Riding It Out in Patagonia

Cycling Through a Pandemic is a project sharing the stories and perspectives of cyclists from ten countries around the world, who embarked on journeys in their home countries during the pandemic. This is Andrés and Jime's story.

The Manso area is a deep mountain valley, one of the most beautiful in Patagonia. Here you can find a 20 kilometre (12 mile), fully rideable path that runs parallel to one of the most beautiful and mighty rivers in the region. In full quarantine in Argentina, it was our best option to breathe the pure air of the forest and feel like we were travelling for a few hours. At that time we were living in a little cabin, in a village of 200 inhabitants between the towns of Bariloche and El Bolsón, and we were only a few kilometres from Manso. The bikes were the great escape: necessary, in such a chaotic and uncertain context.

The trail starts at the first footbridge known as Paso Andrade (on Provincial Route 83, 11.5 kilometres from National Route 40) and ends at the last footbridge called Paso Jones at the height of Camping La Pasarela from El Manso.

We cycled all the way without any problems, except for some small sections where the terrain was pretty steep and we had no other option but to walk. During the entire route and on the north bank of the Manso river is the Bastion Hill, a very beautiful cliff almost 2,000 metres (6,562 feet) high. In several sections, when the path narrows due to the vegetation, we had to be very careful with rose hip thorns, not only to avoid punctures, but also to avoid hurting any exposed areas of skin.

Almost halfway along the trail, we crossed a stream where we couldn't help getting our feet wet and lifting the bike on our shoulders. Once on the other side, we stopped to eat fruit and some dried fruit. When we finished and continued riding, we discovered that a few metres away there was a very nice beach to rest on, right next to the Manso river.

A good way to crown this journey is to get to the border with Chile: from the last bridge it is only 10 more kilometres (6.2 miles). Although there are no campsites in this section, you can go back to the bridge to camp. We always carry jackets with us in case it gets cloudy or if the day is cold, because Patagonia is quite cyclothymic when it comes to weather. Every so often there are also some streaks of rain that lower the temperature a lot and even some snowfalls higher up.

Regarding food and water, on Provincial Route 83 we found some campsites with stores. Water is not a problem because throughout this area there are mountain ranges and rivers where we were able to fill our bottles. Something we really enjoyed was the fried cakes we ate at the end of the tour, which were one of the best we ate in the south.