back in the city again

I'm back in Puerto Natales again, at the same net cafe that failed me last time, but this time I'm prepared. I know when closing time is...

I just back from spending 6 days in Torres del Paine national park with a friend from the NOLS course. We hiked a modified version of the W, for those of you that know the park, starting at the administracion, visiting glacier grey, and then heading back to laguna amarga.

Torres del Paine is a beautiful, beautiful park, and it's definitely starting to be fall down here. Not only were we offered pretty colors by the rocks and the glaciers, but also by the leaves in an array of greens, reds, oranges, and yellows. The first couple days in the park offered a little bit of the fabled patagonian weather, with a lot of rain and wind. The weather was annoying at times, but never too bad. We were able to see everything we wanted to, which is the important part.

The pictures of the torres and the cuernos do them justice, but they ignore the rest of the park. The glaciers and the mountains near the other stuff -- especially in the valle france -- were equally, or more, impressive. And, as always, a photo can never capture an experience. That said, I sure took a lot of photos. I don't think I'll be able to get them online until I get to Buenos Aires or somewhere farther north -- net here is really slow.

Being in the park was quite a shock, at first. We walked the first day through pampas for 17km. Flat grasslands, like you would find in the western US (say, maybe eastern oregon, for example) and rain. We didn't see anyone else (save for 3 people), as most people had opted to take a boat further into the park, or were going in a different direction. When we arrived at the camp, though, there was a hostel with beds, a store selling food, a sheltered kitchen area with 4 stove burners, and tents all around. And, of course, people. Tons of people. Most speaking english, but with a smattering of hebrew, french, german, spanish, and other things. After the NOLS experience, it was difficult to comprehend this situation. As the days went on, of course, I adjusted quickly.

So, next on the list is Ushuia, in Argentina, for a few days, then heading back up north..

Posted by vanwie at March 8, 2004 05:10 PM