The author of this journal says he's having not only a great time, he's having a ball. That it truely was the right decision to postpone writing the daily updates online until after the tour.

Meanwhile, he has denied claims that he closed his last on the road journal because of a fall in hitcounts, as ludicrous. He stated positively "It isn't my place to bemoan a drop in readership. It's my place to write creatively, and hope I can attract readers back."

McCRAICKEN: Well, I haven't stopped reading, nor you Barry. I understand it's getting colder.

BEST: Yes, indeed. As Sean cycles south into Patagonia, it's got much much colder. Time to rap up warm.

McCRAICKEN: We'll have the full weather report with Barry Best, of coarse before we finish.

I'm JP McCraicken. Just call me JP and we'll all get along fine.

People say I don't have a very strong accent for someone from the north of Ireland. Neither does this journal's author...

KANE: I wouldn't go that far JP. I speak fairly thick sometimes.

McCRAICKEN: Sometimes, not all of the time?

KANE: Sometimes I speak when not in your polite company JP, "like that dar baiegg." And the person will look at me perplexed. I'll repeat "like that dar baiegg." And they'll reply, "...that bag?" The third time I'll say it in clear English "that there bike" "Oh! The bike."

McCRAICKEN: I see what you're saying very clearly now. Well wee man, how far have you cycled this week?

KANE: The Question should not be how far I've cycled in kilometres, rather how far in experiences.

McCRAICKEN: We´ll be getting round to your experiences in due coarse, I hope. But tell us now starting in Mendoza. Try to be as breif as possible.

KANE: I had a perfect day tasting wine on the wine cycle tour with two others from the hostel I´s staying in, before making further progress south on Route 40. Then had many easy days, namely a morning cycling with afternoon rest. The first being a short day to Malargue, arriving there early by my standards, a large town, service centre for winter sport, skiing and the like in the south of the province of Mendoza. Further south is considered the beginning of Patagonia. The country is volcanic and barren with sparse human habitation. In fact it´s 330 kilometres from Malargue to the next town of any size, Chos Malal in the next province down, Neuquen, pronouced NUKE-KEN, officially the beginning of Patagonia proper.

The warm days of that first week, when I´s in shorts and tee-shirt, are now a distant memory. The climate here is like Iceland. I sleep at night in down-jacket inside my my sleeping-bag, which is rated to minus ten comfort, twenty extreme, but the zip is buggered. I start the day warmly rapped, riding to ten with full-finger winter gloves, such is the windchill.

McCRAICKEN: Okay, it´s cold. Now elaborate on the good time your having.

KANE: Yes, it´s good to free myself from this thing we call the internet, which previously when keeping my online journal while on the road, I´d to commit so much time to. It is like being young again.

McCRAICKEN: (laugh) What age are yeah?

KANE: Now JP, that´ll remain a mystery. But it´s good to be concentrating on the journey and writing up my experience in the traditional way, pen and notebook, and not worrying about Wi-Fi.

McCRAICKEN: And I understand you´ve had a rest-day. A new phenomenan, out in the wild camping, no Wi-Fi, nothing.

KANE: Indeed, no distrations, just enjoying the country with only my pen and notebook to comunicate my thoughts. Yes, just south of the town of Zapala there´s the national park, Laguna Blanca. I arrived there at midday and set up camp by the lake. I´d the whole afternoon to rest, do nothing but go for a walk. It was perfect, and I hope for more such days.

The two days on from there, were perhaps through the most scenically dramatic country of the tour so far. But what should happen, when I take out my camera to take a photo that morning: a message pops up on the screen, the one at the rear of the camera "Memory card locked". It wouldn´t even let me delete some of the weaker images in order to make room on the card for more photos. I´ve I think learned my lesson, always have a spare card.

I really missed the camera that day, as I climbed and descended through alpine valley. Could´ve almost been in Switzerland, with snowcapped mountains rising beyond the grassy valley speckled yellow with wildflowers.

How I mised the camera the following day too. The scenery had become bleaker, as I climbed to open exposed plateau. The morning had dawned cloudy and misty grey and drizzly rain enveloped all by eleven. It looked just like high moorland in the north of England, southern Scotland. Certainly the weather was right. But when the rain eased early afternoon and I approach grey-green hills with lingering wisps of misty cloud, I wish I´d a usable camera.

McCRAICKEN: I take it you´re ating breakfast...

KANE: Indeed I have. I've become more enthusiastic about food in general, starting in Mendoza, where round the corner from the hostel I stayed in was a great all-you-can-eat vegetarian restaurant. I had been partly vegetarian for years, not eating meat, but to be a true vegetarian, or vegen, you mustn't eat any animal produces whatsoever. I'm afraid I like a glass milk too much, cheese, butter on spuds and bread, also eggs to go all the way.

McCRAICKEN: Right. Time has caught up with us, and Barry Best is here in the studio with a big smile on his face.

BEST: Yes, smiling because I´m glad not to be out in the elements. Nice to be sitting in a warm studio.

McCRAICKEN: Yes Barry, it is, isn't it? Have you anything more interesting to say?

BEST: How about a metrological lessen to our listeners. Not everybody will be aware, but the sun has just crossed the equator leaving the northern hemisphere to increasingly shorter days, while bringing spring and longer days to the southern hemisphere were we are now. In actual fact it is not the sun moving but earth pivoting on it´s polar axis. The north pivoting away from the sun, while the south turns toward the sun, the reason for the shortening and lenghing in days and vice versa. The seasonal changes. As well, South America is different than most of all the other southern landmasses inasmuch as it almost reaches all the way down to Antartica, only a thousand kilometres short, meaning, the further south one goes, the longer the days become. Also, the weather deteriorates....

McCRAICKEN: Okay, I think we and the listeners get the picture. Sean's in for a miserable time the further south he ventures. What about the weather at the moment?

BEST: Well, nothing that hasn´t been already said. Since leaving Mendoza, Sean's had to contend with icy south westerly wind. And as the Andes mountains are lower in Patagonia, there´s less of a rain shadow effect, hence the spring showers he´s had the last day.

McCRAICKEN: So it's all change, and it's all change here soon as time has just caught up on us, but just time for a look at the mailbag. And here´s one complaining about last week´s headline about the assault on cyclists in Argentina, from Richard Ballocksworth in Morningswood, I can´t make out the ending, so haven´t a clue what it is, (laugh) where that's located, rather. but he says "I thoroughly disagree with your journaler´s fear mongering. Mendoza is a safe city, if you use common sense."

So there you go, you´ve been told.

KANE: I don´t think I was fear mongering in the least. I saw..

McCRAICKEN: I´m sorry to stop you, but our time is out. We leave you with a route-map before our next program, The Photo Show. Bye for now.