TORRES DEL PAINE, BLOG 9

A combination of the strong wind rattling the dome last night and that chocolate dessert I didn’t have the will power to turn down at dinner kept me wide awake last night. I finally gave up and took half a sleeping pill around one a.m. The good news is that we have another late breakfast so I got to sleep in.

As we walk to breakfast the temperature is definitely colder, the wind is gusting, and it is raining hard enough that we get a little wet. The towers are lost in the misty clouds so this is the first morning we haven’t had a clear view of them. Paul and I both have porridge this morning which is very tasty and the hot concoction helps warm us up. After we finish eating, we make sandwiches for our lunch. I also grab the chocolate bar that Paul has left beside his plate. Never pass up chocolate just don’t eat it late at night!

The logo on Eco Camp van

My energy is fairly low this morning due to this “half” cold I have come down with and add that to the rain, cold, and windy conditions my enthusiasm for hiking is not high. Paul and I put on rain pants and also affix rain covers to our day packs. I place my camera in Paul’s pack as it will be easier for me to get to it in his pack then it would be to take my pack off to retrieve it. Okay, maybe part of the reason I put it in his pack is because I don’t want the weight. We walk to the reception area in spitting rain and load up in the small vehicle with four other people. The man who was helping scout our way to the parking lot yesterday, the expat Russian man, and two Canadian women are our tour companions. Angie informs us that the man who was supposed to drive us this morning was coming from Port Natales last night and his vehicle blew over. Geez, I knew that the wind was strong last night but to blow a vehicle over it was really gusting. The good news is that the driver is fine.

A lone guanaco we pass by as we hike

We have more good news when we arrive at the head of the Fauna trail because the rain has stopped falling and the air has warmed up, however the wind is still blustery. As I mentioned I am a bit off my oats today and I walk right by two people who obviously are watching something. Paul stops me and says, “I can’t believe you didn’t see the Rhea”. Sure enough, a Rhea is eating grass 20 yards away. How did I miss that? Even then I didn’t get my camera out to document the big bird.

Angie talking about this bush and its berries which we sampled

Angie stops now and then to talk about some of the plants we are seeing. She also tells us about the time she was taking this hike and a female puma walked onto the trail in front of her. I don’t remember how far ahead the puma was but Angie said that the big cat continued on the trail for nearly the full length of the hike and would glance back at the young woman from time to time to keep an eye on her. Angie admitted she was a little afraid at first but soon realized the feline was not interested in her and like most animals wanted to walk the “path of least resistance”. That would get your adrenalin pumping.

One of the views from our high spot

Angie leads us up a steep path to a cliff with an overhanging ledge where there are some prehistoric paintings. I am panting by the time we reach the top but the climb didn’t seem to bother anyone else. Once I catch my breath, I admire the incredible view from our lofty perch. We also peer up at the deep red paintings that some ancient people painted on the ceiling of the overhang. Angie explains that researchers can’t pinpoint the date of the cave paintings but put the creation of the art at three thousand to eight thousand years ago. I comment on the size of the hand print because it is larger than my hand and our guide tells us that there was a race of people who existed here that were very tall. I do remember reading about the “giant people” that Fitzroy and Darwin encountered on their adventures in Patagonia. Perhaps the people who created the paintings were derived from that race of people. There also is a figure of a man and the other figures are probably guanacos but you have to use your imagination on these figures. We stay here to eat lunch and feast our eyes on snow-capped mountains or the lagoon below us occupied by Coscoroba Swans.

Some of the prehistoric paintings. that is a big hand

As we make our way down the trail there is another group climbing up but they stand aside to allow us to get by them. The remainder of the trail is fairly easy, some ups and downs on hills of course but nothing like the steep incline to the paintings. As we near a small water hole which is surrounded by green grass, we find a group of guanacos grazing. There are two small babies with them which are really cute but I notice one adult, ears flattened back, moves closer to them when we draw near. Angie is very cautious about an adult guanaco that is just a few feet from the trail but it is grazing and seems unconcerned about our guides close proximity and the animal doesn’t move as our guide passes it. I am watching two adults to our left that are staring at a lone guanaco that is approaching the herd from the right.

Cute baby guanaco

The camouflaged guanacos running towards the intruder, they do blend into the background. They are nearly at the trail we were just walking on

I am next to last in the group and I caution Nick, the expat Russian, that I am not liking the guanacos body language. I hesitate to walk by them because they have their ears laid flat and their shaggy necks stretched out. I make the decision to hurry by the sour looking animals and catch up with the rest of the group as does Nick, (we were both taking photos). We have barely made it past the surly duo when they begin barking and run towards the strange guanaco. The intruder holds his ground and when the front-runner reaches him the two feuding guanacos raise their front legs slightly off the ground and crash their chests together and bite at each other. However, the trespasser is smart enough to know that one against two angry defenders is not a fight to pick and turns tail, running off as fast as he can. The guanacos oddly enough chase the interloper just a short distance then come to a halt as they watch their enemy running away. I guess they don’t want to leave the herd unguarded.

The guanacos mean business, these are the chasers

This is after the brief clash and they are watching the enemy retreat. The back fellow sustained a bite as he is bleeding on his side

We end the hike at a ranger station where our driver is waiting for us. We were on the trail for three hours which was just right for me as the strong wind takes a lot of energy to hike in. When we arrived at Eco camp at mid-afternoon the rain started to fall again. We felt so lucky to have had no rain fall while we were hiking. The other people who took the longer hikes weren’t so lucky as they ended up hiking for several hours in the rain and cold. Nick’s wife was so chilled she was shivering when they returned to Eco Camp.

Another lovely view

We have reached the end of our hike. Notice the directions on brown sign about how to react if you meet a puma.

At our briefing this evening, Paul decides he wants to take the medium excursion which is tracking the wild horses that can be found in one area of Torres del Paine park. The hike isn’t that far but the drive is long and there are no trails to follow when you do hike. Paul doesn’t really care about the horses but would like to see some new country. The easy excursion is just riding in the van and stopping at viewing areas, most of which we have already visited. I hem haw around and agree to sign up for it too, with the option of canceling if the weather is really crummy and if I am not feeling better.

We walk back to our dome in light rain and it is still pattering against our dome when we go to bed. I wake up at midnight with chills and a clogged nose. It seems my cold has hit full force so I take some cold medicine and as I drift off to sleep admit to myself, I will have to forego the outing tomorrow. When the alarm goes off, I wake up to hear rain still splashing against the plastic walls of the dome. I tell Paul that I am not going on the excursion. Paul replies that he was hoping to talk me out of going because I have no energy when I succumb to a cold. I can’t argue with that.

I do go up to breakfast with Paul and this morning the towers are completely hidden by fog and clouds. When we get to the communal dome, I tell the guides that I will not be going on the wild horse outing as I am not feeling well. The concerned young women encourage me to drink some ginger tea then ask if I want housekeeping to clean our room. I tell them that the cleaners aren’t necessary and then ask them if I should make a sandwich for lunch. Marcella says that the chef will have a hot lunch for me and anyone else who is in camp at one o’clock. Paul and I walk back to the dome in more rain, the good thing is that there is very little wind.

Paul leaves at eight and I crawl back into bed and fall asleep. I wake up to someone knocking at our door and assume that the order to not clean our room wasn’t given to the staff. When I am opening the door, I hear Paul say “I’m baack” which really confuses me. Paul tells me that there is a vehicle stalled on the bridge and they all waited in reception in hopes that they would get a call that the car had been removed. When the problem still existed a half hour later Marcella and Angie told everyone to come back in an hour in hopes the problem would be fixed. We can’t figure out why someone just doesn’t pull the car off the bridge. I go back to sleep but wake up when Paul leaves to see if the outing is back on. I wake up around ten and since Paul is not here, I assume he is on his way to track wild horses. I also note that the rain is still falling and I can hardly see our neighboring dome through the foggy gloom.

I made good use of our comfortable bed today.

I spend the rest of the morning reading a book on the Kindle and blowing my nose. It is a good thing I brought lots of Kleenex! I am not the only one in camp with a cold as several other guests and a couple of guides had been fighting colds or sinus infections when we got to Eco Camp. I walk up to the communal domes at one o’clock surprisingly hungry. When I walk in, I think I am the only guest here but then I see the two people who got left behind on our Gray Lake outing already eating lunch. I know they were signed up to go on the wild horse outing except they weren’t going to do the hike. I ask them if they decided to stay in camp because of the weather but they inform me that the excursion was canceled.  It seems the car that was stalled out wasn’t on the bridge but trying to drive through the water that was flooding the road that leads to the bridge! The river is out of its banks and no vehicle is going to be getting across that body of water by car any time soon. Some of the group, including Paul, decided to take a trail from Eco Camp instead of just sitting around camp but the man and wife weren’t interested in that and I don’t blame them.

