A quiet (and rainy) day in Villaricca

WARNING: this is looooooooooooooong! having a couple of restful days in Villaricca, a small town just north of the patagonia region. today´s big adventure was journeying out to a black sand beach. More like rocks than sand really but interesting as we expect it was volcanic rock. Unfortunately a sudden downpour and 2 crazy mangy dogs that wouldn´t leave us alone made it a short trip. But the local bus rides are always fun. And even better when you have a picnic onboard!

So what´s been happening...well the ferry ride from Puerto Natales to Puerto Montt was an experience and a half. It´s a cargo ferry that realized backpackers were looking to get up the coast and retrofitted the ferry to accomodate 200ish passengers. So the trip starts with walking on to the cargo elevator, a big platform that the trucks use to load cargo, and elevated up to the passenger level. The accomodations were pretty decent. A slightly too short bunk but warm blankets and hot water in the bathrooms. We lucked into a 4 person bunk, not really too sure how or why since we´d paid for the cheaper 16 person option. But logistics and plans changing at every turn doesn´t really surprise us anymore and we were happy with our very nice and quiet bunkmates.

After all the passengers are loaded the cargo (many many cows) are put onboard. Thankfully us passengers had a little more wiggle room than the cows - and we had to remember that when squashed up in the overpacked common room!

The journey was cold and windy but there really isn´t any better way to get a feel for this part of Chile. The ferry makes it´s way through the channels and fjords and the scenery is stunning. Lots of wildlife - birds, sea lions, and we think we saw a glimpse of a whale! also a good opportunity for stargazing and one of the crew pointed out some constellations for us.

There is one open water section that had 70% of the passengers grabbing the sick bags the crew were passing out. There was no problem getting a seat for dinner that night! Although we both were slightly green and opted out of any food. Thankfully we both just squeaked through managing to keep our cookies down. The crew were amazing - they put on coveralls and spent hours running around helping people to bed and constantly cleaning up after the sickies.

Arriving in Puerto Montt we decided it was going to be ´date´ night and found the local cinema. 2 movies we´d seen and 2 horror/thriller flicks so we opted for to join the kids at "Robots". Unfortunately when i´d asked if the movies were in english the cashier probably didn´t expect us to be going to a kids movie. There we were - all set up with popcorn and cokes and a bunch of spanish speaking cartoon characters! Kirk left to do a quick scout around and discovered that the thriller had just started next door. So we grabbed our stuff and made a quick move. (can´t remember the name but it was the one about using EVP to communicate with the dead).

Next stop was Osorno where we planned to get set up for our next big trek. 3 nights, 4 days in PN Puyehue (Park National). Most of our treks have started in towns that see a number of travellers and are all set up to rent gear. This one turned out to be a little different but it was definitely a highlight for both of us. We asked a couple of people and they seemed to indicate we could rent stuff in El Caulle at the trailhead...at least that was our understanding of the butchered english/spanish convo. The bus dropped us at El Caulle - a town which consists of a sign, a farm, and a restaurant. As we stood on the side of the road watching the bus depart we got a bit of a sinking feeling. And as expected we end up back on the bus journeying the 2 hours back to town. we find a hostal and the next morning make our way to the park office in town.

and this is where the fun starts :) we meet a guy in the office who is patient enough to speak relatively slowly and make a good effort to understand my version of spanish. He makes a call and from what i can make out he´s arranged for his friend to lend us his camping gear. we get in his car and drive to the friend´s office. sure enough 15 minutes later the friend shows up fully kitted out (apparently he just left work to go home and get the stuff). and just like that he gives us a tent, 2 sleeping bags, cookgear, and a phone number to call him when we return on saturday. still amazed at this turn of events and humbled by the generosity we make our way back to El Caulle.

