Journal from Condor Valley – (2/4/2013) – (4/29/2013)
Leland Torrence Journal from Condor Valley – (2/4/2013) – (4/29/2013) List of packed luggage 5 pairs of pants 2 pairs of shorts Bathing Suit Rain Coat 2 Sweat shirts Pull over sweater 5 T-shirts 2 Tank tops 4 L/S Shirts Under Wear Lots of Socks! Hat (This is your protection from the sun)! Towel Hiking Boots Work Boots/ Cowboy Boots Sneakers Head Lamp! Sunglasses Head Phones / I-pod Laptop Sleeping Bag Toiletry Books / Journals Goods BUG SPRAY 3 Bottles of Whisky 2 lbs of Pistachios ½ lbs of Coffee 10 pairs of work gloves (Work gloves are like gold on the farm) $8,500 (Bringing dollars...
Read MoreCondor Valley: A Small, Independent World
When I told winemaker Duncan Meyer that I would be working a harvest in Patagonia, he recommended I make my way up to Salta’s Condor Valley and kindly put me in touch with owner, Hank Bannister. Hank and I grabbed a glass of wine at San Francisco’s Terroir to discuss the details of my trip back in February. I left the meeting with a better idea of what to expect but as it turned out, I had no idea what I was in for. CV was the first side trip I planned before I headed down to South America and the last place I ended up visiting before returning to the States. Travel-wise, this was the...
Read MoreMt. Creston
If you go to Condor Valley and take in the view from La Bodega, the most dominating landscape feature you will see is the dark and jagged ridge of rock called Mount Creston. At 10,300 feet it is the highest peak around and stands out against the skyline dark and ominous as a funeral procession. It was on this magnetic mountain that I spent three weeks with Gustavo Maras searching for the elusive and endangered taruka (see taruka project summary and expedition timeline). To reach Mt Creston requires at least eight hours on horseback through thorny shrubs and cactus, up impossibly steep slopes...
Read MoreThe Condors of ‘Condor Valley’
It was our first day in the Condor Valley back-country (see Taruka Expedition timeline). After a four hour ride Gustavo and I were climbing the knife edge ridge that towers at the back of the Peusto to take in the land. The ridge had narrowed to a sheer band of rock that is about a meter wide and inclines steeply to the summit. I was concentrating on a bit of technical scrambling when Gustavo pointed upwards and whispered a warning, “Euell, cuidado”. Not five meters overhead circled two condors. With their dark heads tracking us even as they continued in their gyre, it was clear the...
Read MoreFinal Week on the Ranch
The fourth and final week on the ranch was of course amazing. It was an odd week as far as the weather was concerned- being really hot some days and rainy others, but aside from that nothing too crazy happened. We rode everyday and managed to find a few dozen more cattle. The several hundred cows that had already been rounded up were finished being vaccinated then kicked out into the wild again because all the pasture around the place has been eaten up over the last month. Now, the gauchos will continue to search for new cows and any that are found without a freshly trimmed tail will need to...
Read MoreWeek 3
It was another fantastic week out on the ranch! I have been having so much fun on that amazing place. I feel like I’m fully settled now and take comfort in being a part of the daily routine there. How fortunate I am to be a part of the magical land in the Condor Valley! Here is what I had written for the week- Monday: Today I stuck around in Chicoana while most of the others went out to work. I had to stay behind and retrieve my ATM card that the cash machine took from me while I was making a withdraw. Getting to the bank at the next town was easy because there is a bus that...
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