Valparaiso, Chile

After the ferry, I caught a bus to Valparaiso, Chile. I only had a few days left before I flew out of Santiago. I thought about kicking around Santiago for a couple of days, but a few different people recommended a trip to Valparaiso over Santiago, so that's where I headed.

To get there I took a 15-hour bus ride. I was a bit nervous about that because bus rides in the US are a bit scary. I think the longest one I've taken was between Chicago and Indianapolis, and that was a miserable couple of hours. But the bus in Chile, to my very pleasant surprise, was quite nice. The bus was right on time, there was plenty of leg room, the seats reclined pretty far, the bus was clean and odor-free, and they served snacks in morning. It was an overnight ride and I slept through most of it. (I have inherited an impressive ability to sleep from my father.)

I got to Valparaiso mid-morning and checked into a hostel there. As my trip was winding down, I wasn't too motivated to do a whole lot. I spent a good bit of time just wandering around the city, taking it all in. Valparaiso is on the coast of central Chile, about two hours north west of Santiago. It's a crowded and chaotic city with houses, many painted wild colors, precariously stacked up its steep hills. (It's also in an earthquake zone and it looks like about the last place I'd want to be in an earthquake.) The city was a very prosperous port in the second half of the 19th century. Its golden age ended after much of the city was physically wrecked by a major earthquake in 1906 and its economy was ruined by the opening of the Panama Canal eight years later. It has been bouncing back in recent years, and is still a major cultural center of Chile.

One of the most striking things one notices while strolling about the city is the graffiti. It's everywhere, and much of it is quite elaborate. There is, of course, a lot of unsightly tagging, but that mostly just disappears into the overall chaos of the city. In a few more lines, I'll shut up and let the pictures take over, and you'll notice I took more pictures of graffiti than anything else. There is an open-air museum of murals, but I found the real graffiti much more interesting.

Ok, as promised, pictures!

This is the hostel’s emergency plan. As I mentioned, I would not want to be here for an earthquake.

The next several pictures are from an "urban mountain biking" race that took place on one of the days I was there. The racers started at the top of the hill, and raced one at a time in a time trial down over rough cobblestone streets and over various obstacles to the finish line. The streets that lead up the hills of Valparaiso are a tangled mess which makes it hard to get around, but provides plenty of hairpin turns for the racers. The most striking thing about the race was how close the spectators were to the racers. A few minutes would pass between each biker, during which time the spectators would wander around the course, which was roped off with caution tape. Then a course marshall would blow his whistle, the people would scatter, and a few short seconds a biker would fly (sometimes literally--there were some big jumps) through the narrow course, dangerously close to spectators. I wasn't worried about the bikers--they wore full-face helmets and all sorts of protective gear--but an out-of-control racer could have caused some serious damage. Fortunately these guys seemed to know what they were doing.

And, finally, a parting shot of the city.

After my couple of days in Valparaiso, I caught a ride to Santiago, grabbed dinner with a few folks I had met at the hostel, then headed toward the airport. Early the next morning I started the long journey home. The cheapest ticket was Santiago to Lima to Miami to Charlotte, where my car awaited me for the two-and-a-half-hour drive home. So that was a long day. I'm now back home in Blacksburg, VA.

I'm not sure what's next. I'll be around VA for a while, and I'll do a little more traveling around the US. But stay tuned to see where I go! (The smart money is on climbing destinations.)

I'm on a boat! (again): Ferry from Puerto Natales to Puerto Montt

After my lazy couple of days in Puerto Natales, I boarded the Navimag ferry for Puerto Montt. The ferry goes from Puerto Natales to Puerto Montt, covering around 900 miles in 4 days.

There were about 180 passengers on board. We boarded the ship on a Monday evening. We had a short welcome and safety briefing, then most of us went to bed. While we were sleeping, the lower decks of the ship were loaded with cargo.

Sunset as we're boarding.

Loading the cargo the first night on the boat. We left the port early the next morning while I was still sleeping. Yup, that open-top trailer is full of livestock. So we shared the boat with cows. Anytime someone accidentally referred to this trip as a cruise, we reminded them of the cows. I know cruise ships have just about everything on them, but somehow I doubt they have cows.

The first day is supposed to be the most scenic, and it was also the day with the best weather. I, along with most of the other passengers, spent most of the day out on the decks taking in the scenery and taking pictures.

