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Published: December 16th 2006
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Having missed the only weekly bus we had to give up on working our way South in Chile. Instead we headed for Argentina via Lake General Carrera, the second biggest lake in South America which straddles the border between Chile and Argentina. The journey there was through beautiful countryside and we had all the more time to enjoy it as our minibus driver seemed to think he was driving a 4x4, took a big rock full on and ended up with a ruptured tyre. We made it to the tiny ferry just in time and we just had time to remark on how windy it was before we set off..... I would never have believed you could get waves that big on a lake. Sitting inside the minibus was not an option if we wanted to retain the contents of our stomachs (already a little delicate from a late night of drinking and karaoke with the Coyhaique locals) so we had to stand by the railings as huge waves washed clean over the top of us and over the minibus. It was more fun than it sounds and the scenery was really beautiful all the way.
They don't make travelling
in Patagonia easy before the official high season starts and we had to continue our route South counter-intuitively via the coast of Argentina! But at least we realised that's where we were headed, unlike some English guys on the bus who believed that we were heading South along the border and took a lot of convincing that the Atlantic Ocean wasn't in fact a very big lake! For us the detour served a very important purpose: it allowed us to visit a colony of 180,000 Magellanic penguins at the most southerly tip of mainland Argentina just before Tierra del Fuego.
In the guidebook it said that in November and December there were chicks and nests under every bush but I had grown to be a little sceptical of claims like that. But -hooray- it was true and we were surrounded by so many penguins that we almost had to be careful not to step on them. They were fascinating to watch as they crossed the paths in long never-ending single files to head for the beach and back again with food for the chicks. We sat close by one line to watch which flummoxed them for a little while.
They seemed to have quite a herd mentality and you could almost hear the leader saying "Right, let's make a break for it lads" as they hurriedly tottered past us in a panic (or maybe I've been watching too many films). It was absolutely brilliant and we could have stayed there all day just watching the comings and goings (and taking endless photos). It was made all the more special by the fact that we were the only ones there along with a lovely Swiss couple we were travelling with. 4 people and 180,000 penguins, fantastic.
Close by we also visited the lighthouse very strategically placed at the mouth of the Magellan Straits. The history of the Straits was fascinating and we were pleased that we had been admitted to the lighthouse and museum as, until fairly recently, English visitors had not been welcome in such an important military outpost.
After this brief but magical interlude in Argentina we continued back into Chile to Puerto Natales where our first night was remarkable only for the fact that we were both violently sick which we could only put down to a dodgy sandwich bought at a cafe stop. It
was nasty but, strangely, did make me appreciate how well I'd been for the previous four months, so can't really complain about one short bout of sickness. Luckily I felt much better the next day which was just as well as we were due to do the 5 day 'W' trek in Torres del Paine and were, unsurprisingly, completely unprepared! I left Fi in bed and returned feeling very pleased with myself with our clean washing, food, reservations for buses, boats, refugios and waterproof trousers. Perfect! I was particularly pleased with hiring a -40 degree down sleeping bag which was to become my best friend over the following four nights.
Fortunately Fiona also felt better the next day and we set off for the national park. My book states "Nothing prepares you for the spectacular beauty of the park which is world-renowned for it's challenging trekking.." which is a very apt choice of adjectives I feel! I'll let the photos do most of the description for this part but we spent the next 5 days having a fabulous time walking, camping, admiring, contemplating, sweating, eating (chocolate, mostly). It was quite tough as most of the time we had to
carry our big backpacks (We had tried to leave non-essentials behind in Puerto Natales but judging by the weight and size of our backpacks compared to others we have very skewed ideas about what constitutes 'non-essential'!) It was also very sociable as you kept passing, no okay, being over-taken by the same people and meeting familiar faces every night in the refugios. We spent a lot of time with an English/Irish couple, Mike and Rosheen who were lovely and always (at least) one step ahead of us. Seeing Mike encouraging us for the last few metres of a knackering 6-hour walk by waving a bottle of red wine, which they were waiting to share with us, through the window of a warm refugio was a lovely moment.
There have been so many highlights of this Patagonian part of the trip that it would be impossible to single anything out. Having said that, seeing glaciers for the first time has completely blown me away. They are awesome. Glacier Grey in Torres del Paine was amazingly huge with bright blue icebergs that calved off and floated like ghosts right past our refugio (I was very glad we weren't in a tent
that night!) We then went on to Perito Moreno in Argentina which was just incredible. The size and noise of it are so well-documented but it still takes your breath away to see the sheer enormity of it and to marvel at the huge cracking noises as another piece calves off and falls thunderously into the water. WOW! I decided I had to see it close up and despite being completely knackered from Torres del Paine went for a 7 hour walk on it. It was definitely worth it! Again, I'll let the photos speak for themselves....
Our Patagonian trip ended in El Chalten home of the Fitz Roy range and more glaciers. This was the only time we were unlucky with the weather and through the pouring rain we couldn't see a thing! However, after all the amazing things we'd seen we couldn't possibly complain and just feel incredibly lucky to have been able to experience the wonder of nature in all it's glory.
Now Im in Buenos Aires where there are wonders of an altogether different nature! They say New York never sleeps, well Buenos Aires doesn't even bother going to bed, or so it seems
to me, and I'm having a bit of difficulty adjusting to the pace! However it didn't take us long to take advantage of the delicious steaks, red wine and a luxurious spa for Fiona's last day as everything is soooo cheap here. We also met up with Jackie P (Neil's sister) who lives here and has been great at introducing us to the city and all its delights. I waved Fiona off sadly on Thursday as she is on her way to London for a week then Christmas with her folks in South Africa. It will be strange to continue without her and the last two months have been brilliant but now starts a new adventure........
The condensed version (sorry, this one was quite long wasn't it?):
Pinguinos, mountains, lakes, glaciers, lovely people, great fun and sad it's over; Patagonia's spectacular.
NB. Just need to add a quick bit about the music in this part of the world as something very strange seems to have happened. We seem to be stuck in an 80s timewarp. Now we all know that I like 80s music as much as the next person, no okay, far more than the
next person, but even Im puzzled by this fascination. The first Bros, Johnny hates Jazz, Rick Astley etc videos were amusingly nostalgic but after a whole month of it you realise that maybe the 80s weren't the heyday of pop after all!! Right now Im in an internet place listening to Smalltown Boy by Bronski Beat but that doesn't beat the whole Best of Boney M album we had at dinner the other day!!
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Nikki
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Torres de fantastique!
Hi Maz and Fi! Seeing your photos reminded me of my trip to Patagonia which was amazing. I went a different time of year so it was really really cold but I found it breathtaking and forgot about the temperature. No other people really around in the park either which was fab! Anyway, wishing you both a fantastic Christmas and New Year. I think Fi is heading to South Africa. Take care - Nikki