The couple from Georgia, kindly ask me to join them and I tell them that I have a bad cold and would hate to give it to them. They shrug and insist that I join them any way so I do. I apologize again for not paying closer attention to where they were as we were wandering around lost. The woman tells me that she can’t walk very fast due to asthma and admitted how frightening it was to be left behind. We move on to more pleasant conversation as we eat our hake, (fish), which I am able to actually taste despite my clogged airways. As we are finishing lunch Paul and the rest of the hikers walk into the dome, all dripping water on the floor. Paul says that it only rained hard at the end of the hike so they aren’t soaked but Angie does tell me her shoes have water in them. They hiked around six miles but were thwarted from going further by a stream that was too swollen with water to safely cross. I can’t say I am sorry I missed that hike.

Paul and I go back to our room and I sleep for another two hours while Paul reads.  We also pack as best we can as we are supposed to be leaving tomorrow to start the last part of our tour here which is puma tracking. The problem is we need to get across the river and we wonder if that will be possible. It continues to rain and for the first time our dome is a bit chilly despite the small gas stove turned as high as it will go.

The first bridge,(well side of the bridge), is the one we drive across to get to Eco Camp. I was really trying to get a photo of the old historic bridge in the background. Anyway, we won’t be driving across the bridge tomorrow!

When we arrive at our departure briefing the guides tell us that we will be leaving in the morning but we will be crossing the river in a zodiac as the river is still out of its banks. The news gets even better as we must be at the river for the first zodiac in order to beat the crowd of people who have to get out tomorrow. That means we will leave at six fifteen and take our breakfast with us. I am quite nervous about crossing a flooding river in a motor boat but one of the friendly guides assures me that it is quite safe.

At dinner we sit at the table with Marcella, Angie and another young couple that are leaving tomorrow. The blonde woman is quite gregarious and has us all laughing throughout the meal. Somehow, we get on the subject of shopping online and one of the things she talks about is acquiring clothes from a site called Rent the Runway. This site lets you rent designer clothes for special occasions. The outgoing woman gives an example of being able to rent an eight-hundred-dollar dress for eighty bucks. I must have an odd look on my face as she looks at me and says “you know, renting it for a wedding where you need to have a nice dress”. What she doesn’t know is that I am seeing in my mind the reaction of people in Wabaunsee county seeing me in a dress let alone in an eight-hundred-dollar dress and my vision is quite hilarious.

When the young lady finds out we are ranchers she thinks we should let her come and do an internship at our ranch as her dream is someday owning acreage of her own with a variety of animals on it. The sociable woman then says she would love to come to our ranch and cuddle the little calves which horrifies me. I blurt out to her “that if you try to cuddle our calves it is likely the cows would try to kill you”! Suddenly there is complete silence at our table as four sets of eyes are staring at me in disbelief. I tell my audience that although our cows are normally gentle, when they calve it is like a switch flips in them and they are going to protect their calf against anything that they perceive as a danger. Again, stares of disbelief. I try a different angle and say our cows are not dairy cows they are range cows which means they aren’t handled every day like dairy cows. Finally, Paul and I tell them about our neighbor that was nearly killed by a cow as he was tagging a baby calf. We tell the group that if he had not been able to roll under his pickup it was likely the cow would have killed him. Even then our neighbor spent a few days in the hospital recuperating from the beating he took from his cow. I hear one of the guides say something like, I guess I need to learn a little more about cows. I am a bit surprised that Marcella and Angie aren’t somewhat aware of this as they work in such a harsh environment and see the cruelty of nature too. Ah well, maybe Paul and I gave them a glimpse of reality ranching rather than the Disney World images that most people have.

No matter how cute no cuddling the new calves! See how alert mama is?

I must say our entertaining table mate leaves us completely flabbergasted when later in the course of our conversation she tells us that they pay fourteen dollars for a dozen of free-range, organic eggs. I think Paul and my mouth literally drop open. Holy smokes, I can buy ten dozen at home for that price. I believe all of us at the table learned a lot from each other tonight.  Nancy

TORRES DEL PAINE, BLOG 8

What a sight to wake up to in the morning

Paul and I have a lazy morning since our breakfast isn’t until 8:30. The towers are stunning early this morning but a bit later clouds obscure the top of the peaks and there is a full rainbow spanning the mountains. Boy, does the weather change fast here.

A couple of hours later this is our view of the towers

After we eat breakfast, we walk through the door to the next dome to make a sandwich for our lunch. There was a bag of dried fruit and nuts plus a chocolate bar by our breakfast plates to put in our sack lunch too. There is an array of breads, meats, and toppings to make a super sandwich but I keep mine simple. Chicken with some lettuce and mayo. Paul and I wrap them in cling wrap and place them in the brown sack that Eco camp supplies. Perhaps I should explain the communal dome setup. The first dome you walk into is the bar, the second dome is the main dining area and the third is where they lay out the fixings for lunch in the morning but at night guests also eat in this dome.

We take our lunches back to our dome and then decide to walk down the hill to the visitor center. The trail is steep and due to some rain last night a bit slippery but our trusty hiking poles do their job in keeping us upright. The visitor center is really for backpackers to register with the park. The center also has supplies for backpackers to restock their empty packs. The offerings are mainly food but there is also pricy clothing for sale from jackets to hiking pants. We don’t stay long since there really isn’t anything to see. Besides buses are arriving disgorging hikers ready to tackle the trails making the long but narrow building quite crowded.

Paul and I trudge up the steep incline to Eco Camp and as we near the area where the common domes are situated, I spot the mother fox. She is trotting across the grass with a large rodent in her mouth. Paul and I try to follow her but soon she has melted into the trees on the east side of the communal domes. Paul continues walking in the direction the vixen went but I run to the communal domes. There are two doors that take you to the walkway which leads to the area where our dome is, in essence a shortcut. I know the female fox is taking the rat to her three kits and since the playful youngster we saw yesterday was on the side where the superior domes are, I’m betting this is where she is heading.

Mama after she made the delivery of the rat to her kits

I pass through the doors and am halfway up the walkway when I see mama trotting across the parking area headed for our territory. Yep, just as I suspected the vixen moves into the bushy land around the domes. I watch as mama fox stops and seems to listen before moving on to another area. Paul has caught up to me and we try to follow the searching fox as best we can but since we are not allowed off the walkways it is a bit difficult. We find ourselves backtracking towards the communal domes as we watch the vixen disappear into the brush growing next to the staff’s dome. We hear some yapping then after a bit the female fox reappears without the rodent in her mouth. I finally manage to snap a quick photo before she trots off probably in pursuit of another rodent since one rat isn’t going to satisfy three half-grown kits. Well that was very cool.

A close up of the red fox

The morning is simply gorgeous and Paul suggests we take advantage of it by walking the trail behind the yoga and massage domes that sit close to our dome. We never booked a yoga session or a massage but lots of people did! The trail is called “Contemplative Trail” and oddly enough no guides talked about it as far as we know. It turns out to be a beautiful trail that wanders through trees and across a small stream. There are picnic tables scattered here and there along with wooden benches to sit on so you can contemplate. As we climb to higher ground, we have a nice view of the towers. We don’t have time to walk to the end of the trail as our departure time for our excursion is fast approaching and we need to return to our room to get our packs.

Paul hiking the Contemplative trail

A nice view from the Contemplative trail

The white van is fully loaded as we prepare to depart at noon. There are three guides and I believe fifteen guests. It is a long drive to the lake and we will break up the journey by stopping for lunch at a visitor center. We drive by a trio of guanaco in pursuit of an interloper and Marcella talks about how the guanacos’ try to castrate their enemy with their teeth. We have heard this story from another guide too and took it with a grain of salt. However, as we watch the aggressors chase the poor intruder, they do stretch their long necks out towards that sensitive area between the fellow’s legs whenever they get close to their foe. Hmm. The angry guanacos are certainly tenacious as they continue to chase the trespasser for a good mile or more. The quartet is beginning to slow down as they veer away from the roadside. However, when I look back at them, I can see the silly things running still intent on punishing the interloper.

