Sealions and freezing water

Some statue on the way to the EcoCentre.
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Another excellent service provided by the impeccable Via Bariloche got us to Puerto Madryn early on Thursday morning.  After discovering that our 1st two hostel choices were full we began to get worried.  We didn't need to be as the 3rd had space for us and even went into marketing overdrive telling us that the mattresses were the 'best on the market'.  I was sceptical as to exactly which market that was, but after trying them out, found that they were actually very comfortable.

A wander around town found us in an ice cream parlour (you've got to make the most of these places, as I had done in Buenos Aires, Bariloche and El Bolson).  The town itself is nothing spectacular and the beach was OK.  Amazing sunshine and it was nice and warm compared to the freezing wind that came off the lake in Bariloche.

I weed in my wetsuit just to keep myself warm but that only lasted a couple of minutes

A long walk south of town found us in the EcoCentre, which was a really interesting place full of info about all the sealife to be found nearby.  Nice views from the top of the old lighthouse in the centre too.

As the whale season was near an end, we decided not to risk it and booked some diving with sealions instead.  It was a lot of money but, hey, you can't do this everywhere!

And what a quality experience!  Fully togged-up in thick wetsuit, boots, gloves and hood, we still froze our arses off!  But the sealions were amazing!  Really friendly and just interested in you.  They bit every part of you and your kit.  The first time they open their mouth and you see how sharp their teeth look and just how many teeth they have, you start thinking that this is a very bad idea.  But they don't bite hard.  Good job too, as they do go for your head a lot!

The next dive was to a wreck, some 17m down.  Not too deep but once you go past the thermocline, it's damn cold.  I weed in my wetsuit just to keep myself warm but even that failed to keep warm for more than a couple of minutes.  Really cool dives, but damn cold!