There are few places left on earth that have remained untouched and whole. Argentina was one of the first countries in the Americas to set up a national park system, setting aside large areas of land to make sure that future generations could appreciate the natural world.

The Nahuel Huapi National Park, which surrounds the city of Bariloche, was opened thanks to a donation by Francisco Moreno in 1934.  He was "given" the land by the government as a sign of appreciation for his efforts to explore and map the region.  Inside the park are numerous lakes (Moreno, Nahuel Huapi, Gutierrez, Mascardi, and more) and rivers.  It marks the border with Chile, Argentina's neighbor to the west.

In modern times we are able to visit the park by car, and the rustic infrastructure leaves the park in a pristine state.  The fresh water reserve is one of the largest in the world, providing drinking water as well as transforming the landscape into a living painting.

The landscapes and scenery change drastically from the peak of the Andes Mountains to the steppe of the Patagonia desert.  Near the mountains the rainfall is heavier, producing a dense, green vegetation cover rocky cliffs.  The upper altitudes hold snow almost all year, but the lower altitudes create a comfortably warm summer suitable for swimming in the mountain lakes and streams. 

To the east is the area known as the steppe, which resembles scenes from old Western movies, windswept and dry.  Impressive rock formations surrounded by scrubgrass are dreamlike.  The wide rivers that cross the continent to the Atlantic Ocean hold transparent water and freshwater trout.