The trio of Guanaco who were chasing the intruder. Not a clear photo as I took it as we were driving

Further down the road we come upon a sight that is just the opposite of what we witnessed with the fighting guanaco. Standing on the edge of a high cliff is a single guanaco that is taking its job as sentry very seriously. Even though it is mid-day the light is very nice and our driver stops the van so we can admire this iconic scene. The guanaco is standing like a statue gazing out over the landscape. What a view he must have up there. There are a few guanacos at the base of the cliff and these are the fellow herd mates that he or she will warn with a barking bray if it spots a puma in the vicinity.

Guanaco on sentry duty

Eating lunch

White-tufted Grebe

After an hour or so we stop and have lunch near a lake which proves to be a popular place as many people are picnicking here. Despite the strong wind which makes eating outside a challenge it is worth it as the view is stupendous. After we have finished eating we go to the visitor center which is also next to a beautiful lake, perhaps it is the same body of water as we aren’t far from where we ate lunch. We walk out on a deck by the lake and I do a little bird watching before we go back into the building for our briefing on tomorrows excursions. We will be getting home late which is why the guides are giving us are options now. Felipe, the first male guide we have had while here, then takes us to a three-dimensional model of the park and points out our camp, trails and lakes making the layout of the park a little clearer.

3d model of Torres Del Paine

Lake next to the visitor center

As we continue on towards Gray Lake we are treated to beautiful views of lakes and rugged mountains. The wind certainly hasn’t gone down as an occasional gust will buffet our van. I can’t imagine we will sail in this and in fact the guides keep telling us not to be surprised if the cruise is canceled. When we pull into the parking lot our escorts are on the radio with the boat operators trying to find out the status of our expedition. Now it is our guides turn to be surprised as indeed the boat tour is on. I am not sure if I am happy or sad about this!

Yes this is a hotel. You must walk across a bridge to get to it.

Our first task is to get to the boat which means hiking for thirty minutes or so. We arrive at a swinging rope bridge which spans the river we need to cross. Only six people are to be on the bridge at a time and since there are people on both ends of the bridge this is going to take some time. One group will cross from our side of the river and then six people will come across from the other side. The wind is having fun with the bridge and most people hang onto the rope as they traverse the bridge. A few times we watch as the wind pushes the bridge hard enough that it bows in the middle causing the people who are on it to stagger even though they are holding on. Paul, remembering the time he had his glasses blown off as we crossed a swinging bridge in New Zealand, takes off his glasses and puts them in his pocket. Good idea!

The swinging bridge we crossed to get to the boat

Felipe and five of our group crosses first, then Paul and I are in the second group. Oh boy, it is really windy and we hurry across as fast as we can despite having to catch our balance at times. After the adventure on the bridge we are walking on a very nice trail through a grove of trees which block that awful wind. The calm doesn’t last long as when we step out of the trees into the open, we are blasted by a head wind. There isn’t a trail here, just an expanse of rocky ground. I would guess we walk a 1/8th of a mile to the gravel levee. On reaching the embankment we turn right and start walking towards the docked boat which looks like it is a mile away. Holy Smokes, the wind literally blows us and everyone else sideways and at times it changes direction just enough to stop us in our tracks. I am sure I might have been blown over if I didn’t have my trekking poles to help brace me. Paul does see a boy get blown down and once we are on the boat, we hear a passenger say his wife was knocked over. People are hanging onto each other in order to stay upright and if it wasn’t so scary and irritating it would have been quite comical. The wind is blowing sprays of water off the lake to add to everyone’s misery and even small pebbles are being moved around.

The catamaran we took to the glacier. The small boat is a shuttle boat

With my head down I keep trudging towards that darn boat and at some point, I yell to Paul that I can’t believe I paid money to do this. I really wasn’t completely joking either! Most of our group is huddled near a large rock which is blocking the wind a bit when we arrive. Marcella laughs as we walk up and facetiously asks if we are having fun. Paul tells her that I said I wanted my money back which brings more laughter from our cordial guide.

By the time we get on the boat, which is a catamaran, most of the seats are taken and Paul and I end up at the back of the boat plus we are sitting facing the back of the catamaran. Oh well. Our seat companions are part of our group which we got to know last night at dinner. They are US citizens but immigrated from Russia a few years ago. We settle in and listen as a pleasant woman narrates interesting facts about various things as the big catamaran floats across the lake. Amazingly, the catamaran feels quite stable in the rough waters to me but a young girl, maybe six, sitting two seats over from us becomes violently seasick about a half an hour into our trip. The poor thing.

Some of the scenery as we sailed for the glacier

It is obvious why they call the lake, Grey Lake, because that is the color of the water due to dissolved minerals and sediment. Because of the strong wind, no one is allowed to go up on the open deck while on the way to the glacier. With water splashing on the windows it is impossible to take photos of the bobbing ice burgs unless you go to the front of the boat where those windows are more protected. I take advantage of that a couple of times as do other passengers.

Paul and Felipe. Paul moved here after we got underway. I chose to stay at my window seat.

It takes an hour and a half to reach the massive glacier. We are told to put on our life jackets and then the crew allows us up on the deck to get an unobstructed look at the ice field. The pilot slowly cruises alongside the glacier allowing us to snap photos of the incredible ice forms. Maybe the most striking thing about the glacier ice is the many hues of blue that can be seen in one section of ice. Once we have floated along the length of the glacier, the captain turns the catamaran around and we glide past the sculptured ice again.

A small section of the glacier

Close up showing all the blue tones running through the ice

Paul and some other passengers enjoying being up top. Ice burg in the distance

It is time to leave this incredible creation of mother nature but we are allowed to stay on the deck because the crew has to pick up some hikers that were trekking the W trail and the pickup point is just a short distance from the glacier. The big boat just noses close to the shore and the crew drops some steps down so a dozen hikers can board. I notice a chunk of ice that has washed ashore and I snap a photo of the interesting shaped ice. Imagine my surprise when I see this piece of ice sitting on top of the ship’s cooler when we return to the cabin.  The narrator had told us that glacier ice was used in the drinks they served on board but I hadn’t really thought about where they picked up the free ice.

Getting ready to pick up backpackers

The chunk of ice on shore

The same chunk of ice which will now be served with drinks 🙂

The red and white boat docks in the same spot that we started from and no the wind has not gone down. As we are disembarking, the woman who was our narrator is telling passengers that they can take the shuttle boat back rather than trek along the wind-swept levee. I ask what it costs and she replied nothing. We see three of our group climb into the shuttle boat so Paul and I decide to follow them as do the expat Russians. Once we are settled on the zodiac, we see Felipe and the rest of our group huddled together not far from the shuttle boat. We wave at them so they know where we are and Felipe acknowledges our waves by giving us a thumbs up. The father/daughter duo that is in our troupe comes over to get on the boat too but they are told there is only one spot available so they go back to rejoin the group who will have to brave the wind as they trek back to the van.

Ice burg that looks like it is a sculpture. I definitely can see a face.

I am so happy that we are not having to take that miserable walk and even though the boat docking is a bit dicey it was well worth it. As the seven of us walk up the road the road splits but there is no signage to indicate where the roads lead. A guide who is leading several people who were on the boat motions for us to follow her. We fall in behind and soon we are at a motel, called appropriately the Gray Motel. When we tell the young woman that we aren’t guests here she looks at us oddly. We then tell her we need to get to the public parking lot where our van is. The guide who doesn’t speak much English enlists a staff member to take us to the edge of the hotel grounds and instructs him to show us which way the public parking lot is. We follow the small man to the hotels parking lot and since he speaks no English, he uses his hands to motion us in the direction we need to walk.

The rare Huemul deer, a doe

We start down the road and I note that there is a gravel road separated from us by a narrow field to our left but that isn’t where the hotel man directed us to walk. We continue to follow the dirt road and as we pass a meadow, I see two deer grazing. Are you kidding me, I excitedly tell everyone about the deer. No one cares except Paul and I so I guess they don’t know that the Huemul deer is on the endangered list. We were told that the chances of us seeing them were next to none. Even though the buck and doe are a quarter-mile away I use the full zoom on my camera to take several photos, then Paul and I hurry to catch up with our companions. I can’t believe we just saw the Huemul Deer!!

It gets better! There is a buck too.

