Our next stop after visiting the iconic Iguazu Falls was the remote Ibera Wetlands Reserve. This reserve was assembled (purchased from private owners piece by piece) and developed by Douglas Tompkins. He was the American entrepreneur who started The North Face company and was also an avid conservationist. He bought and converted over 2 million acres of land in South America for use as parks, which he then donated to the people of Chile and Argentina! He died tragically in 2015 from hypothermia after his kayak tipped on a glacial lake in Chile. This was the first of several parks we visited that are his legacy.
The reserve completely blew us away with the amount of wildlife that can be seen! We saw so many different species of birds and other animals we could hardly believe it. Including rheas (think ostrich), herons, eagles, foxes, caimans (think alligator), boars, deer, armadillos and the ever present capybaras! If you are wondering what a capybara is, I’ll tell you, they are the largest species of rodent in the world and can weigh up to 150lbs. Fortunately, they are extremely docile and look like enormous guinea pigs. Sometimes we had to walk right next to them since they were lounging on the hiking trail! Our AirBnB location was perfect, right on the edge of the reserve, and many of the animals roamed the grounds at dusk.
Another cultural experience we had was seeing dozens of shrines along the road to “Gauchito Gil” / Little Cowboy Gil. He is the most prominent folk-hero in all of Argentina and is especially venerated in the rural areas of the country. The best way to describe this historical figure is to equate him to the popular legend of Robin Hood. He robbed people and gave some of what he took to the poor. Today, you can find shrines of all sizes located throughout the country. We stopped at the biggest shrine in the country to Gauchito Gil. It was a strange experience, it was like being in a church in many ways, except instead of Jesus you had Gauchito Gil as the main focus (though Jesus was there too – in the background). There were literally hundreds of gifts, offerings, and notes of thanks for answered prayer on the altars.
Our next big stop was La Candelaria Ranch (and polo club). This is the place we had reserved to experience life on a historical and working ranch. Many ranches have been unable to remain profitable in the last fifty years and in order to survive have turned to tourism. Additionally, this particular ranch also boasted a full size polo field and we were lucky enough to catch a practice game! Watching the horses racing across the field was beautiful and the game itself was interesting to learn. We also got to do a little horseback riding and buggy driving of our own at a very relaxed pace. One example of how laid back the staff was; when the the woman managing the horses asked Sharon is she had any experience in driving a buggy and Sharon told her she didn’t this was her response, “Pull right to go right, left to go left and pull back to stop.”
The main gastronomical event at the ranch was a giant barbecue (called an asado) where they cook every conceivable and edible part of the cow for your dining enjoyment. Let’s just say it was an adventure and we tried it all! But the absolute highlight of our time here was befriending an older Argentinian couple, Oscar and Liliana, who were celebrating their wedding anniversary. Accompanying them was their son, Nico. We had an immediate connection with this family (Liliana and Phyllis both paint) and enjoyed spending meals together and learning more about their culture and personal histories.
Just a quick explanation, in case you were wondering, this all happened in December of 2019. We are behind on editing pictures, which pushes back the blog updates, so we are using our quarantine time to catch up! Hope you are well and staying safe. Our quarantine is slated to end on March 31st here in Argentina if all goes as planned.
Stay safe and stay healthy,
Chris & Sharon
I love your emails. They are well written and I feel like I was there with you both. Love you, Kirk
Hey Kirk! It is so great to hear from you. We are so glad that you enjoy the updates. Hope you and the kids are doing well during this difficult time. We saw that you are praying more with your extra time – that’s wonderful! And we are very jealous of all your watery outings 🙂 Sharon is keeping in pretty close contact with her dad since all this started…how are your parents doing? We love you too! Chris & Sharon
What an amazing adventure! Praying that you will stay safe and virus free.
Thank you Patricia! We are surely blessed to be on this journey. We pray that you and your family will be safe and healthy.
Great pics of wildlife and birds. Glad you are getting caught up through your quarantine. Do you know how long. Probably like us we don’t know. Probably depends on how many new cases, huh? Is your mom stuck with you for weeks? She was supposed to be gone after 4 weeks, no? Well i hope you guys are enjoying it all, like we are trying to do. I am somewhat bored.
Hi June! The latest update on our quarantine is that it has been extended through April 12th. Sharon’s mom is home in Bend, Oregon (She was actually volunteering in Uganda when the Cvirus hit and had to return early from her missionary trip). We are trying to use our time wisely and accomplish many of things we have not had time to do (like sort all the pictures for these updates). I am sure you will keep busy. We pray that you and Steve would stay healthy.
Great photos (as usual). Thank you for sharing.
As usual, it is our pleasure and privilege to share a little of the much we have been blessed with. Stay safe and healthy in lovely Baja! Chris & Sharon
As I listen in my head about your travels, and look at your pictures, I find myself smiling, grimacing, laughing and yearning as I linger over each photo. I love that you are living out your God driven dream that you so patiently waited to fulfill. My prayers are ever with you, as is my heart. Sending you BIG L💗VE 💕
We feel your BIG love Lita!!! Thank you for your prayers and for joining us on this amazing journey! Your encouraging words help me when I get overwhelmed plodding through the thousands of photos we have taken to find the best ones to share. We are blessed to be on this trip and to have friends like you. Love and ‘virus-free’ hugs – Chris & Sharon
Thank you for the update! We are praying for your safety and health and that you can get back on the road again soon! We loved the pics! Alaina especially loved the capaberas. Besides the pictures of you guys of course, I loved that wierd little bird with it’s neck stretched out! Love you both!
Thanks Tara! We are so happy to share our adventures with those we love! We were thinking of Alaina when we were with the capybaras since we know how much she loves rodents. When I saw that weird little bird I thought it looked like something out of a Dr. Seuss book. Thank you for your prayers – always appreciated. We love and miss you and your family!