The whirlwind continues.
When we last met our heroes, they were whizzing through the extensive Argentinian countryside. As I write this on Wednesday night, it's unbelievable to think that was only Monday.
Kilometer by kilometer, we headed south on Ruta 40 and Ruta 5. We turned right on Ruta 7 in Esperanza and made our way west towards the border. The weather was gorgeous- bright blue skies and hardly a cloud. As we drove, guanacos watched us pass, but we also saw plenty of rheas (mini ostriches) and lots of crested caracaras as well.
The roads in this part of the country were sparse and poorly-signed. No businesses, no gas stations; just the occasional estancia, or ranch. At some point we pulled off to the gravel roadside and had some ad hoc sandwiches. Aside from the lack of restaurants (zero), we had to eat all our fresh produce before getting to the border. We indulged on sandwiches de queso y jambon and admired distant 'low lying' mountains.
From here, Ellie took over the driving. I had done three hours. While very successful, I never fully and completely relaxed. When your first time on stick is also your first time driving in another country, I think that's reasonable. I'll add here though that Ellie is a champ and I'm really grateful she was able to tackle so much driving. It's a great team effort.
After another hour or so, we passed through Rio Turbio and up into a mountain pass - to the border. We had to go in, get stamped out of Argentina, and declare our rental car at customs. Father down the road we made our next stop- the Chilean entry station. There we got our passports stamped, declared our rental car, got searched for produce (and, probably, other things), and headed on our way. We immediately noticed that the Chilean side had much better signage and better roads too. Everything on this side seemed a bit more official, which was reassuring.
After a petrol stop, we continued another 3 hours to Punta Arenas. El Calafate felt somewhat like a tourist trap, but Punta Arenas served like a genuine busting city. We found our Airbnb (these streets at least had posted street signs), and then headed out for dinner and groceries.
The place we picked was a really colorful two story restaurant. We ordered beautiful pisco sours and had a delightful multi course meal with a buttery quiche, limey ceviche, steak, and pumpkin ravioli, followed by zarzasparilla ice cake. There wasn't a miss on the menu, but Ellie's steak was particularly delectable, served with a jus that was rich and muy rica.
For the second time in three days, we closed a grocery store around 10pm. After a little Harry Potter y las reliquias de la Muerte, we called it a night.
*******
The next morning was an early start. We had a 7:30 pick up for our full day penguin adventure. We were the last two to be picked up in a full van of 16 and so we squeezed our way in to the back.
The advertised plan was a 12 hour trip to Tierra del Fuego, the land of fire. We would ferry from Punta Arenas across the Magellan strait to Porvenir, drive along Bahia Inutil to see some king penguins, then drive north to Bahia Azul to take a short ferry over the north end of the Strait and drive back to Punta Arenas. That didn't happen.
While a beautiful sunny day, it was extremely windy. Our operator successfully predicted that the Punta Arenas ferry would be closed... So we detoured. As you can see from this route, we went way way out of the way. Combined with an hour at the park, a couple hours of stops, and having to wait for ferries, we only returned at 12:30am! A very very long day in the van.
But let's focus on the positive:
-Tierra del Fuego is a vast, empty, beautiful landscape, with gorgeous amber countryside surrounded by rich navy blue water.
-Magellan got stuck in the strait bearing his name for almost a month, trying to find a way out. It's no wonder there's a bay called Bahia Inutil or "Useless Bay".
-King penguins are the second largest penguins in the world. They all live in Antarctica except for a small population that appeared in Bahia Inutil in 2011. They're protected by multiple Chilean laws.
-Parque Pinguino Rey, at 53.5 degrees South, marks the southern extreme of our trip. For comparison, London is approximately 51N.
-The colony was amazing, roughly 100 individuals. We saw chicks and parents incubating eggs. Their feathers were sleek with beautiful orange accents on white and black coats.
-On the trip we also saw massive Chilean Condors, Chilean Flamingos, countless water birds like swans, upland geese, and ducks, guanacos (obviously), and Zorros Gris (grey foxes).
-As we drove well after dark, we also had a starry night sky in the road. There in the northern sky were Orion and Gemini, standing on their heads, moving from right to left. The Orion nebula was clearly visible, even with headlights all around; those on the other side of the van could easily make out the milky way dropping to the southern horizon. I REALLY hope I get a star-gazing worthy night away from a city before this trip is out...
*******
So here we are on today.
This morning we slept in a bit. This was necessary as it's been go go go ever since we landed in Buenos Aires. We checked out of the Airbnb at 10 and got the road north to Puerto Natales. We retraced our steps through arid grasslands and windswept forests with grey, moss-laden, craggy trees back almost to where we crossed the border.
After so much driving in two days, it was shocking how short a three hour drive was. Seriously, done in a flash.
Here we checked into a backpacker hostel with a trendy cafe and apparel shop built in. Unlike the previous places, this town (and hostel) have a decidedly backpacker vibe to them. Where previously my Spanish was useful, here is almost nullified by the saturation of foreign hikers flocking to the famous treks of Torres del Paine.
At least this place has incredible views onto a turquoise inlet off the Pacific, towering snowy mountains in the distance.
We had lunch and set about a variety of errands. Gear purchases, laundry, groceries, repacking and dinner.
In just six hours we set off on the incredible W-trek. First we have a 150km bus ride to the park, followed by a an hour ferry to our trailhead at Glaciar Gray. Over the next four days we'll wind our way towards the majestic Torres, hopefully getting amazing views.
Over the previous handful of days we've had pretty much only sunshine with scattered clouds. But here in Puerto Natales is a different story. In just one afternoon it's showered 4 or 5 times. The wind is persistent and fierce. The summer sky is cold. As we had into the mountains the forecast is cold and wet, but everyone says the wind is the real kicker.
Hopefully we have clear views... But hopefully even more we have warmth and stay dry. As there will be no internet on the trek, see you on Sunday and wish us luck!
No comments:
Post a Comment