Thanks for the adventure Hi both and welcome home. I've really enjoyed reading your exploits and look forward to seeing you and hearing more about it all.
Really enjoyed following your exploits Hi Guys, glad to hear you've survived the trip without divorce or kidnapping. The blog has been v amusing and at times made me laugh out loud. Sometimes from the humorous writing and sometimes from Pete's antics. Well done and welcome home.
Welcome home How I have enjoyed your wonderful blogs! I almost felt I was with you at times (but glad not to be doing some of the wilder treks!!) Welcome back. We look forward to seeing you very soon.xx
Go visit Mrs Peron You could also fill those long hot days by going to see the fabulous cemetery where Eva Perpon is buried. You know, the one which Rich and Sar descirbed as 'some boring old graveyard with someone famous in it', or words to that effect. (Lordie, is that going to be a marriage of 2 Philistines or WHAT?) There's also a rather good Ice Cream Parlour, as I recall, at 1 o'clock standing at the front gates of the old graveyard. See you soon! Pxxx
Loving it! Haven't read any of these for a while and am sat here in the study on a gloomy, rainy Cotswolds morning, chuckling away happily. Keep up the posts!
Star photography... Is very hard! It famously sparked the 'moon landing hoax' theory since nasa's kit couldn't capture them either. https://curiosity.com/topics/why-arent-there-stars-in-the-moon-landing-photos-curiosity/
You'll need a good 2kg of camera kit to do star photography! Makes you appreciate what good cameras your eyes are..
We love Chile!! What marvelous memories it brings back to hear that you're in Pisco Elqui. I too look forward to sharing our Chile stories. We're not off to Peru until mid-July so there will be plenty of time to catch up when you're back. Enjoy your last few weeks!! XX
I will never go campling, Ever. 1. I'm very sorry you didn't find yourselves - you must have been somewhere else at the time. Happens increasingly as you get older. So I'm told.
2 'We stayed in a museum for couple of nights'. I'm sorry - WHAT?
3. I'm astonished you couldn't find room in your capacious rucksacks for something as easily-packable as a bucket. It would, after all, have meant you could have continued to keep your Oxo cubes in their small plastic box (again - I'm sorry - OXO CUBES??) without attempting to drench them in what could have gone into the bucket.
4. Famtastic picture of the Southern Cross (Rich - did you not tell them about the lens cap?)
5. RIP TT
6. I simply cannot believe you, Jan, went for an al fresco wee wearing only a pair of Pete's boots. Your mother would not have been impressed. And quite possibly - not surprised either.
7. Way too much scatalogical (or wee equivalent) detail in this blog. Bring back the food photos I say.
Enjoy the night bus to Mendoza. Pxx
I'm so glad you've made it to the Elqui Valley! Hi Jan and Pete, I stayed in Vicuna for 4 days when I was in Chile and had a marvellous time there. I hope you've found the bike rental place in Vicuna. What a lovely couple who run it and the various bike rides are great. If you're still there please give them my best!! Also, if you're still in the area, it's well worth taking the bus from La Serena about 2 hours north to see more penguins (only Humboldt ones this time) and sea lions fairly close up. The bus ride is part of the allure of this trip. Hugs to you both,
Anne
Yes we biked! How lovely that you were in Vicuna! Yes we did the downhill ride from the top and the one round the area. Both great as you say. Sorry we have already left or I would love to have passed your regards to Lincoln and his wife. they were both great weren't they? Camping in Pisco Elqui currently and sadly no time for pinguinis. Almost coming home the time has gone so fast! Lookforward to sharing "we love Chile" times. When are you off on your celebratory trip?
Catching the photography bug! Great shot! Looks like you may be catching the photography bug... We'll get a spreadsheet going to try and solve the overtaking formula problem
Hi P&J - if you don’t get a best selling book out of this I’d be amazed. Every blog has you living by the seat of your pants! Glad to hear you’re both just about in one piece - doesn’t sound like your managing to get much jive practice in though..?. Looking forward to the next instalment. Steve & Jackie
Neither because I SO WOULDN'T even BE there Interesting how 'overtaking' has been featuring large in the last 2 blogs - obviously a point of some importance. Should everyone on the roads of Buckinghamshire tremble in future and just get out of the way of the mad woman behind them (but only for a short while.) The background in that pic of 'Jan the mountain goat' (unnecessarily mean but better than a buffalo, I suppose) is utterly fantastic - are you sure you haven't just photoshopped Jan in front of it and really she's sitting in a hot tub drinking hot-choc at the estancia? The arty shot is QUITE good but would have been much better with a whale in it. Obviously.
(Presumably Fitzroy is that same Vice Admiral Fitzroy who was the captain of The Beagle with Darwin and invented forecasts? Or possibly Pablo Fitzroy who just found that mountain).
Great blog! Though have you not eaten anything? Pxxx
I told you it was like Mordor Well done on getting round the W, the march up to Torres was all we could manage. Probably for the best that you didn't see any puma's as they are likely to be hungry down there. The photos are great and the weather looks good so on the whole you have been very lucky, can't wait to hear more.
Was thinking of you all the round... Good to hear from you and hope all is well. We saw your posh place at the end of the W and called it Doug's house whenever we discussed it. All well dressed and non smelly people were obvs staying at Doug's house!
A sad old boring life indeed Wow wow WOW - those photos of the Perito Moreno (possibly related to Jose?) are AMAZING. It MUST have been extraordinary to reduce Jan to speechlessness - something I have rarely known. Mind you, it feels like there’s a glacier, peripheral or otherwise, is about to creep over the UK at the moment. It’s certainly verrrry chilly, but the fuss over 4 days of admittedly interesting weather is bonkers - as someone said on R4 (obvs) today, ‘20 years ago this would have been called Winter’.
Wot no photo of the Ladies Barbecue to infinity? Not like you two to pass up a chance of a food photo. Px
More food! I am a great believer in food/selfies with food being best way to communicate anything important. Please continue xx loving the blog. All us Grant-Russells are crying with laffter xx
great blogging Sound like you are in the middle of a disaster movie. Reminds me of the time we trekKed up to the Full Moon THROUGH THE WOODS!! (unsuppported)
Intrepid or What? Hikarious blogs (and versions of the W), hiw very intrepid you both are. I will have to rename our campervan trip in NZ “glamping deluxe down under”!
Hope your feet recover Jan!
Neil and Kate x
Yup - even MORE ghastly than I thought Oh well done Jan for the real unexpurgated version - I had to say i did read Pete's with a panful of salt, altoghether too cheery by half. I hadb't rrealised that you'd made i quite so CRYSTAL clear that you WERE NOT DOING THE W TREK, so obviously there's a bit of work to do on communication in your marriage (or on Pete's hearing). I laughed out loud at Pete's asking you if he'd heard you singing - only Pete - but what we ALL need to know is what you said in reply... A 'reason to be pleased you did it' muct surely include the fact that you can dine out on it till the day you die, and you can embellish it with impunity each time of telling until you actually do get eaten by that Puma.
I think the comparison to a female buffalo is harsh, btw. David A would say that type of things would happen to ANYTHING separated from the herd, so what about a lone armadillo? You know they like chocolate whereas we're not sure about a bison's predilections, so that seems to fit much better. And of course they're much more attractive.
The photos are UTTERLY WOW, I must say.
Glad that happier times are here! Px
Gwen
non-member comment
Thanks for the adventure
Hi both and welcome home. I've really enjoyed reading your exploits and look forward to seeing you and hearing more about it all.