The road turns into a trail and pretty soon we find ourselves back on the rocky open ground we walked across to get to the lake levy this morning except there is a body of water separating us from the grove of trees we hiked through. Are you kidding me? We walk up to the water and there is no way we are crossing this. Paul and another man start walking alongside the water but I insist we need to go back to the hotel as I think we will have to take the boat again in order to get to that darn windy levy so we can walk back the same way we came. Paul calmly says he thinks we are on the correct side and continues to walk along the water’s edge which before long becomes the fast-flowing river. I am adamant that we are on the wrong side of the river but Paul and another man who is walking beside us insist we should continue on a bit further.  Next, we reach some trees and here we find a well-trodden trail which Paul and our new friend insist we follow. This man’s friends and the Russian immigrants who are trailing behind us say nothing but keep looking back the way we came probably wondering as I am if we should just go back. So much for thinking we saved time by taking the boat!!

It seems we have been on this trail forever when Paul spots the swinging bridge in the distance to our right. The man’s friends and the Russians have fallen farther behind but I beckon to them so they know we are in familiar territory. However, the trail doesn’t go to the bridge but curves around and we walk out of the trees into an open field. The trail then turns back to our right and ahead of us we spy the empty parking lot. As the three of us pick up our pace to reach the concrete lot, we hear someone calling to us. Our van is parked on the gravel road we saw when we left the hotel parking lot. Good grief.  We turn and walk down the road and when we reach the van the Russians are already there. They must have seen the vehicle and heard our guides calling and cut across the narrow expanse of grass to have beat us to the vehicle. The other man’s friends haven’t shown up yet and we sit and wait and then we wait some more. Where are they? They weren’t that far behind us but truthfully once we rounded that curve, I didn’t look back anymore to see if they were still with us.

I think this is an Andean Goose. No time for photos while we were lost so will fill in with calming photos

The couples friend tries to get off the van to go look for his lost companion but Marcella says no she will go. Marcella is gone for maybe twenty minutes and tells us when she returns that she ran all the way to the beach and saw no one. The very calm guides decide we should drive to the hotel, there is no phone service here, and see if the lost couple managed to get back there. Nope, they are not there either. Felipe decides to walk the trail again and our van drives slowly back to the parking lot. On the way I see the deer again, which one of our guides had never seen until now, but everyone is too upset to care and rightly so. As we approach the empty parking lot, we spot the couple up by the ranger’s station. How the heck did they get there? Somehow, while we were walking to the van and no one was paying attention to the trail they must have hiked by us and ended up in the parking lot. Finding no vehicle, they must have gone to the ranger station to get help. What are the chances of that they could bypass us in that short span of time? Crazy.

The couple was upset and scared which is understandable. It seems they lost sight of us when we walked around the curve and they went the other way. Figuring out they were going the wrong way they backtracked and found their way to the parking lot. Many mistakes were made but pointing fingers isn’t going to change anything but I have a feeling things will be a bit more regulated on this excursion after this. The upside of the whole folly was seeing the beautiful Huemul deer and that is what I will choose to remember.

Just before twilight in the park. Nice half-moon over a mountain

Our driver is driving as fast as he safely can since we are running late and dusk will soon be falling over this beautiful land. The other upside of our debacle is that we are seeing the mountains in gorgeous light as we scoot down the rough roads. The wind is doing its best to push the vehicle around and at times it gusts hard enough that small pebbles smack the side of our car. Yikes. When we at long last arrive at Eco Camp we are told to go right to the communal domes and have our dinner. After all it is nine-thirty! Still, we are only forty-five minutes later than our expected arrival time would have been without our misadventure.

We were told later by one of the guides that the sustained winds at Gray Lake were 60 miles with gusts up to 80. I believe it as in Kansas we can have sustained winds of 40 to 45 miles an hour and compared to what we experienced at the lake today that would feel like a gentle breeze. Nancy

TORRES DEL PAINE, BLOG 6

A final look from the ferry

We exit the ferry and begin the short drive to Puerto Varas. Rafa contacts his office and gives the staff our flight reservation number so they can check Paul and I in for our flight tomorrow and print our boarding passes. A short time later, Rafa gets a call saying that they can’t find me online. I tell Rafa to have them take out the hyphen in my last name as that is probably the problem, computers hate that hyphen. We know I am in the system because we have the form where all our flights are listed and my name is on that. Nope, they call back and say that taking the hyphen out didn’t work so Rafa suggests that we go to the office and see if we can get this problem solved.

There is no place to park, so Rafa stops in the street in front of his office and we hop out of the car taking our packs with us. Once inside, one of the young women calls the airline and gives them my passport number. Nope, they can’t find me. Come on!! Time for plan B.  The women look at the emails they have received from Swoop to see what they can find. In the meantime, Paul pulls out our paperwork from Swoop with all our flight information. Aha, it seems Paul has written an L instead of an I at the beginning of the flight reservation number. Within minutes we are checked in and our boarding passes printed, what a relief. We feel terrible to have wasted these helpful women’s time and apologize to them numerous times. Also, we misunderstood that I was the only one they couldn’t find in the system. It was in fact both of us that they couldn’t find since the reservation number we gave them didn’t exist.

Flowers lining the sidewalk on the way to Mero Gaucho hotel

Rafa has been circling the block and once he sees us emerge from the office, he stops the car and we jump in. He takes us to Mero Guacho and helps us carry our luggage into the hotel. We tell Rafa how much we have enjoyed our time with him and that he made us feel like friends not clients. We then say goodbye to this man who gave us such a wonderful experience on Chiloe Island. It was a privilege to be guided by Rafa who showed through his actions and discussions his passion for birds, and nature in general.

The owner of Mero Guacho, a young woman, checks us in and helps carry our luggage to our room which happens to be the same one that we had before. When we are settled in, Paul checks our email and there is bad news about Taz. Dr. Amy says she sent me an email on Sunday telling me that Taz had taken a turn for the worse and she made the decision to put her to sleep. Why the email didn’t get to us I don’t know but, in a way,, I am glad it got lost as the sad news probably would have taken some of the joy out of our time at Park Tepuhulico. Truthfully, I had a feeling that Taz was not going to survive and I had been preparing myself for the announcement from Dr. Amy that she couldn’t save my cat. There were so many things going wrong with her system that I wondered how she could overcome them all. Taz has been in our lives for eight years and I will miss her.

Taz always followed me when she was younger but refused to let me carry her. The creek didn’t stop her from coming along on my walks

Taz was sure I couldn’t see her. If it was dark and she closed her eyes she was hard to see

Paul and I aren’t very hungry but we do agree that a beer and an appetizer sound good. We return to the Tea house where we had that great sandwich our first night in Chile and the waitress seats us. When we ask what beer they offer we are told that they don’t serve beer. Imagine that, a tea house doesn’t serve beer :). The helpful and friendly demeanor of the Chilean people shows up again as the waitress gives us directions to a nearby beer pub.

On our way to the pub several people greet us with “Ola” and two older men even tip their hats to me. I love it. We find the pub and are seated upstairs on the balcony that overlooks the lake and the two prominent volcanos. The view is spectacular despite the smoke that is filtering across the face of the volcanos from a wild-fire.

This was our favorite beer in Chile. The label has a the famed Paine Towers on it.

As we are waiting for our beer and appetizers, (fish and chips for me, a bowl of fries for Paul) we are trying to figure out who sang the 70’s song that is being played in the pub. A young man seated at the table next to us leans over and says “Cream” and “Eric Clapton”. Of course. This leads to an enjoyable visit with the young couple from California as we sip on our Austral beer and eat the huge plate of appetizers the waiter brought us. When we finish eating,(we both leave food on our plates), we say so long to the personable couple and walk down to the lake.

Having fun in Lake Llanqihue. You can see a line of smoke on the horizon

Even the dogs join in the fun

It is a nice day but still cool as Paul and I both have our coats on. We had commented to Rafa about people being in the water at other places and how cold it must be. His reply was that people must take advantage of the “three days of summer” they receive in Southern Chile. We watch the beach goers romping, sunbathing, some throwing mud at each other and all having a great time then we return to the main part of Puerto Varas. I need to find someplace to buy some throat lozenges and know we passed a pharmacy when we were here a few days ago. We finally find a small pharmacy and with hand gestures get across to the woman waiting on us what I am in need of. I have been experiencing some ear drainage which is now making my throat sore. These symptoms generally mean I will have a full-blown cold in a day or two. Great!