This picture highlights the Zodiac which was sent out on an ice run. Why settle for normal ice when glacial ice is abundant?

G&T on a chunk of the glacier.

Sunset the first full day on the boat.

The weather the next few days wasn't that great, so we spent a lot more time inside.

We passed this wreck on the second day. The crew said there is just one large rock in this channel. Apparently this boat found it.

The time on the ferry, especially when the weather and visibility was bad, was quite relax. We ate a lot, took lots of naps, played lots of cards, and so on. There were a lot of fun people on the boat, so it never really got boring. (And if it did, that just meant it was time for a nap!)

On Friday morning we arrived in Puerto Montt.

Here's the ship being unloaded in Puerto Montt.

After arriving in Puerto Montt, I caught a bus up to Valparaiso. That's where I am now. Tomorrow I head to Santiago, then the following day I'll head home!

Thanks for reading!

Parque Nacional Torres del Paine, Chile

After my last post, I caught a bus from El Calafate, Argentina to Puerto Natales, Chile. The bus ride was about 5 hours long and involved a fairly painless border crossing. Anyway, the reason for coming to this part of Chile was to hike in the Parque Nacional Torres del Paine (pronounced pie-neh). I had a day in Puerto Natales to get ready for the hike. The park is huge and Puerto Natales is the nearest large town, so they’re quite used to hikers. Erratic Rock, one of the hostels in town, has a free information session on the park and the various options for seeing it. The folks at Erratic Rock are great--more on this later.

After two nights in Puerto Natales, I boarded the bus for the park. There are several bus companies running buses up to the park, but they all charge the same price and run on the same schedule. It’s a couple hours on the bus then a few stops in the park. I rode to the last stop in the park, then started my hike. Many of the visitors simply come in to camp and do day hikes. The most popular multi-day hiking option is the “W” hike (so called because the route traces a rough W), which takes 4 or 5 days. I opted for the longer circuit hike, which took me 9 days. The hike I did starts off covering most of the W hike, then continuing into the lesser visited parts of the park. There are a lot of hiking options, and also a lot of options of what to carry. In order to minimize impacts (or, really, to concentrate impacts), camping is allowed only in designated sites. Most of these are located near refugios. The refugios offer meals, drinks, beds, rental gear, and so on. I opted to carry all my gear and food, but the park has many options for those who do not want to carry as much weight. Carrying everything is, of course, the cheapest option. But the whole trip can be done with a much lighter pack if you’re willing to spend some money. This makes it a very accessible hike for inexperienced hikers.

Speaking of money, that’s one of my few complaints about the trip--everything costs money. Not a lot, but it adds up. Entry to the park is about $30. Most treks involve a $20 ferry ride. There are a few free campsites, but most charge, even in the remote parts of the trek. It’s not a lot of money--around $8. However, I’m just not used to having to pay to pitch a tent in the backcountry. And, of course, the refugios sell drinks. Passing up a cold beer after a day of hiking is a lot to ask.

So, given the number of visitors and the refugio system, this hike is by no means a solitary wilderness experience. It’s definitely a social hike. During the time I was there I hiked with a bunch of different people, making new friends and bidding others farewell based on our various itineraries.

Anyway, here’s what you’ve been waiting for... Pictures!

A few views from my first day:

Laguna Linda, a short side hike from the main trail.

Most of the hiking is on pretty flat ground, doing a big circle around the torres.

Lago Pehoe

Lago Pehoe

My first campsight--Paine Grande, on Lago Pehoe. This is the largest refugio and busiest campsite. I hiked about 10 miles to get here. The other way to get here is to take the ferry across Lago Pehoe. Taking the ferry means you only have to walk a few hundred yards, making this a very easy place to get to, so it's pretty crowded.

I’m finally learning that people who have been here for a while rarely talk about weather forecasts because the only thing predictable about the weather is that it’s unpredictable. We had some pretty lousy days toward the middle of the trip. We skipped the side hike to Valle Frances because visibility was awful. This was unfortunate because it is supposed to be one of the highlights of the park.

I hiked most of the W with two fellow Americans I met on the bus to the park:

Lauren

and Mike on the bridge near Campemento Italiano, toward the middle of the W.