by the time we get back to the trailhead it´s 5:30 ish - a little late to be starting the trek up to the first camp spot but by this point it´s a relief to be on our way. this trek is basically up a volcano and then traverses around the volcano to some natural hotsprings and geisers. so we go up, and up, and up. We climb for just over 2 hours with the daylight fading quickly around us. Eventually it becomes to difficult to climb and follow the trail even with our lights. We come to a small flat spot in the middle of the climb and decide we better stop for the night. There´s no water but with a litre and half we´re ok to make dinner and continue on in the morning. Two fellow trekkers we´d passed earlier arrive and decide to pitch their tent for the night as well. The morning brings renewed strength and we climb the last 40 minutes to the camping site relatively quickly. We stop to fill up with water and make coffee and we´re on our way to the hot springs. Definitely one of the most interesting days hiking - we´re above the treeline and on the side of a volcano. Rocky, barren, and desolate the surrounding cloud cover gives it all a mystical and surreal feel. It´s a bit how i picture walking on the moon - except without the weight of the pack on our backs! At one point the fog is so dense we have to wait for it to clear to find the trail marker. At one clear spot we see where the lava has flowed in a river down the mountain. 5 hours later we arrive and set up camp. The naturally formed hot springs are a must try! The bottom is a bit sludgy but we each take a quick dip and wash off the day´s dirt. The next day is a 12km round trip out to the geisers - a bit of a trek considering we have to walk the 15km back to the camping spot. but so worth it. a big steamy (and stinky!) pot coming out of the earth. and as we retrace our steps back the cloud has lifted and it´s a brilliant sunny day. the andes are spread out all around us and every turn opens up another spectacular vista. this park seems less popular than others in this region but it was definitely a highlight for both of us. neat terrain, great scenery, and challenging trekking.

We get back to town and eventually figure out our friend Ronald has left his phone with his nephew who collects the camping stuff and wine we´ve included as a thank you. The nephew is 15ish and hanging out with a friend - they have the google translator up on the computer and we have some fun using it to communicate.

we´ve been in villaricca for a couple of days chilling out. tomorrow we´re doing a day hike up an active volcano. it´s on ice and requires crampons so should be interesting. then we´re heading up another 100km or so north to just below santiago.

well done if you´ve made it this far! i´ve run out of things to say and our laundry should be ready in another half hour so will sign off...until next time...

Some Photos From the Road

Ah the digital age.

Photo 1 - The Boy in Ipanema
Photo 2 - local fishing entertains the gringos
Photo 3 - Paraty Beach
Photo 4 - shrimp dinner cooked in a pumpkin! decadent indeed.
Photo 5 - let´s try this self timer thingy
Photo 6 - take 2 on that self timer thingy
Photo 7 - hiking the gold trail through the rain forest
Photo 8 - i love my oscar neimuyer (sp?) musuem
Photo 9 - thumbs up to this train ride!
Photo 10 - hiking marumbi lunch break
Photo 11 - trailhead in marumbi
Photo 12 - love this siesta custom!
Photo 13 - foz do iguarzu
Photo 14 - more foz
Photo 15 - k and k at the foz
Photo 16 - a nice one of the foz
Photo 17 - kirkie in his floppy hat
Photo 18 - k at patagonia street
Photo 19 - another k at patagonia street
Photo 20 - kathy goes to jail
Photo 21 - in the slammer!
Photo 22 - sea lions as seen from our boat
Photo 23 - penguins at the end of the world
Photo 24 - paraty beach

feeling the Pain in the Paine

We crossed the border into Chile eating all the fruit and dairy we could manage before we had to turn it over the customs officer. Many others on the bus were doing the same thing and all the fruit entered Chile partially digested.

On the buses down here you move from one unpaved road to another except for the occasional reprieve on a paved road that seems to be in the middle of nowhere. The wind must have been 50km/hr and two people that were traveling on their bikes put them in the middle of the road to stop the bus and get on as they just couldn't ride or walk any further.

We just left Terra Del Paine national park after spending three nights camping and hiking. Kathryn did her longest hike with a fully loaded pack (16.5k) in a very impressive 6.5 hours. The tourist dollars raised in this park support all the other national parks within Chile.

The arrangements couldn’t have been easier. We pulled into our hostel, Adventure Patagonia, little plug here, and they arrange all the camping gear, the transport and help us decide on the route.

The first day was spent getting to the park, setting up camp and hiking the 10k to the renouned lookout over the Terra Del Paine mountains. (http://www.terra-australis.com.br/terra-australis/galeria/galeria34.htm) The first part of the hike was straight up the side of a mountain about 500m where the path started into the valley. After that we walked along the side of the mountain for about 3km to a campground and hut. Took a break near the crystal clear glacier river and drank straight out of the stream. No ice (or purifying drops) required. The trail then ran along the river under forest cover till starting up to the viewing point. The climb up the viewing point was about 400m and took about 45 minutes. All rock and a little hard to follow the path. Stayed at the top for about half an hour but it was really cold and we wanted to get into camp at a reasonable hour. Arrived back at camp about 7.30pm, had dinner, sat by the fire for about half and hour and want to bed before the big hike.