It makes me cold just looking at the people in the lake

We get prepared as best we can for our departure in the morning, shower and I go to bed early. Paul is reading on the Kindle as I drift off to sleep.

We are up at six-thirty and have our usual breakfast except we take the blueberries we bought yesterday to top off our cereal. We check out of this lovely hotel and the owner tells us that our driver is waiting for us on the street. We settle into the mans very nice car and he drives the back roads to Puerto Montt. I think he did this to avoid the morning traffic but we can’t ask as he doesn’t speak English. Our driver deposits us and our luggage in front of the small terminal. We give him a tip and wave goodbye.

The Sky Airline desk is not even open but there are a few people already in line to check in. We join the line as I read somewhere that the small airlines here sometimes over book so even though you have a reservation it is best to be at the front of the line. We probably wait a half hour before the Sky staff show up and then it takes them some time to get the computers up and running. When they do start letting people check in the process goes quite fast.

No photos for this part of the blog so will fill in with some from Chiloe Island. This man is holding the meat from abalone. I ate that?

When it is our turn to check in the friendly man helping us tells us to put our check through luggage on the scales. We sit our two small cases on the scale and the guy, his eyebrows raised in surprise, asks us if that is all the luggage we have to check through. Paul says yes and adds that this is more than we usually have on our trips. He compliments us on traveling light, hands us our official boarding passes and passports and we walk upstairs to where our gate is.

We go through security which is much easier than in the states, you don’t have to take your shoes off or take liquids out. We take a seat close to where we will be lining up and I people watch as we wait for the boarding call. There is a young African man who has arrived shortly after we did and he stands, ticket in hand in front of the boarding area, even though there are no staff around and no lanes set up. When the boarding staff arrives, Paul and I get up and move close to the boarding area. A man sets up two lanes showing the row numbers which tell you which line to get in. We are in the second line and we end up being at the head of the line. Other passengers are getting in line except for the young man who had been standing here for the past half hour. He is looking at his ticket and seems completely at a loss. I hesitate and then walk over to him and look at his ticket. I point to his seat number and then point to the line he belongs in which is the one we are in. As he turns to walk to the back of the line, I take his arm and motion for him to get in front of Paul and I. It didn’t seem fair that he had been standing in line long before the rest of us only to end up at the back of the line.

Some of the crafts we saw for sale on Chiloe Island

We have to wait until the arriving passengers have unloaded and then for the passengers with lower row numbers to make their way onto the plane. When our turn comes, we filter into the narrow aisle of the plane and the young man hesitates and looks back at me. I look at his ticket again, and show him where his seat is which is two rows behind us. He smiles gratefully and soon we are taxiing down the runway on our way to Punta Arenas. At the end of our two-hour flight as we are leaving the plane, I look back and see the young fellow smiling broadly at me and I give him a big smile in return. We have been helped before on our travels so I know how grateful you feel when someone takes the time to give you a hand.

Old door at The Chonchi church

We have a momentary worry when one of our checked bags shows up quickly at the baggage claim and then no other luggage comes at all. There are still other people waiting and all of us breathe a sigh of relief when the belt begins to move again ferrying more luggage into the small airport. Our suitcase is one of the last to show up but at least it showed up! As we walk into the lobby a young woman walks up to us and asks if we are the Millers. Yes we are, and as usual we are so happy that someone is here to claim us! It seems we are the last of eight people to arrive that are going to Eco camp as the other guests arrived on earlier flights.

When we saw round bales they were wrapped in plastic

The young woman who greeted us introduces us to our driver, Pedro, and we follow him to the van where we add our luggage to everyone else’s. We climb into the van and find a seat. Everyone has been given a sack lunch as we have a five-hour drive ahead of us. The first part of the drive takes us through very dry seemingly inhospitable landscape. Paul taps me on the shoulder not to far into the drive and points out the window to the left. A condor is flying quite low to the ground and I have my second surprise on this drive. For some reason I assumed condors were only to be found in the mountainous areas. Grassland along with some small lakes is the next region we drive through and we see Rhea’s, Guanacos’ and lots of ducks and or geese. It is a bit tough to tell when you are driving past the fowl at sixty miles an hour. The third thing on this drive that seems out-of-place are Flamingos huddled together in a small lake. I knew we would possibly see Chilean Flamingos but seeing the pink birds later on with a snow-covered mountain in the background just doesn’t seem right :).

Scene on our drive to Torres del Paine, there are Rheas in this photo but they are very camoflaged

Man on horse back with a huge flock of sheep

We stop at Puerto Natales where the office of Eco Camp is and get off the van where we are welcomed by Marcella, a lovely, personable, young woman. We follow her into the building where we fill out forms with our passport numbers among other info. Since we will be arriving at camp rather late Marcella also has us give her our order for tonight’s dinner. There are two starters, four entrees and three desserts to choose from. Gee is that all the choices we have? I’m kidding of course.  Once we wrap this up, we load back into the van along with Marcella who will act as our guide for the rest of the journey.

Chilean Flamingos

Guanaco’s grazing

There are more Guanaco scattered throughout our drive. They look similar to llama and in fact both are a member of the camelid family. As we drive by a few Rheas’, Marcella tells us that the dad hatches and raises the young. She then says there is a male Rhea in the area that is raising ten chicks which is highly successful. Darned if we don’t see that family of eleven as we are on the final leg of our journey. Pedro stops the van and we join a few other people on the side of the road, admiring and taking photos of the Rheas’ as they feed on the green grass next to the black top road. The fowl pay no attention to us until one guy decides to cross the road and get right next to them, (why I don’t know because he has a huge lens on his camera). Dad decides this human is too close and he leads his youngsters away from the road and the intruder.

Male Rhea with ten large chicks

The guy with the monster lens ventures to close and Dad says it is time to go

The famous Paine towers. You can see two of the spire like rocks clearly, the third one only has the tip showing next to the snow covered peak

We also make a stop at a beautiful lake with the famous Paine towers in the background. The scenery in Paine is stunning and rugged. We finally arrive at Eco Camp, (it has been a long day), where more staff are waiting to welcome us. Everyone is assigned one person who takes them to their domes. Marcella ends up showing us to our dome. Since we booked so late, we are in a superior dome, it is larger than the common domes and we have our own bathroom. Yes, it is more expensive than the common domes but the private bathroom is worth it to me.

We were in dome number 5

Once Marcella shows us around the unique abode, pointing out the light switches and explaining how the toilet works among other things. Yes, we need to be shown how the toilet works as it isn’t like your normal toilet. No toilet paper can go into the bowl, (well we haven’t been able to put toilet paper in any toilets so far!) and the flush is worked with your foot. Very little water is used with this toilet, I’m talking a few inches of water. Pretty amazing.

Part of the main area. We never used the wood stove as the small heater in the bathroom was kept the dome warm enough.

This plastic window, well the dome was all plastic, looked out on the Paine towers.

Our dome is the closest one. Not a bad view!

When Marcella leaves, we get settled into our dome and then go to the communal area. We are part of the Safari group and all of us gather in one corner of the bar. Welcome drinks and finger food are set before us while three lovely, very fit, young women, (are they cloning these guides?) begin to explain the excursions we can choose from for tomorrow. One hike is very hard, the second excursion is classified as medium, and the third hike is easy. Paul had asked Rafa’s advice before we left, (I think Rafa guided here for a few years), on what he thought we should do. He told us to take the easy ones, telling us you guys are naturalists and on the easy hikes you will stop and learn about the things you are seeing. According to Rafa the other hikes, esp. the hard ones there is no time to stop and enjoy things. Of course, it could have been a polite way of telling us you aren’t fit to do the other excursions!

Paul as we are walking to the communal domes.

Once the cheerful women finish describing the excursions, I know I am taking the easy one. The hard hike to the base of the towers is over twelve miles, the last mile or so you are clambering over big boulders which can be slippery. The second one sounds very intriguing but it is a fourteen-hour day since the start of the trail is two and a half hours away. I’m not feeling very well and I sure don’t want to be out fourteen hours. The easy excursion is a three or four-mile hike, after which we will go to a ranch for a Chilean barbecue. It sounds perfect. I tell Paul if he wants to go for the medium excursion it is fine with me but he agrees that the easy one sounds great, so that is settled.

