Once again the wind was blowing strongly by the time we woke up so we were on the road soon after seven o'clock. There was no sign of life from the four Chileanos but we were sure we would see them later in the day at Emilio's casa de ciclistas in Tolhuin.

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In general Argentinian drivers seem to be far more cyclist aware than they were five years ago.  Unfortunately here on Tierra del Fuego the message has yet to get through.  I suspect driving here is just more cavalier than further north and the number of signs of MVA fatalities seems to bear this out.

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After riding strongly yesterday we felt quite flat this morning, possibly exacerbated by starting out rather quickly in the hope of missing the predicted afternoon westerly wind. The last twenty kilometers Tolhuin was a bit of a slog and we were in need of a good rest once we had arrived at the Panaderia la Union.  

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On making our way to the basement where Emilio has provided space for cyclists we discovered that most of the area was now given over to storing flour and only a tiny area with three beds was available for cycle tourists. Two very friendly Argentinian cycle tourists of my age were already there and had settled in for a few days. Unfortunately they were just too friendly for our current states. We really needed to be able to relax and possibly have a nap but it would have been impossible with constant demands for interaction. With the knowledge that the four Chileanos needed digs for the night we decided to leave what available space there was left to them and I went off to look for an alternative. 

Just a block or two away from the bakery is Hostel Kau Karskam. It is expensive and there was construction and maintenance work on the go but, with accommodation options in Tolhuin being limited and with both of us feeling rather depressed by the experience at the casa de ciclistas, we took a couple of dorm beds for the night.

An hour or two later our spirits were lifted by the arrival of Tim and Jo. They had found the casa de ciclistas overflowing with the two older Argentinians plus the four pleasant young Chileanos. They moved into the other bunks in our dormitory and we ended up enjoying a pleasant evening around the dinner table. A far more positive end to the day than it had seemed it would be a few hours earlier. 

The hostel itself deserves the price it charges. Leigh commented that it was the cleanest place she had seen in Argentina. The beds were really comfortable and the showers were better than anything we have had in the past five months. The proprietors, Eguardo and Patricia, went out of their way to make sure we were comfortable without being intrusive and we were pleased to have decided to move from the casa de ciclistas.