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.