Part of the bar in the communal dome

We finally have dinner at ten o’clock and I eat very little since it is so late. We still need to shower and we don’t get to bed until 11:30. Another reason to have chosen the easy hike as we don’t have to get up as early as the people who chose the other two hikes. Nancy

Chiloe Island, blog 5

Early morning view from the lodges balcony

Paul and I were up at 5:30 at Rafa’s suggestion to see if there were Pudu on the lawn or grounds of the lodge but to our disappointment, none of the short, chunky deer were to be seen. We walk some paths and roads in hopes of espying a Darwin fox, an endangered species due to habitat destruction and dogs. Another reason the thousands of acres that Patrisio and his family are conserving is so important, there are no dogs here either. We see fox scat and tracks that are fairly fresh so we know that the rare animal is near. Darwin fox are only found on Chiloe island and in one National Park on the mainland of Chile.

Two cabins that can be rented where you cook your own meals as seen from the balcony

We return to the lodge after eight o’clock for breakfast and then Patrisio drives us to the head of a hiking trail to save us some time although we will walk back to the lodge from this point. While driving the narrow, tree-lined road the three guys exclaim as a female pudu dashes across the road in front of the car. I missed the little doe since I was not looking out the front of the car. Oh well, you can’t win them all.

Part of the magical trail

Patrisio lets us out at the trail head and waves goodbye as he drives away. The three of us step off the dirt road into the forest and begin our last hike in this special place. Although the trail we hiked yesterday was terrific this trail feels and looks almost magical. Part of the reason is that the sunlight is filtering through the trees and the vegetation takes on an ethereal glow. The False Beech trees in particular are bathed in the stunning light and they are just breath-taking. I try my best to capture the essence of our surroundings in a photo but it proves to be impossible.

Rafa imitating the tree shape

False Beech trees. I couldn’t capture the beautiful light that was filtering over the trees

We have a close encounter with a Huit Huit which literally follows us down the trail at one point. Our companion puts on the same show as the one we saw yesterday. Scratching furiously in the loose forest litter while making sure he keeps us in his sight. Paul and I are chuckling over the comical bird when Rafa quietly gets our attention. We look down and nearly at Rafa’s feet is a Chacao peering curiously at these intruders into his domain. Wow, I can’t believe this. Two birds that are difficult to see and they show up on their own in plain sight. Hmm, maybe my description of this trail being almost magical should be revised and the almost taken out of that sentence.

More beech trees. I actually used the Huit Huit photos in the last blog.

We walk to the river, the waters brown with tannin, and a Ringed Kingfisher is perched on a dead branch on the river’s edge. As our encounter with the forest birds on the trail, the Kingfisher seems to have little concern that three humans are standing a few yards away. The bird is bathed in sunlight and it willingly poses for several photos. Returning to the open road and bright sunlight we find ourselves visited by the pesky horseflies but they can’t dampen our enthusiasm for the incredible hike we just experienced.

Beautiful Ringed Kingfisher

When we arrive at the lodge, Pedro has a box lunch prepared for us but since it is nearly lunch time we opt to eat on the terrace before we leave. The sandwiches are huge so Paul and I split one and place the other sandwich in our pack. Supper is taken care of tonight. Once we have eaten, we fetch our luggage and place it in the van with Rafa telling us to make sure we have everything. It isn’t like we can come back and retrieve a forgotten item very easily. Rafa drives the white van to the dock as Patricio is already at the boat.

Oh boy, we carry our luggage to the dock and waiting for us is the worst swarm of horseflies we have encountered. Once we have all our stuff loaded, Rafa laughs out loud and says that he has forgotten his birding scope. That is too funny. Rafa returns to the van and drives away. Holy Smokes, these insects are relentless so Paul and I zip up our coats and put our hoods up. There is a father and son, friends of Patrisio, on the dock dressed in t-shirts and shorts. I see the young boy nudge his dad, and incline his head at these weird tourists. I look at the cute kid and then start shooing the flies that are buzzing around us. The kid laughs in understanding and demonstrates how he uses the plastic bucket he is carrying to swing the pail at the flies that are bugging him.

Leaving Tepuhulico Lodge. The lake was so calm.

Rafa returns, scope in hand, and we all settle into the boat. The lake surface hardly has a riffle on it, quite a difference from when we came yesterday. I am sad to leave here and if we ever return, I certainly would spend more time at this beautiful sanctuary. Once we reach the opposite shore, we thank Patrisio and tell him how much we enjoyed his wonderful place. Rafa goes to get the car and Patrisio waits just offshore until he sees his friend driving out into the road. He gives a final wave goodbye and motors back towards his beautiful home.

We meet several cars on the narrow, gravel road and all of them are taking more than their share of the road and driving too darn fast. One pickup begins to fishtail as the drivers is speeding down a hill towards us. Good grief. He gets the truck under control thank heavens.

We were stopped at road construction for about twenty minutes. I took photos to pass the time

The Landscape was lovely as we waited for the pilot car

We stop at Chonchi to look at another wooden church. This is a Jesuit church, which is more simple in its decor than the Franciscan church we visited in Castro. Personally, I prefer the simple Jesuit church. Chonchi is also famous for the unique shingles that are used on the sides of many of the houses here.

Wooden church in Chonchi . I cut all the vehicles out so couldn’t get the whole church

Wooden pillars and the ceiling painted to look like the sky

The side shingles that were seen on many houses in Chonchi

We arrive in Castro and go to our Palifito where we deposit our luggage in the same room, we had two nights ago. Paul also collects our laundry which cost ten dollars for the 2.5 kilo we left with the staff. I like that they charge by the kilo and not by the article of clothing.

I snapped this photo as we drove into Castro

We hustle back downstairs and meet Rafa who suggested we go visit the wooden boat builders. Rafa speaks to a young woman who goes to talk to her Grandfather, (I think), then returns and says that it is okay for us to look around. I trail Paul and Rafa down to where three boats are in various stages of production. There is a young man working on top of one boat and he graciously agrees to visit with us. Paul and Rafa ask him a variety of questions and we learn a lot about the family business which is in its fourth generation. The boats are made of Cyprus and they make boats for fishermen and also build ferry boats. There are four men who construct the boats and there are four boats in production at one time. It takes them around five months to complete a boat and the cost for a boat is 150,000 which includes the engine and everything else. Paul and I think the price very reasonable considering these boats are built the old-fashioned way. As we walk by the ferry-boat that looks as though it is nearing completion, we notice a man underneath the boat, laying on his back, and sanding the bottom of the boat with a small hand sander!

Paul and Rafa checking out the skeleton of a boat that is being built by the business

The young man who took time to answer our questions.

If you look reallyclose you can see the man who is wearing white coveralls, sanding the bottom of this boat.

We walk back to the Palifito and say goodnight to Rafa. Paul and I decide to buy a couple of beers from the Palifito stock to go with our half sandwich and apple. The beers are craft beers and pricy, four dollars each, and we don’t really like them as the beer is fizzy and bitter. Some of that pricey beer ends up being poured down the drain. We decide to walk a couple of blocks to a small grocery store the Palifito receptionists directs us to as we are craving an ice cream bar. With no dogs in sight we make it to the very simple market in time to see them unloading a quarter of beef from a truck and carry it into the store by hand. We peruse the ice cream treat offerings in the freezer and pay for our choices at the counter. The ice cream is just what we needed to kill the after taste of the bitter beer.

Kayakers and Black-Necked Swans

This evening as the sun is sinking toward the horizon, I go out to the deck to enjoy the scenery on our last night on the island. There are incredible colors reflected in the water and Black-necked Swans glide over the array of colors. It is a bit surreal and I feel as though I am looking at a painting. What a gorgeous ending to the day.

Beautiful colors reflected in the water with Black-necked Swans adding to the beauty of the scene

It looked like a moving painting.

There is no reason to get up early this morning as Rafa is taking us to a market here in Castro and it doesn’t open until nine o’clock. Paul and I had most of our stuff packed last night so there isn’t much to do after we eat breakfast. I do email Dr. Amy since I do not have an email from her updating me on Taz. I tell her that we will have email tonight and early tomorrow morning but after that we will be off the grid for the rest of our trip.

