Country bumpkin seeks sophisticate's advice

I've been daydreamin' and mentioning same to my wonderful bride to the point
that she has picked up on my urge and 'more or less' authorized a trip to
Patagonia ( will have to be next season ... about a year from now ).

I'm a bumpkin and don't really know how all you world traveler types
organize and manage the various essentials of such trips. I ain't been on
a airplane in close to twenty years, for instance.

So, when you guys go to Alaska or Pango Pango or etc ... do you take all
your camping equipment with you, or buy most stuff when you get there ( I'm
thinking so far of about a month to six weeks of DIY fishing, mainly camping
but with enough hotel time to not go nuts, or start attracting condors
FWIW, I've researched the DIY thing enough to feel confident that it's fully
possible ... I will probably pay for access to a place or two, but not
guides and lodges )

Larry L ( who is still at the daydream stage but feels good about his
chances of pullin' this one off ) ( and who thinks this place needs a
boost that isn't from caffeine ;-)

"Larry L" wrote in message
...
I've been daydreamin' and mentioning same to my wonderful bride to the
point that she has picked up on my urge and 'more or less' authorized a
trip to Patagonia ( will have to be next season ... about a year from
now ).

I'm a bumpkin and don't really know how all you world traveler types
organize and manage the various essentials of such trips. I ain't been
on a airplane in close to twenty years, for instance.

So, when you guys go to Alaska or Pango Pango or etc ... do you take all
your camping equipment with you, or buy most stuff when you get there (
I'm thinking so far of about a month to six weeks of DIY fishing, mainly
camping but with enough hotel time to not go nuts, or start attracting
condors FWIW, I've researched the DIY thing enough to feel confident that
it's fully possible ... I will probably pay for access to a place or two,
but not guides and lodges )

Larry L ( who is still at the daydream stage but feels good about his
chances of pullin' this one off ) ( and who thinks this place needs a
boost that isn't from caffeine ;-)


If you were planning on camping I would look at renting a camper. May be
called a caravan if like Europe. It can be cold and rainy in Patagonia from
what I have seen. Not been to the south of Chile, just Santiago and to the
North. You may look in to B&B's. They are cheaper than most hotels after
you leave the USA. At least in Europe where we have traveled a fair bit.
Staying at small hotels / B&B's will also get you in touch with the people
and they may give you points on where to fish. Food is good there. They
do love meat. Been a few years, but I think the big meat sandwich is a
"Lomita". Get a good phrase book for Spanish as well as guide book. Look
at the Moon, Frommers, etc. get one you like the layout of. They speak
mostly Spanish and German. Especially outside the cities. There are
Internet Cafes everywhere these days, so you can keep in touch with home via
email for little cost. Contact your bank and credit card companies before
going and inform them of the time you will be gone and where you will be.
Otherwise, you might find out your cards do not work. Credit card companies
tag a 1-3% kicker on international transactions. So find you what your
company charges and go with the cheaper on. ATM's are the best for getting
cash. Best exchange rate, and low ATM fee if any from the out of country
bank. I had them raise my daily limit, so needed less trips to the ATM.
Make sure you have a 4 digit PIN number. Do not know of any 6 digits
anymore, but at one time Wells Fargo did. Check with an international
travel doctor specialist if there are any special shots you need. I do
recommend a Hepatitis shot. My doctor said that if you have to go to a
doctor down there, there is a possibility of blood on a gurney, etc. Take
some Cipro in case of a bad bug. ATTN: Do not take dairy after the Cipro
regimen. Kills the good bacteria also, and since the upper intestine
handles dairy and the bacteria are gone, the lower intestine gets to do the
job and it has a field day with dairy. You will need lots of TP in that
case. Been there, found out later about the dairy problems.

"Calif Bill" wrote


tons of good stuff snipped


Thanks Bill .... I noticed you over on a travel forum and thought maybe you
were planning a trip south ?

On Tue, 15 Jan 2008 23:27:04 GMT, "Larry L"
wrote:

I will probably pay for access to a place or two, but not
guides and lodges )

I don't know of any outfitters in Chile/Argintina. I'm sure there are
some. That would be my first stop. If you had to bring all your
camping gear on the plane, you'd pay a small fortune in overweight
charges. I believe there are places in both countries where you can
pay to fish. I googled all this a year or so ago.

I'm heading down to Chile in another six weeks or so to a lodge run by
a friend from Maine. I'll ask him about any do-it-yourself
adventures.

Dave

Don't mean to pull an MC here, but forgot something:

You will need a passport, of course, but not a visa. Be prepared to
pay $100 U.S. when you enter the country. The nearest fair size town
to Patagonia is Coyhaique right at the foot of the Andes, and near
lots of rivers. You should be able rent a car/truck there, and there
are hotels available. You will probably fly into Balmaceda which is
serviced by jets out of Santiago de Chile.

Good luck in you plans.

