We turned off route 40 at Hualfin, we were aiming to reach Laguna Blanca on the high Puna.  The weather had been poor with a fine drizzle and as we filled with fuel at Hualfin we noticed a wisp or two of sleet. At Villa Vil the road surface changed to gravel , a narrow winding road  hugging the hillsides and as we drove higher the sleet turned to light snow.  To begin with everything looked pretty ,the temperature reading in the wagon read zero.  Gravel turned to mud and the passenger side windscreen wiper iced up , the temperature dropped to -4 ! so we decided to turn back.  We returned to route 40 and camped  behind a petrol station, the snow continued to fall. It was a very cold night.

 The following morning we cleared 3 inches of snow off the car and set off again, the road was clear and dry and a blue sky set the scene for a winter wonderland.  The distant mountains were white and snow covered the cacti and trees. Back through Villa Vil and onto the gravel road, but the Gendarmeria turned us back, the road was too dangerous but by tomorrow it would be clear, a great opportunity to spend the day taking photographs.

Grey Fox

 There are two native foxes in Argentina, this is the grey fox an omnivorous fox, beautifully coloured. Normally crepuscular,  we found this one searching for food in the early morning.