Castro market

Lovely flowers

Rafa educating Paul

We bought our blueberries here

Fish for sale

We are at the market shortly after nine and a lot of the booths aren’t even open yet. Rafa tells us that in Chile people stay up late and are in no hurry to get started in the morning. Everything from vegetables, fruits, homemade liquor or cider, handcrafts, flowers and fish are being sold here. There is plenty of photo ops, that is for sure. When we walk to the part where the fish is being sold there are a few dogs wandering around. One dog is licking some fish that are sitting in a big tray on the floor in front of a stall. Yikes. The fish have ice on them so I think the dog is after the moisture. The woman who is arranging fish in this booth, comes out and shoos the dog away then drags the big pan of fish into the cubicle. Oh well, that fish is going to be cooked right? Paul decides to buy some blueberries from one vendor as we are leaving the colorful market. We return to the Palifito to get our luggage, load up and leave Castro and our Palifito behind. We really enjoyed staying here.

Another Unesco wooden church in Dalcahue

The simple interior

We make a stop on our way to the ferry which is in the fishing village of Dalcahue. There is another Jesuit church here that is on the UNESCO World Heritage list. We take a quick look inside and see the familiar sky painted on the ceiling and the impressive wooden pillars. Rafa is staying with the car and luggage, while Paul and I go to walk along the water front. It is just a beautiful day and the wooden boats that ply the water make for a very picturesque scene. There are Kelp gulls standing around on some of the boats plus we see a family of Flightless Steamer ducks paddling around some of the anchored boats. Tourists including us are strolling along the board walk just enjoying the atmosphere.

Love the boats

Paul looking over the water

Paul and I return to Rafa and the car and we continue on our way. Rafa informs us that he is taking us to a farm where the couple has been doing Agri tourism for twenty-two years. That is darned innovative. The Maldano’s cook a meal for large groups known as curanto which involves layering different kinds of meats and seafood on top of coals in a pit then covering the food with rhubarb leaves and letting the concoction cook for hours. Unfortunately, three people don’t constitute a large group but we are still served a scrumptious meal. We were served baked chicken and carrots, huge lima beans, bread, potatoes, and salad with rhubarb for dessert. Maria Luisa, her daughter and daughter-in-law have prepared our meal in an old-fashioned wood stove. Hardy, Maria Luisa’s husband, is recovering from health problems and was napping so we didn’t get to meet him. Maria Luisa was a vivacious and animated woman and we enjoyed our short visit here. Of course, Rafa had to translate for us.

Farm where we ate lunch

Lunch is served

Rafa sharing photos of his daughters with his friends

We arrive at the ferry station and are soon parked behind a big semi on the ferry. We go up to the top for the ride back to the mainland. The sea lions are still piled on the red buoys, there are gulls and cormorants too. A flock of stately Peruvian Pelicans fly close to the ferry as we are pulling away from Chiloe Island. I loved our time on this enchanting island and would seriously consider returning someday. Nancy

Chiloe Island receding in the distance

Snow capped mountains

Our vehicle is behind the flatbed semi closest to the rail

Chiloe, blog 3

Paul and I are up early this morning and since breakfast isn’t until eight, we decide to take a stroll despite the overcast sky. When I walk out of the bathroom, Paul hands me the Kindle and says there is bad news from Dr. Amy about Taz. I immediately begin to cry as I assume that bad news means my cat has died. That isn’t the case but the fact is she is in very bad shape. For some reason her glucose readings were very low and this makes no sense because she was eating and getting her shots. Taz didn’t respond to the initial care from the boarding people nor to the veterinarian’s emergency work on my sick cat when they opened their clinic which is next door to the boarding place. Dr. Amy decided to take Taz back to her clinic in Wamego and see what she could do for her. I email back and say that I know she will do what is right for Taz and give her my permission to use her own judgement on what needs to be done.

Taz, like all cats loves sitting in boxes

Paul asks if I still want to take our walk and I nod my head that I do. I don’t take my camera as it is fairly dark and it appears that we could encounter some rain. It is low tide and in places the gulls and whimbrels are feasting on what was left stranded after the water receded. There also is a turkey vulture hopping around looking for food with the traditional sea birds. I found this a bit odd esp. since it is so early in the morning and vultures normally aren’t active until mid-morning.

At one point we notice a few segments of a splintered sea wall, left over from the tsunami that destroyed a large part of Ancud in 1960 (I think). The tsunami was the result of a strong earthquake that originated near Santiago. There is a plaque acknowledging the United States for their assistance in building the new sea wall that is in place now. It makes you look at the peaceful ocean today and know that it can turn deadly almost without warning.

Breakfast is the usual fare of cereal, breads, fruits, and the offer of eggs. I eat some toast and fruit but I don’t have much of an appetite. Rafa arrives shortly after eight so we gather our luggage and say goodbye to the owners of the hotel. I tell Paul to ride in the front today as with the low light this morning the photo ops won’t be good. Besides, I don’t feel much like conversing and Paul will be able to hear Rafa better if he is sitting beside him.

One photo I took on the way to the Chepu River of a herd of dairy cows.

Our destination this morning is the Chepu River to search for the endangered Southern River Otter or “Hullin” as it is called here. We arrive at the river where there is a very small parking area right next to the dock. There is a man standing there and he motions to the spot that Rafa should park. It is beginning to rain a little and it is chilly so Paul and I put on our rain pants before we climb aboard the boat. Fernando who is the owner of the boat is a cheerful fellow who smiles and hands us our life jackets. The rain begins to fall more steadily so I wrap my camera in the rain cover I brought and place it under the bench seat. Rafa told us yesterday that the weather we experienced was not normal and we shouldn’t get used to it. Looks like he gave us good advice. Chiloe on average receives 60 inches of rain so overcast skies are more the norm then sunshine.

As we cruise down or maybe up the river, Rafa sees a Ringed Kingfisher which is similar to our Belted Kingfisher. After watching the bird for a bit, we continue on at a good clip down the river. We come to a place where the river narrows and the vegetation thickens and our search for the endangered Otter begins as this is where Fernando last saw an otter. The river otters need shoreline that has heavy vegetation and boy does this fit the bill. Paul and Rafa are looking off the left side of the boat and I am searching the water’s edge to the right. Suddenly I hear Rafa excitedly say “that was a Bittern”. I quickly turn to look but it is too late as the secretive bird has flown into the cover of the trees and bushes. Paul saw the Bittern standing on a dead tree just before it took flight. To tell you how rare it is to see a Bittern, later as I look at the list of birds for the Lake area to check the Bittern off (even though I didn’t see it), I don’t see the water bird listed. Rafa tells me that they don’t bother to put the Bittern on the list because no one ever sees it. Oh great, I can’t believe that I missed this elusive bird!

Paul and Rafa looking for the southern river otter

We continue down the river which in places is very narrow but there is no sign of an otter. We break into a wider part of the river where Rafa plays the call of the Many-colored Rush-Tyrant that lives in the thick patches of reeds growing here. Luckily for us a couple of the beautiful but tiny birds come to check out the stranger that is singing to them from our boat. It is impossible to get a photo of the vibrantly colored birds but we certainly enjoy watching them.

Imagine finding a mostly submerged otter in this cover

It is time to head back, the good news is the rain which has been getting lighter has now stopped falling entirely. Again, we all peer under the trees and bushes that grow in the water on along the edge of the water. At one point I hear a large splash but Rafa sees the Spectacled duck flying away that is responsible for making the noise. I missed that bird too! We take time to admire the flowers, grass and plants that are growing on top of the many dead logs and stumps that are submerged in the river. I am not sure a human could have created a prettier garden if they tried.

Miniature gardens planted by Mother Nature. Lovely

As we are nearing the wider part of the river Fernando, who is a master at navigating this river by the way, begins to throttle the engine up since we are leaving prime otter territory. Ahead of us In the distance I see a ripple and a small shape poking above the surface of the water. I half stand and point while saying “what is that”? Rafa looks in the direction I am pointing and declares, “it’s an otter”. The otter is swimming in our direction so Fernando slows down to see what the creature will do. In the mean time Rafa who is smiling widely high fives me and Paul who really wanted to see an otter says “way to go Nancy”.

Southern River Otter. Hurray!

What happens next is unusual according to our guide. The inquisitive otter swims to our now idle boat and begins a game of hide and seek. Fernando begins to “talk” to the otter and the sound he makes is similar to the grunt of a pig. The otter will surface, take a look at us, submerge, swim under or along the boat before coming up to take another look at these odd things staring at him. It is very hard to get a photo of the otter as he can disappear in an instant but that doesn’t stop me from trying.  Rafa is videoing the rare otter with his phone and we all, (well not Fernando), are walking from side to side and end to end to try to keep tabs with our sleek visitor.  At one point the cheeky fellow stands halfway up out of the water but I didn’t get the photo of that either darn it. The otter is grunting himself part of the time and Fernando’s imitation of the otters’ voice is really good.

