we spotted the shadow of an Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus) soaring near the steep rocky mountainside, relying on thermals to stay aloft.  It was difficult to appreciate its size at such a distance but I could spot it perched on the mountain side.

Gracias Nicolas por un viaje increíble, perfecto :)