The Lake District

Greetings from Patagonia, long-awaited destination of my outdoor dreams! We arrived in Villarica just over a week ago after a ten-hour, 700km bus journey from Santiago, our longest and probably last bus of the whole trip. And since then, we have been in cycle touring heaven with bright sunny skies almost every day, impossibly blue lakes, snow-capped volcanoes, waterfalls, and beautifully lush woods - somewhere between Norway and the Rockies, we think. To maximise on the views and avoid the Panamerican Highway (and not because we have turned into proper hard-core cyclists, honest) we decided to cross the Andes again back into Argentina, where we are now. Then tomorrow it will be back to Chile for what is supposed to be another absurdly scenic stretch of lakes.
It´s peak holiday season here at the moment (full of wealthier Argentinians from Buenos Aires) so prices are quite high and the towns are busy but it´s easy to get away from the crowds and we´ve stayed on some idyllic campsites. Camping isn´t that cheap either (more than a decent Peruvian hotel) but wine is still very affordable so all is well.
Puerto Montt is four days away and there begins the legendary Carretera Austral. And that will most probably be the end of all this warm sunshine, you will be glad to hear.