Dave

"Dave LaCourse" wrote



If you had to bring all your
camping gear on the plane, you'd pay a small fortune in overweight
charges. I believe there are places in both countries where you can
pay to fish.


that is why I think it may be better to buy heavy and bigger items there and
then give them away when ya leave Patagonia is famous for bad weather ( I
used to dream of mountain climbing there in the way, way, way back years )
but equipment good enough for 'car camping" should be easy to find and
fairly cheap ( except if it has to be imported ) and I won't need state of
the art stuff like real adventurers might .... I would take my clothing
state of the art stuff with me and fishing ****, of course


In Argentina, by law, all water is open to public fishing, including
the land within 35 feet of high water line ... of course, getting to that
35 feet can be a problem G but once there you are legal My kid is
going to Chile, but I think I'll try Argentina. From topos it seems the
'eastern slope' suits water of my style in more places ... the high desert
feel is one I love IF it comes with a creek G

"Dave LaCourse" wrote


Good luck in you plans.



Got the passport already .... Coyhaique is one place on my list already,
too. Not much of Chile is technically in 'Patagonia' as I understand it
.... i.e. Patagonia is the steppes beween the Andes and the ATLANTIC ....
only a small section of the Andes jog west enough to have such an area in
Chile ( or the border jogs east? ) ... I mention this only because I found
it very interesting when I read it, I had used Andes and Patagonia
interchangably and ah, incorrectly ... Patagonia derives from the name of
the peoples that lived on those steppes

"Larry L" wrote in message
...

"Calif Bill" wrote


tons of good stuff snipped


Thanks Bill .... I noticed you over on a travel forum and thought maybe
you
were planning a trip south ?





Costa Rica.

Calif Bill wrote:
"Larry L" wrote in message
...

I've been daydreamin' and mentioning same to my wonderful bride to the
point that she has picked up on my urge and 'more or less' authorized a
trip to Patagonia ( will have to be next season ... about a year from
now ).

I'm a bumpkin and don't really know how all you world traveler types
organize and manage the various essentials of such trips. I ain't been
on a airplane in close to twenty years, for instance.

So, when you guys go to Alaska or Pango Pango or etc ... do you take all
your camping equipment with you, or buy most stuff when you get there (
I'm thinking so far of about a month to six weeks of DIY fishing, mainly
camping but with enough hotel time to not go nuts, or start attracting
condors FWIW, I've researched the DIY thing enough to feel confident that
it's fully possible ... I will probably pay for access to a place or two,
but not guides and lodges )

Larry L ( who is still at the daydream stage but feels good about his
chances of pullin' this one off ) ( and who thinks this place needs a
boost that isn't from caffeine ;-)



If you were planning on camping I would look at renting a camper. May be
called a caravan if like Europe. It can be cold and rainy in Patagonia from
what I have seen. Not been to the south of Chile, just Santiago and to the
North. You may look in to B&B's. They are cheaper than most hotels after
you leave the USA. At least in Europe where we have traveled a fair bit.
Staying at small hotels / B&B's will also get you in touch with the people
and they may give you points on where to fish. Food is good there. They
do love meat. Been a few years, but I think the big meat sandwich is a
"Lomita". Get a good phrase book for Spanish as well as guide book. Look
at the Moon, Frommers, etc. get one you like the layout of. They speak
mostly Spanish and German. Especially outside the cities. There are
Internet Cafes everywhere these days, so you can keep in touch with home via
email for little cost. Contact your bank and credit card companies before
going and inform them of the time you will be gone and where you will be.
Otherwise, you might find out your cards do not work. Credit card companies
tag a 1-3% kicker on international transactions. So find you what your
company charges and go with the cheaper on. ATM's are the best for getting
cash. Best exchange rate, and low ATM fee if any from the out of country
bank. I had them raise my daily limit, so needed less trips to the ATM.
Make sure you have a 4 digit PIN number. Do not know of any 6 digits
anymore, but at one time Wells Fargo did. Check with an international
travel doctor specialist if there are any special shots you need. I do
recommend a Hepatitis shot. My doctor said that if you have to go to a
doctor down there, there is a possibility of blood on a gurney, etc. Take
some Cipro in case of a bad bug. ATTN: Do not take dairy after the Cipro
regimen. Kills the good bacteria also, and since the upper intestine
handles dairy and the bacteria are gone, the lower intestine gets to do the
job and it has a field day with dairy. You will need lots of TP in that
case. Been there, found out later about the dairy problems.




--
Cut "to the chase" for my email address.

Calif Bill wrote:
"Larry L" wrote in message
...

I've been daydreamin' and mentioning same to my wonderful bride to the
point that she has picked up on my urge and 'more or less' authorized a
trip to Patagonia ( will have to be next season ... about a year from
now ).

I'm a bumpkin and don't really know how all you world traveler types
organize and manage the various essentials of such trips. I ain't been
on a airplane in close to twenty years, for instance.

So, when you guys go to Alaska or Pango Pango or etc ... do you take all
your camping equipment with you, or buy most stuff when you get there (
I'm thinking so far of about a month to six weeks of DIY fishing, mainly
camping but with enough hotel time to not go nuts, or start attracting
condors FWIW, I've researched the DIY thing enough to feel confident that
it's fully possible ... I will probably pay for access to a place or two,
but not guides and lodges )

Larry L ( who is still at the daydream stage but feels good about his
chances of pullin' this one off ) ( and who thinks this place needs a
boost that isn't from caffeine ;-)

(Sorry about that null post.)

The only advice I can give you , Larry, which I'm pretty sure you won't
follow, is don't go alone.

--
Cut "to the chase" for my email address.