Started the long day around 10am and walked through rolling grass hills and we played a name the movie/song game. For the first half of the day the trail followed the coast of a turquoise lake on one side and 2000m peaks on the other. There was one river crossing that we had to do and that was a little tricky but not has hard as the pass we had to climb before lunch. It was another 500m climb but this time it was with full packs and assent was much quicker than the day before. It took us about half and hour to climb and we stopped for an hour lunch after that. Another climb right after lunch but this one was only about 300m and then into a shaded mountain side trail. From here the trail slowly worked its way back down to the lake to the point we were walking on a rock beach. Then, as usual, we climbed again. Two more climbs and a little descent and we were at our campsite for the night.

The next day we walked up the Fraser valley to a viewing point that is surrounded on three sides by peaks that are 1800m and higher. The hike took us through forest before moving up into alpine rock and cold winds. We made the ascent in two hours and got down in only an hour and forty minutes. Back at camp we decided to move on to the next camp, rather than spend the night at one the busiest camp areas we’ve been in, a quick soup and pack up and at three we’re on the trail again. Walking around two small lakes and descending in a valley where the campground is on the shoreline of the lake we hiked along the day before. We arrived here about half and hour before the rain started and considered but decided not to stay in the hostel that's $27US a night per person. We make dinner in a small hut provided for the campers with about 30 others and chat with a brother and sister from Australia. The cold Kathryn felt coming on the day before is getting a little worse and she heads to bed about 10pm.

In the morning Kathryn hasn’t been able to sleep all night and we decide not to do the final leg and head back to town to recover. I find out there’s a boat leaving in 10 minutes and we do a record fast bug out and break camp and make the ferry. The bus that meets the ferry isn’t scheduled to go back to the town till 1pm but we’re able to sit in a little tea house with a fireplace and wait. After 6 hours we cover the 200km back to town and find a nicer hotel than we have been staying in to recover.

This morning Kathryn is feeling much better for getting back to a warm bed and one or two more days of rest and she should be in top shape to take the ferry ride through the fjords to Puerta Montt.

and now from kathryn...what kirk didn´t tell you in the above post...hehe... We have spent 8ish days camping/trekking in the last couple of weeks. that kirk is camp guru has become abudantly clear.

scene 1 - we arrive in camp and fellow hikers tell us they´ve spotted a fox and therefore are going to hang their food. being from bear country this is all too familiar with us and kirk does his usual nalgene bottle tied to a rope trick and gets us a great food line. a few hours later the same guy spots our food line and obviously highly impressed asks us how in the world we managed to get it so high!

scene 2 - first night in Terra del Paine park we fall into the usual stereotypical roles. woman makes dinner, man makes fire. suddenly a few kids from the next site are sitting around our fire. it´s obvious the one kid is in a bit of a bad way - evidenced by his girlfriend shoving cookies down his throat and literally stripping him down and putting his long johns on for him. the few minutes of warming up by the fire turns into a half hour with a number of people coming and going. enough is enough. kirk makes it clear we´re not looking to have a party at which all but 2 of them move on. at this point kirk has to stoke our rapidly dwindling fire and has to tell the kid to move so he can get in there. we point out where all the free firewood is located but it seems they don´t know a lot about fire building.

scene 3 - same night we´re about to go to bed so getting water ready to put on our fire when people from another camp come over and ask if they can boil water on our fire. geez.

scene 4 - after dinner on the 2nd night we´re sitting on the rocks by the river when a girl comes over and asks kirk what he thinks of the hike the next day. a long conversation about elevation and the trail ensues.

and in addition to being king of the camp he´s not a bad nurse either as i´m feeling much better now!

this is not the amazing race

realized we never actually explained our change of plans. we had a boardroom meeting in a coffee shop a couple of weeks ago and decided there was just no way we wanted to keep a pace that would let us see all we´d planned in south america in 6 weeks. so we decided to work our way down the coast of brazil and into southern chile. instead of rushing through chile up to peru we´re taking the time down here in patagonia and will work our way slowly up to santiago. figure we´ll hit northern chile, peru, and bolivia next time...