By the next day we had picked up another hiking companion, Max, from England. Here they are near Lago Nordenskjol.

Another view of Lago Nordenskjol

The last leg of the W travels up the Rio Ascensio for a close-up view of the torres.

Looking at the torres from Refugio el Chileno

View out the window of the Refugio.

If the conditions are right, the torres can provide a background for amazing sunrises. Every shop in town has many postcards of the towers glowing red or purple in the early morning light. So many people do the steep hike up to the Torres lookout by headlamp to catch the sunrise. That’s what i did. Unfortunately there were too many clouds to get much color, but it was still a nice view. However, I think the people who slept in got an even better view because it cleared up later in the day.

It was freezing up there, but I followed the great advice of the guys at Erratic Rock and took my sleeping bag so I could spend some time.

Me, nice and cozy.

After the sunrise hike, I bid farewell to my friends who were doing the W, and continued to the somewhat less-traveled part of the park, on the back side of the circuit. Weather took a turn for the worse while I was back there. Weather is supposed to change dramatically and often down here, but I had over two full days of unchanging, and unenjoyable weather. It was cold and rainy for about two and a half days.

Looking down the valley near Camp Seron. This was one of the last pictures I took before two days of rain, gray skies and no visibility.

On the first full day of rain, I spend the morning in my tent, hoping the rain would clear. In the early afternoon I gave up on that and started hiking. Weather was pretty bad, and there was nothing to see, so I just hiked. I think I set a personal speed record for hiking--11 miles in under 4 hours. Usually I average around 2 mph with a pack on. But I was on a mission that day. After my day of booking it down the trail, I arrived at Refugio Dickson. The inside of the refugio was packed with Chileans who had taken the day off because of the weather. I think most just hung around the refugio all day drinking wine because there was a pretty lively little party going on when I got there.

I took a rest day the next day off because it rained all day. Just a few hundred feet higher it was snowing. The hike would take me to a higher elevation, and therefore into the snow. So I had a lazy day that consisted mostly of sitting in my tent, alternating between napping and reading. I woke up the next morning to warm temperatures and clear skies, so I started hiking!

Looking across Lago Dickson, with the Dickson glacier in the distance.

Laguna Perros and Glaciar Perros.

This day’s hike involved crossing the John Gardner pass, pictured below. The pass had been closed the day before because of deep snow. Much of the snow was still there, but it wasn’t much more than ankle deep, so it wasn’t much of a problem.

Looking back toward Laguna Perros as I’m hiking up toward the pass.

Pictures of the Continental Ice Cap, from the pass.

Anyone want to guess the elevation of the pass? (Answer is at the end of the post.)

Glaciar Grey flows off the ice cap. The next several pictures were taken along Glaciar Grey and Lago Grey.

The picture above is the same as the previous picture, but I highlighted the people in this picture to give some perspective on the size of the ice cap and glacier.

I continued along the glacier to Refugio Grey, where I would spend my last night. The following morning, I hiked back to Paine Grande and caught the ferry back to the road where I picked up the bus back to Puerto Natales.

A couple pictures from the ferry:

I had a couple of days to kill in Puerto Natales. I had a few ideas of places to go, but I ended up spending most of my time just taking it easy. The Banff Mountain Film Festival, a traveling exhibition of short films about climbing and other mountain sports was in town, so I checked that out. Other than that I spent a lot time just hanging around Erratic Rock, which has my vote for coolest hostel ever. The price is comparable to other hostels, the beds are a bit more comfortable than others I’ve slept in down here, and the breakfast is the best hostel breakfast I’ve had so far. But what really makes the difference is the feel of the place. The hostel draws a really interesting mix of climbers and hikers from all over. It’s owned and run by Americans, and the staff is pretty international. The staff is laid back and super helpful. And it’s also the only place in Patagonia to recycle camping stove fuel cans, so bring yours in when you’re in town!

After a couple lazy days in Puerto Natales, I boarded the Navimag ferry, bound for Puerto Montt. My next entry will tell you all about the ferry trip!

Oh yeah, the elevation of the pass. I bet you guessed way too high. It’s just over 4000 feet. Yup. Pretty wild for such a low elevation.

Thanks for reading! I’ll close with a picture of a defective Chilean 50 peso coin (worth roughly a US dime). Over a millions of these were recently put into circulation. Can you spot the defect?