Argentina - El Chalten

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I arrived in El Chalten at midday on Saturday 19 September. It's a small mountain village (only 25 years old) and is ideal for trekking. I was the only person staying at the hostel when I checked in. The weather was not great, it was really cold and raining so I went to a cafe to watch some English football and get some lunch. After watching Liverpool beat West Ham 3-2, I returned to the hostel where the 2 owners (2 Argentinean guys) were about to watch a DVD (Get Smart) so I joined them. They had a huge TV with surround sound speakers and 2 comfy couches. After watching the very funny film, I spent some time catching up with my travelblog. In the evening, we sat and watched an Argentinean match and then I put another DVD on (Pulse - Pink Floyd). On Sunday morning the weather was perfect for a trek so I got ready, picked my trail and set off. The first 20-30 minutes was all uphill and it was actually quite warm. I wondered if I had enough water for the 6 hour (22km) round trip but then remembered that you could drink all of the water from the streams and lakes. The blue skies allowed for some amazing views along the course of the trail. It was so nice being surrounded by mountains, streams, lakes, trees and birds with not a person to be seen or heard. When I reached the target destination of Laguna Torre it was quite cold because it was exposed to the wind. I took a few photos and then sat and had some lunch while I admired the amazing surroundings. Then I set off back to El Chalten along the same path I had just taken. I was slightly concerned about my old left knee injury and sure enough the pain set in as I began the steep descent on the last part of the trail. After limping home for the final 20 minutes it was great to have a shower and get some fresh clothes on. As usual, the 2 owners were stuck to the couch watching TV. There was a Sunday triple header of Argentine football matches on. I went out for dinner and found a lovely restaurant that served one of the nicest steaks I had had in Argentina. When I returned to the hostel, another person (Adam) had checked in who I had met in my previous hostel. We chatted for a while and then we began to watch Cloverfield before I went to bed half way through. Monday was another nice day and so Adam and I set off on another trail. Once again I was concerned about my knee but it felt OK at first. Again, the initial part of the trail was steep and we took a few stops before it levelled out a bit. I made it as far as Laguna Capri (8km) before my knee started hurting so I said goodbye to Adam and I took the shorter trail that looped around the lake and back to El Chalten. On the way back, I stopped in the woods and sat and watched the birds go about there business. The descent proved to be the most painful part of the trail once again. For lunch/dinner, I went back to the same restaurant as the previous day and had a 3 course meal. Pumpkin soup, fresh trout with vegetables and Calafate berry mousse. Back at the hostel I watched a Jimi Hendrix DVD before the owner gave me a lift to the bus station and I caught my 6pm bus back to El Calafate.

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