sore muscles, skanky clothes...it´s time for a rest day

just out of the patagonia backcountry. a little town (and by little i mean no paved roads and a downtown of 2 streets) called El Chalten located in Los Glaciares National Park. we geared up with a rental tent, sleeping bags, and cooking stove and hiked up to Glaciar Grande. My (kathryn) first glaciar experience and it totally rocked. We camped out just below the glaciar lake and that was a bit of a test. The rental gear - not so much. but a fine winter camping experience...which is easy to say now we´re warm again :)

The next day we decided to do the trek up to the lookout and then bug out, stay in the hostel, and do the second hike from town. from town it was a serious 22km (round trip) hike with the last hour described as the most challenging in the park and going straight up. but the view at the top - no words really. we were at 7200 feet looking at Fitz Roy - the highest peak around these parts and surrounded by the mountains, glaciar lakes, and an almost surreal quietness.

but a shirt that had gone 7 days in a row and socks that were about to walk off of their own accord means today is a bit of a rest day. time to eat well, sleep lots, and get to the laundry mat. speaking of eating well...kirk chowed down on his first burger in 17 years last night. news indeed. had to fuel up somehow and it´s pretty hard to find much else beside beef and ham here.

ps - the bus ride into El Chalten was fun. 5 hours to do 220 km´s (or thereabouts). whole thing on a non-paved road full of potholes. arrived at 11:30pm in the pouring rain. bus pulled into a hotel parking lot at which it was eventually determined everyone had to "get off". thankfully only a 20 minute trudge through the rain to find a room.

It´s the end of the world as we know it.

After an interesting day we´ve arrived in Ushuaia Argentina. It feels like a scene out of Northern Exposure....uh I mean Southern Exposure.

We left Foz Do Iguarcu and I wrote in my journal that I couldn´t describe it but it doesn´t really matter as it´s totally unforgettable. Have a look at some of the photos on this site and you´ll know what I mean. http://www.curitiba-brazil.com/iguacu-falls.htm We only had time to go to the Argentina side but that was enough as the Brazil side is kinda like the American side of Niagara Falls.....best viewed from Canada and the best views of all the Falls are from Canada. The park takes a full day to visit and lots of water is very necessary. The temperure was 40 degrees C in downtown Foz and some of the hikes up to the viewing areas were just too much for some people (but not for us hardy canadians though...hehe!!).

Two days ago we found out that we could buy cheap tickets to Ushuaia if we flew out of the airport in Argentina - only caveat was you had to buy them in Argentina. There was also an airport on the Brazilian side of the border but tickets were twice as much. So we decided to hop on the bus and head out for the airport on Sunday. (plus local bus experiences are always an adventure!) Went pretty well except we had to take a cab to the airport from the Argentian bus station as there was no bus service to the airport on Sunday. We found out today that there´s no bus service to the airport anyday from that bus station. We get our tickets, get back, see the falls yesterday and we´re ready to go.

We leave the hostel about 9am because we have to mail stuff home (and experience tells us everything takes 3 or 4 times longer than expected), catch the bus to Brazilian customs, stop at the Argentian customs and then get to the airport by noon. After an hour and twenty minutes in the post office we´re walking to catch the bus at 10:30am. OK...little concerned but here comes our bus so all is good. Get to the Brazilian customs and think we´re doing well because we catch-on to the fact the bus driver is going to give us a pass to get the next bus as he isn´t going to wait for us to clear customs.

We find the customs officer and he askes us number of things we don´t understand in Portguese. Another fellow with a stack of Canadian passports comes over to us and says the border guard has asked him to ask us a few questions. Odd but OK. First do we have our passports....check....do we have our entry papers......what was that? When we came into the country there was a piece of paper they gave us when we cleared customs. Kathryn was able to pull hers out of her pocket with an incredible stroke of foresight. I´d pitched mine in the garbage at the airport with my baggage claim and the boarding pass. The solution, go back downtown to the bank and buy a replacement piece of paper for $55US (165 Real). With this we surely would miss the plane. The customs office kept shrugging and saying something we think was ´Too bad. Too bad´ and we kept giving him the ´That was that you said. I don´t understand what you mean. Can we not pay you.´ After Kathryn worked on him for a bit he said ´Five dollars´. OK give him five US dollars. He says ¨No no 5´. Can you write it down? Oh $55! After giving him the money he suddenly spoke a little english and the winning quote from brazil was him saying "I take the money to the bank for you". Yeah OK, whatever. $55 US cash and passport stamps all around. We make it to the airport on time and we´re off to Ushuaia!