6 Best Sights in The Lake District, Argentina

In February, the Bolsón International Jazz Festival brings music to streets and restaurants around town. The Fiesta Nacional de Lúpolo (National Hop Festival) is celebrated the same month.

About 1 km (½ mile) from the base of Piltriquitrón, you'll find fire-damaged beech trees that have been carved over the years by 13 notable Argentine artists. Thirty-one monumental sculptures transform the dead forest into a living gallery. Tours can be arranged through Maputur.

Don't leave the El Bolsón area without a jar of jam! Cabaña Mico has a long table lined with little jam pots (and disposable sticks), so you can sample the 40 different flavors before making your purchase.

Venture 15 km (9 miles) north of El Bolsón to see the Cascada de la Virgen. It's most impressive in spring, when the runoff from the mountain falls in a series of three cascades visible from the road coming from Bariloche.

Four km (3 miles) north of El Bolsón on R258, the Cascada Mallín Ahogado makes a great picnic spot.

About 2 km (1 mile) north of town, Cervezería El Bolsón is the brewery that started the Patagonian "cerveza artesanal craze," and even if it is now the least artisanal of the bunch, it's still a local landmark. Every night from December through March, and Fridays and Saturdays for the rest of the year, the brewery's tasting room turns into a hopping bar and restaurant, where picadas (kind of like tapas), pizzas, sausages with sauerkraut, and a hearty goulash are listed on one side of the menu with suggested beers on the other. For instance, black beer is recommended with smoked meats; chocolate beer with dessert. There are 14 types of brew for you to taste, and descriptions of their ingredients are provided. A large campground is conveniently located by the river in back. There is now a second location (Cervezeria El Bolsón Centro) in town at the corner of San Martin and Juez Fernandez.