We have spent 2 1/2 days in Bariloche in the Argentine Lake District. In winter it is one of South America's largest ski resorts but in summer also has plenty to offer. We are here in late autumn so activities are slightly restricted but there is still plenty to do. Again we have been lucky with the weather with bright sunshine and very little wind. A couple we met while walking informed us that 5 days previously the whole town had been under 3 inches of snow and trekking had been impossible. We spent 1 1/2 days walking in the area's national parks, I'll let Nick tell you about that (link to be added). I was surprised to find a couple of dive centres on the lake shore so thought I would give altitude diving a go for the first time - Lake Nahuel Huapi which the town sits beside is about 750m above sea level.
The Aquanautica dive centre was less than a mile from our hostel and the only local centre producing results on Google. It is another SSI centre, I could not find a PADI centre in the area. It is well equipped and friendly but very little English is spoken. Therefore I would only recommend it to experienced divers who don't speak a lot of Spanish. I had sent an enquiring email at very short notice and so did not have a confirmed booking when I showed up but Juan Carlos was ready for me and took me on a dive immediately. It was a shore dive which I was quite happy with given the short notice. The dive site in front of the dive centre is called Neptune Park and I was shown a short video of it before diving. One dive cost £42 including all equipment hire.
The water temperature is 11 degrees Celsius at the moment, a temperature I have never dived in a wetsuit before. However, Aquanautica uses wetsuits from November to May and drysuits only for the rest of the year so wetsuit it was! I was given a Seacsub full length 7mm suit and 5mm hooded shorty to wear on top. I also had 5mm boots and gloves. The equipment looked well maintained and the wetsuits and BCD seemed almost new and a very good fit. I did not have to try on more than one suit.
The dive started with a shallow shore entry and buoyancy check and then the first 5-10 minutes were spent at 5-7m which gave me chance to become familiar with the hired equipment. Almost immediately we descended we saw shoals of trout. They were too shy to get close enough for photos but I could see them clearly. Visibility was excellent, 10-15m and the bottom is sandy so there wasn't much to interrupt the view.
The Aquanautica dive centre was less than a mile from our hostel and the only local centre producing results on Google. It is another SSI centre, I could not find a PADI centre in the area. It is well equipped and friendly but very little English is spoken. Therefore I would only recommend it to experienced divers who don't speak a lot of Spanish. I had sent an enquiring email at very short notice and so did not have a confirmed booking when I showed up but Juan Carlos was ready for me and took me on a dive immediately. It was a shore dive which I was quite happy with given the short notice. The dive site in front of the dive centre is called Neptune Park and I was shown a short video of it before diving. One dive cost £42 including all equipment hire.
The water temperature is 11 degrees Celsius at the moment, a temperature I have never dived in a wetsuit before. However, Aquanautica uses wetsuits from November to May and drysuits only for the rest of the year so wetsuit it was! I was given a Seacsub full length 7mm suit and 5mm hooded shorty to wear on top. I also had 5mm boots and gloves. The equipment looked well maintained and the wetsuits and BCD seemed almost new and a very good fit. I did not have to try on more than one suit.
The dive started with a shallow shore entry and buoyancy check and then the first 5-10 minutes were spent at 5-7m which gave me chance to become familiar with the hired equipment. Almost immediately we descended we saw shoals of trout. They were too shy to get close enough for photos but I could see them clearly. Visibility was excellent, 10-15m and the bottom is sandy so there wasn't much to interrupt the view.
We dived for 45 minutes and I was not at all cold which surprised me. There was plenty of other wildlife to see including crayfish, mussels, crabs, snails and lots of small fish. The crayfish were everywhere, under every piece of wreckage and driftwood on the lake bottom. I used my camera on the automatic underwater mode and got some great shots down to about 20m. After the initial shallow portion of the dive we descended down the steeper slope to around 23m and then came gradually up again. We paused at a 3m wooden statue of the god Neptune at 20m. There were many other objects to explore in the shallower areas from 5m to 10m, from road signs to a wreck to a stove with kettle and 'mate' gourd! I also stroked a wooden trout and played a wooden cello. We finished the dive inside a diving bell at about 5 metres deep. It has an airspace inside where you can take out your regulators for a chat.
While obviously only a training site I enjoyed the dive immensely. Apart from the clarity of the water and depth it reminded me of Wraysbury where I have done most of my freshwater diving. Juan Carlos has an excellent set up for instructing here and it is a shame I am not staying longer in order to dive some of the other sites in the lake. I would highly recommend diving in Bariloche and with Aquanautica.
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