Torres del Paine, Chile – Day 3 (Post #108)
Mike writes…
On Wednesday April 12, I woke up before the sun was up (there was a good amount of light but i couldn´t see the sun itself for the mountains) and wanted to go check around for sunrise foto ops. Michele who had not slept well due to the critters scurrying around our tent, couldn´t bring herself to get up so early. I took a walk along a nearby trail that I later learned leads the whole way back to park administration. I was set on getting video of the sunrise but after standing on a hillside being blown about by some more incredible winds (which now seem quite common in this part of Chile), for about 20 minutes, i got tired of waiting. I went back to the tent and found Michele was still sleeping. I got her up so we could go eat some breakfast and after we had our instant oatmeals, she actually returned to her sleeping bag for a nap.
While Michele napped, i figured i´d take a quick hike up the remaining one of the three trails people hike to complete the “W”. I knew i wouldn´t be able to make it the whole way up to the Glacier Grey because it was about 2 hours away and i only had 1 but it was worth seeing what i could see. The walk was pretty uneventful but a managed to snap a couple of nice shots of the landscape none of which will be included in this blog.
When i returned to the camp i convinced Michele it was time for her to get up because we needed to pack up and return our rented sleeping bags and pads to the office in the refuge.
After we got all of our belongings together and returned the rented gear, it was just about time for us to take the 12:30 p.m. catamaran back across Lago Pehoe´ to catch the bus out of the park and back to Puerto Natales. On board the catamaran we spent a few moments talking to the Asian-Australian friends, Jenny and Susan, we had met a few days earlier in Puerto Natales, and we took some nice photos.
The catamaran landed on the opposite shore at about 1:00 and a few minutes later we were headed back to Puerto Natales. Along the way, we made a couple of foto stops within the park. The first was the spot where we took pictures of the foxes (posted in #107) the day before and the second was where we got the following amazing photo. We just can´t believe the luck we had! What timing to be here just when the mountains are reflected in this lake! (the reality is probably that the bus schedule is built around this timing… but, who cares!)
The ride the rest of the way back to Puerto Natales was uneventful. I fell asleep thumbing through my Spanish-English dictionary while Michele tried to catch up on her journal.
When we returned to Puerto Natales, we found Erratic Rock I completely booked. We were, after all, back a day early for our booking. After talking to the other partner, Rustyn and looking at a residencial called Ama Gaucha, we decided to stay in the rather pricey Erratic Rock II. While it is a little expensive for South America, Erratic Rock II is very nice — comfortable, private and has a great owner who makes fantastic, large breakfasts.
Tags: Category #27: Chile
Michele Harmon
Mike looks so awesome. Hell’s angel, or mountain man?
That picture of you two in front of the mountains / lake is friggin’ awesome. You guys need that blown up and framed.
mike, i’ve been to chile and i know they have scissors!
What an insightful, informative and complimentary comment… I´m not a sheep and therefore don´t require sheering as a sheep does.