Ins and outs

Getting around

Travelling along the Ruta 40 is quite an experience, and unless you're taking the bus, it's one that requires careful planning. Travelling south, the road is paved as far as Perito Moreno, and then good ripio, improving greatly after Las Horquetas. From Río Mayo to El Calafate, the wide stony ripiotrack of the Ruta 40 zigzags its way across windswept desolate land. Every few hundred kilometres or so, there will be a small, improbable signpost to an estancia, somewhere off the road unseen, but be warned that not all accept paying guests, and many are just ordinary sheep farms. There are only a few service stations for fuel along the whole stretch, and few places offering accommodation. The best time to go is between October and April. Outside of these months travel is still possible but accommodation and transport is hard to find, and the winter is deadly cold.

Bus

The most efficient way to travel this stretch is making use of the bus services offered by two companies, Chaltén Travel and Itinerarios y Travesías who between them run one service daily in each direction between Los Antiguos and El Chaltén. Departure times and the itinerary can change throughout the year, but if you're keen to stop off at Cueva de las Manos, both companies run a service which visits the caves at dawn, at least a couple of times each week. A new year-round no-frills service run by local bus company Taqsadeparting twice a week between El Calafate and Bariloche via the Ruta 40, is making the route more accessible. Cueva de las Manos can also be reached with a tour organized from Perito Moreno or the most attractive Los Antiguos (www.losantiguos.gov.ar).

Car/motorbike/bike

Hiring a car in one town, and dropping it off in another is possible, and allows great flexibility. But it's only fun if you're not travelling alone. Make sure you know exactly where the next petrol station is, as they can easily be 300 km apart: carry spare fuel, and allow more time than you think before nightfall. It's not advisable to travel faster than 60 kph on ripioroads. Take warm clothes, hot drinks and a blanket, in case you become stranded at night. If cycling, note that food and water stops are scarce, the wind is fierce, and there is no shade whatsoever. Hitching along this road is virtually impossible, and can't be recommended, as you could be stranded for days.

Crossing the border from Chile

You might be wondering how to start your journey along the Ruta 40. There are several options. Travelling from north to south, you could reach Río Mayo from Comodoro Rivadavia, with regular buses along the Route 26. There are also daily buses from Esquel, at the southernmost end of the Lake District. But you may well have crossed from Argentina into Chile at Futuleufú (near Trevelin) and come south along the Carretera Austral in Chile. In this case, take the ferry across Lago General Carrera/Lago Buenos Aires, from south of Coyhaique to Chile Chico, and cross the border back into Argentina at Los Antiguos. This is one starting point of the bus journey south along the Ruta 40.

Accommodation

Be warned that there are few decent places to stay along this entire route. The best bases for accommodation are the pretty little town of Los Antiguos, near the border with Chile, and Perito Moreno - both in the north. After that, there are only remote rural estancias, and some very bleak one-horse towns until you reach the tourist haven of El Chaltén. Take a tent if you're on a bike. To get to the estancias, you'll need to have booked in advance, and you'll need your own transport to get to them. Various companies organize tours along the route, with estanciastays and travel included, for more information see www.guiatierrabuena.com.ar, and www.lastfrontiers.com. There's a useful site for information on the estanciasin the area, although this organization offers no real logistical help, www.estanciasdesantacruz.com.