Travel to Brazil and Argentina with the Western Folklife Center and experience the Gaucho lifestyle November 27 - December 11, 2006

Plains to Pampas was the second international adventure in the Western Folklife Center’s travel series designed for those who value the cowboy way of life and are interested in building bridges across cultures while supporting the work of the Western Folklife Center. Those of you who attended the 2006 National Cowboy Poetry Gathering know what a pleasure it was to have the Brazilian musicians and Argentine rawhide braiders as our guests.

To see photos and read about the trip, visit Gail Steiger's online journal here.

To complete the circle of exchange begun in Elko, Sr. Luis Carlos Borges from Brazil and Sr. Armando Deferrari from Argentina, keepers of the gaucho spirit and lore in their respective countries, hosted our Plains to Pampas group for a few days as we visited their home towns.

For the second half of the trip, we traveled to Bariloche, Argentina, a beautiful mountain resort town on the shores of Lago Nahuel Huapi in Patagonia. Those who were ready for some rugged riding and camping explored both the pampas and foothills of the Andes on horseback, and were welcome guests at our host’s family estancia. Those more inclined to culture and scenery and a less rigorous experience enjoyed the environs of Lago Nahuel Huapi by foot and car.

One consistent feature of our travel series is the company of some fine cowboy singers and pickers who bring along the American West in music that speaks to themes we share with our South American hosts: horses, wide open spaces, and the essence of cowboy life. This year’s Plains to Pampas musical ambassadors were Skip Gorman, Rick "Sourdough Slim" Crowder, and Wylie Gustafson & the Wild West.

Some of you know Wylie as the world-champion yodeler and front man for Wylie & the Wild West. Skip is a multi-instrumentalist and one of the country’s premier purveyors of authentic, old-time western songs and fiddle tunes. Rick is a whimsical and outrageous performer of traditional western music in Vaudeville style.  All are veterans of the Elko Gathering and performed on this trip in Porto Alegre, Brazil, and Buenos Aires and Bariloche, Argentina.

In addition to the music, another Elko regular, Arizona cowboy poet, musician and filmmaker Gail Steiger joined our group as videographer for a film he is making about cowboys around the world in cooperation with the Western Folklife Center. Folklife Center Executive Director Charlie Seemann and Founding Director Hal Cannon, also accompanied the group.

Read the complete Itinerary.
 
Boojum Expeditions handled all trip logistics.