We travelled from Chilean Patagonia to Argentinian Patagonia by car. In a direct line 60 miles, but by road over 170 miles and six hours, including the border crossing. We arrived at the border just after two local coaches (it was the weekend and there was a festival), so it took an hour to leave Chile. In the five miles between the the Chilean and Argentinian border controls, our driver earned his tip by overtaking one of the coaches, so the Argentinian control took a matter of minutes.
Our first hotel in Argentina overlooked Lake Argentina. The lake would have been discovered by Charles Darwin, who was travelling up the Santa Cruz river, searching for its source, but he was forced to turn back due to dwindling supplies. The lake was discovered 40 years later (but in Darwin’s lifetime) in 1877 by the Argentinian explorer, Francisco Moreno. He named it Lake Argentina, in part, to ensure it sat on the right side of the border with Chile in a treaty of 1881.
Shilli-Fully Travels 