Mendoza!

Arrival in Mendoza!

At last our biking days were coming to an end. Only the 160 kilometers from San Juan to Mendoza remained, which we planned to cycle in two days. With weary legs we took to the streets of northwestern Argentina once more.

Leaving the San Juan hostel

Passing a local winery

The road was in no way spectacular—straight, flat, and bordered left and right by fences guarding the lands of this precious wine region. Interestingly enough, the Mendoza region (as San Juan’s next-door neighbor and competitor) was extremely meticulous about its wine. Thus, between regions we passed through two checkpoints where cargo was examined (especially fruit) and toxins were sprayed on vehicle tires (to kill any potential invaders that might harm Mendoza’s prestigious wine).

Both fortunately and unfortunately, the second of these checkpoints was the only place that offered some privacy from the big road. As we had found out rather quickly, the route from San Juan was not at all suitable for bikepackers. Traffic was heavy and good spots for camping were scarce to nonexistent. For this reason we decided to put up our tent behind some trees (the only trees anywhere near here) next to the checkpoint. Not to glorify it or anything, but this spot was far from ideal. Thorns, garbage, and loud noise from a nearby generator contributed to this sentiment. The spot became even less ideal when an official accompanied by a policewoman spotted us while we were putting up our tent and kicked us out, citing “government property” laws. It was dark and we had nowhere to go, really. Luckily, experience had made us wiser. Let’s just say, it became our second time finding a creative solution onto the other side of a private fence for emergency camping purposes. :)

Camping on the other side of the fence

Packing up at sunrise

And then we were onto our final day! As we had anticipated, we reached the legendary 3000 kilometers partway through the day.

3000 km!

Yes, it was a battle to the end; however, at long last we paraded onto the Plaza Independencia of Mendoza in the afternoon of June 30.

Posing on the plaza

Plaza Independencia

We had made it! Over 3000 kilometers by bicycle from Copacabana on the northern Bolivian altiplano to Mendoza, Argentinian wine city at the foot of the Andes!

Mileage total

This called for a nice lasagna dinner at Fuente y Fonda and a two-day rest at Hotel Palace.

Victory dinner

Revitalized from a good night’s sleep, we explored this modern city for the next two days before our 12-hour bus ride to Buenos Aires, where we would be meeting Trang!

Bröd bakery

Mendoza’s wines

Rey de la Milanesa

Plaza San Martin

Outdoor market with stuffed animals

Robot

Fortunately, finding cardboard boxes to transport our bikes proved relatively easy.

Packing up our bikes in our hotel room

Mendoza at night

And soon enough we were whisked away by bus, adventure behind us and a family reunion ahead of us. In our final post we will break down some of the numbers from our tour :) Oh what a journey it has been!

Mom reunion in Buenos Aires