Blogs from Puerto Natales, Magallanes, Chile, South America - page 15

Et moi qui annonçais déjà la fin de nos aventures chiliennes... C´est pas parce que Navimag nous avait laché que nous allions abandonner l´idée de visiter Puerto Natales et surtout le parc de Torres del Paine, réputé comme un des meilleurs parcs nationaux de toute l´Amérique!! Donc après de nombreuses heures de bus, une halte très rapide à Rio Gallegos pour la correspondance, encore quelques heures de route et les interminables formalités douanières ( à priori c´est la rançon de l´entente pas très cordiale entre les 2 voisins...) nous voici enfin à Puerto Natales. On avait en fait très peu de temps pour visiter la région, du fait que l´on voulait rejoindre Cali (et oui, encore lui!!) à Buenos Aires avant son départ pour Barcelone. Nous avions 1 semaine devant nous. Après nous être renseignés des ... read more

Happy Holidays to everyone from us at the end of the world (well, almost). We are now in Puerto Natales, en route to Punta Arenas, Chile. We've been having trouble getting consistent internet connections, so we are a bit behind in this travelblog...there will be more to come to fill you in on all our travels and where we have been. We're thinking of you all and wish you all the best. ... read more

I arrived in Puerto Natales in the evening of the 4th December and, as promised, Michelle was there at the bus stop to meet me. We went straight back to her house as I was so tired and she had got dinner ready and waiting for me! I could get used to that kind of treatment, I can tell you. Michelle lives in a huge, typically Chilean house in that all the walls and floors are not perpendicular and there is not a single right-angle to be seen anywhere. I loved it straight away, and I had my own room, which was a real treat! Despite wanting to stay up and chat with Michelle, I went to bed pretty early that night and didn't wake up until 1pm the next day. Michelle said she had to ... read more

After Punta Arenas, Puerto Natales comes as a touristy town, but it is the nearest place to stay if you wnat the BIG national park, Torres del Paine. A three hour bus ride up to the park though, and then a catamaran ride across Lake Pehoe before you can even start. That gives an idea of the scale of this area. Saw lots of guanaco, surprisingly tame realtives of the llama and alpaca. Condors were easy to sport too, all quite awe inspiring. It was a wild and woolly day, as it often is in the mountains down here, but we managed a 4 hour hike along Lago Grey. The thing to do is to stay for a week and do the big trails. In spite of being at the end of the world this place ... read more

After a week in Torres del Paine we just wanted to relax for a day enjoying the simple pleasure that comes from knowing that hot food, a comfortable seat and a hot shower are all available if we want them. The day turned out to be not much more than visiting a few cafes and spending time on the internet. That is until the evening. Regular readers will know we've rather taken to a Chilean football team called 'Colo Colo' who have been enjoying a good run in the Copa Sudamericana of late. Tonight was the first-leg of their semi-final against Toluca of Mexico. We had been recommended a bar to watch the game in by one of the park rangers in Torres del Paine. It had 2 separate parts, a restaurant and a bar, so ... read more