Mark, Maya, and I set foot in Argentina for the first time on March 6th, 2024, coming from Chile and Bolivia. Sure, we hopped into Chile a few more times, and we enjoyed a three-month break in our home countries since then, but we feel we gave our explorations of Argentina a valiant attempt. So much so that, in the end, we couldn’t wait to leave. We realized that slow travel—while it has many advantages—can also wear you down in third-world countries.
(As always, click on or hover over photos in galleries to read their captions.)
After saying goodbye to our friends Heather and Jon in Mendoza, our trio headed east, with the Córdoba region as our first main destination. We stopped at a couple of places beforehand, but didn’t sleep well due to traffic noise and encountered restrictions in national parks because of Maya. After that, we gave up on Argentinian parks altogether.
What follows is a realistic account of our life and discomfort on the road, with a few sights thrown in. It wasn’t the best month we’ve had.
Route Northern Argentina
Dique Luján
We searched iOverlander for a quiet spot over Easter weekend and found a reasonable option by the dam of Luján. Coincidentally, we had picked a campsite close to a pilgrimage site with Stations of the Cross.
We managed decent walks with Maya and the sun finally gave us the warm weather we’d been waiting for after our coldest and wettest summer on record. But because of the heat, our fridge started acting up again—running too much, too hard, and draining the camper battery.
After one warm day, the clouds returned, power became precious again, and the wind picked up. The incessant shaking of the camper upset both Maya and our sleep. We had finally found a quiet place, but ended up moving in the middle of the night to find better wind protection among trees.
The following morning, we moved away from those same trees, fearing they might drop particles on the roof that would upset Maya. We found an open-air spot, but that didn’t help with power since it rained all day. We had to run the car for an hour just to charge the battery enough to work—our computers and Starlink need a lot of electricity. Mark and I also cleaned the fridge’s compressor with Q-tips and improved its ventilation. That helped it run more efficiently.
On Easter morning at 8am, teenagers in two cars pulled up next to us, opened their doors, and blasted music. We had planned to leave anyway, so we took off for a long day in the car.
Capilla del Monte
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