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Bariloche is the main ski resort town in Northern Patagonia. The town is also a favourite party destination for students from Buenos Aires and Peak Leaders' trainees as well as being an adventure sports' town.

Located in the western area of the Province of Río Negro, Bariloche is in the heart of the Nahuel Huapi National Park. Not only is San Carlos de Bariloche a rite of passage destination for students on graduation, but it also welcomes visitors from all over the world who come to one of the main ski resorts in South America: Cerro Catedral.

There is a wide range of activities for visitors. During the summer, adventure tours are popular: rafting, hiking, mountain biking, horse-riding and fly fishing excursions. In winter it is all about snow sports.
Likewise, lake excursions across the Nahuel Huapi provide access to spots that are unique in the world, such as the Myrtle Forest and Victoria Island.

Argentine Culture & Trips      

(Buenos Aires, Esquel, Traful horseback trips)
During your time with Peak Leaders in Argentina, there are trips organised, when you'll experience the richness and fun of South American culture. You'll go from the Atlantic to the Andes, ride with gauchos, learn spoken Spanish, see the soaring condors of Patagonia, travel across the pampas on the Patagonia Express steam train (optional), stay in vibrant Buenos Aires and watch Tango danced in the streets ( have a go maybe...), visit Evita's house and the thriving La Boca. Life, happily, will never be the same again.

Argentine Culture

We will spend two days in Buenos Aires on the return trip. The course leader, alongside our longstanding friend and Argentine guide , show the group some highlights of the city. Here’s a snippet from Lucie Archer one of our Course Leaders:
 
“[The day] consisted of a walk through the city to see the sights.  We visited Recoleta, where there is an amazing cemetery (Evita is buried here), and then had a coffee stop (or for some a breakfast stop). Café con leche and dulce de leche ice cream were the order of the day.  This was followed by a walk through the city past Teatro Colon (a very famous theatre) and on to Plaza de Mayo.  We then headed to La Boca (the mouth), which is the old docks area of the city and renowned for the place that the tango was created!  It is a very colourful part of the city – literally, as all the buildings are painted in yellow, red, blue, green..... Some of the group ate here for lunch and watched the tango, some of the group even danced the tango. The evening saw us all eventually (with the help of Mel’s linguistic skills) make it to a small Flamenco restaurant for tapas…The Flamenco was fantastic to watch, sitting very close to the action, it was a mesmerising  performance.” 

La Trochita

We will visit the steam train known as the Patagonia express or La Trochita. There are over 400 km of line still operating what we see today is only a small part of the original, unaccomplished Patagonian railways project. Its original character has been kept largely unchanged, like virtually nowhere else in the world.

The train runs along the imposing landscape of the Andean foothills, where over 600 curves can have a surprise waiting just around the bend. And the many old stations and stops where the train must pause to refill its water tank, as the locomotives can consume water at a rate as high as 100 litres per km.

Mate.

You will be introduced to the rituals of Mate, (pronounced ma-tay) Many of the locals drink mate instead of tea. Yerba mate is a species of holly native to subtropical South America.The infusion made from the plant is called mate and is prepared by steeping dry leaves (and twigs) of yerba mate in hot water, rather than in boiling water like black tea or coffee. It is a slightly less potent stimulant than coffee and much gentler on the stomach. Drinking mate with friends from a shared hollow gourd with a metal straw is an extremely common social practice in Argentina.