Often when I would click the shutter this was the result

The otter swimming by the side of our boat

I’m not sure how long our curious visitor stays, several minutes for sure, but eventually he retreats to the other side of the river. The otter swims behind a bush and comes almost completely out of the water as he peers through the branches at us. We get a final look at the little fellow as he begins swimming down the river. We all have wide grins on our faces as Fernando fires the boat up and we speed back to the dock. Rafa has told us that the best estimate is that only two or three thousand of the river otters are left. Hunting, habitat destruction and the American mink are some of the reason these personable creatures are disappearing. How did the American mink get here? People brought them in of course and the mink thrived, competing for the same food the otters eat.

The otter after he left us behind

Once we dock, we thank Fernando for the great time we had and clamber up to the walkway. As we approach the tiny parking lot, (there is room for about eight cars), we are astonished to find that our vehicle is blocked in by another row of cars. Rafa goes to see if he can find the “parking attendant” in hopes that he has the keys for the car parked behind us. Nope, he doesn’t have them and evidently isn’t very concerned that we are stuck. There are some people walking down the road to the dock and we hope that they are the owners of the car but they aren’t. A boat docks a little while later but they aren’t the car owners either. Rafa and Paul speak with another man and they look at the raised walkway that borders the small parking lot. Paul walks off the width of the walkway and compares it to the width of our vehicle. The three men huddle together and they agree that it might be possible to drive forward onto the wooden walkway far enough and then to maneuver our car to the walkway that is parallel to the car blocking us.

I retreat across the road with several other people who are beginning to take an interest in what is transpiring here. I left my camera in the car darn it but half the time I can’t bear to watch as Rafa drives the car forward, (did I mention that the walkway is elevated from the parking lot by a foot or so?), then cranks it to the left and maneuvers the two left tires onto the parallel walkway. Paul and the other man help direct Rafa in this amazing escape plan while the spectators, including me, are laughing and shaking their heads. At least one person is filming the spectacle with his phone. There is probably a YouTube video out there somewhere. Much to my amazement, Rafa, extricates the car from what looked like an impossible situation. Paul and I climb in the car laughing and shaking our heads at our capable and determined guide. We are due at Fernando’s family restaurant and that is one reason Rafa was so determined to get the car out. He also said that people often take a boat to a beach on the river so they could be gone all day.

Rafa outside Fernando’s family restaurant

Beautiful view of the Chepu River valley from the yard of the restaurant, the clouds are breaking up.

We have a wonderful meal at the restaurant, delicious chicken, potatoes and green salad but as usual there is more food than I can consume. The restaurant sits above the Chepu river valley and despite the heavy sky the view is stunning. We do a little bird watching from the yard of the restaurant after lunch and see three Chilean Flickers that are clinging to some dead trees in the distance. On our drive to Castro we see a flock of Slender-billed Parakeets flying in front of us. We have seen these parakeets before but the difference this time is that the noisy birds land in a grove of trees right next to the road. Rafa stops the car and we finally get a really good look at the colorful birds as they feast on the fruits of the trees they have landed in.

Finally the Slender-billed Parakeet lands in trees close enough for us to get a good look at them

The entrance to the Palifito where we stayed

Rafa drives to the hostel Palafito Waiwen our abode for tonight. It is really a cool place. There is a whole row of these houses on stilts which allows them to sit over the water when the tide comes in. These Palafitos were once fishermen’s’ houses making it very convenient for them to step out of their stilted houses right into their boats. The Palafitos are now hostels and hotels. We take our luggage to our room which is small but adequate. Rafa is waiting for us when we go downstairs and we proceed to walk to the town square which is probably a mile away.

Palifitos lining the edge of the fjord.

The brown double decker is where we stayed

Rafa looking at a work in progress as two artists are painting scenes over the graffiti.

Our main purpose is to visit the San Francisco church, another wooden church but this one is designated as a UNESCO world heritage sites. Once we near the square you can’t miss the brightly colored church as it towers over the lovely park. The town square is filled with people enjoying the sunshine and each other. Yes, the sun has come out and it is quite warm. The three of us go inside the church where Paul and I marvel at the intricate work that is all made of wood. The huge wooden pillars fascinate me and the multiple arches are beautiful. I sit down on a wooden pew later to just soak in the beauty around me. Paul and Rafa peruse the posters that are set up in rows that are explaining the history of the church, (there are English versions clipped to the side). I take several photos which is allowed as long as you don’t use a flash.

Beautiful San Francisco church in Castro

Incredible wooden pillars.

Lots of shapes in this photo

We take our leave of the beautiful church and Rafa points out a super market to us as we want to buy something for supper. Rafa then leaves and Paul and I go into the market to purchase some bread from the bakery, sliced cheese and water. At first the women at the cheese counter try to sell us a big chunk of cheese but after using hand gestures indicating we want something much smaller the friendly women hold up some sliced cheese. We vigorously shake our heads yes at them. This is exactly what we are looking for. We have fruit left from one of our boxed lunches so the apple and a sandwich is all we need for dinner. We enjoy our supper in the community kitchen/dining area. Afterwards I go out on the deck and take photos of the wonderful views and birds. I really like this place.

Shot from the deck of the Palifito

Brown-headed gulls perched on a picturesque boat

Partially built wooden boat just across the fjord from our Palifito

Whimbrel looking for food on a mud flat

There is an email from Dr. Amy tonight saying that Taz has slightly improved but now she is running a high temperature which doesn’t make sense to our vet. Dr. Amy is beginning to think that it isn’t the diabetes that is to blame for Taz’s illness but something else entirely. I write back and thank her for keeping me posted and again let her know I trust whatever decision she makes about my big black cat. I also let her know that we will be off the grid tomorrow and most of the next day. I have a flicker of hope for Taz but know her condition is still very bad.  Nancy

Chile, part 1

Since I have no photos for the first part of this blog I thought I would share the setting moon in December at Rock Hill Ranch

When we returned from Africa this summer our hopes of traveling to Egypt in 2019 with OAT were dashed as all their Egypt tours for 2019 were already full! In fact, we were lucky to get a spot in one of the OAT tours in 2020. When the Egypt trip for us and our good friend was confirmed the countdown to our departure date was over 600 days away. Well that did not set well with Paul who decided that we had to plan another trip to take in 2019. Have I ever mentioned that I married into a family that are travel addicts!

With Chile/Patagonia in mind, partly due to some incredible photos Paul had seen on Safari talk, Paul began researching for information about this area on the web. Paul, unlike me, can spend hours on the web and while doing research on Chile he stumbled upon a tour company called Swoop Patagonia that caught his attention. Paul liked what the English company offered for Patagonia and esp. that they would put together a private tour focusing on the things you were most interested in. Paul encouraged me to read about the wildlife and landscape found in Chile on Swoops’ website and I agreed that it was intriguing. I wasn’t real sure about the guaranteed windy conditions or the possibility of seeing every type of weather in one day in Torres del Paine, but the birds and wildlife possibilities won me over.

This sculpted snow was the result of high wind and snow we had in November

Paul contacted Swoop and the planning for a February trip began in earnest. We were told that it was very late to be booking for February (when we would be able to get away) as this was the high time for tourists in Chile. Most people book a year in advance esp. for the Patagonia area. So, we were asking this company that specializes in Patagonia to put a tour together in less than four months. Chloe took up the challenge of coming up with a tour following Paul’s suggestions of what we would enjoy. Chloe proved to be up to the task when a few weeks later she had put together what looked to be an incredible adventure. Chile here we come.

We are two days from winging our way to Chile and the weather looks as if it could be a problem as the day we leave the forecast is for freezing rain. The day before our flight Paul and I take our diabetic cat to a pet boarding place in Manhattan. We say goodbye to the loudly protesting Taz and go to run some last-minute errands. We arrive home before three and check the weather again. It hasn’t changed much for us but the forecast for KC is much worse. We waffle a bit wondering if we should leave this afternoon when an email from Paul’s cousin arrives in which he writes that if it was him he would leave now. The advice from the well-respected cousin helps us decide to do just that. We are already packed but we have a “things to do before we leave the house” list that we rush through and an hour and a half later we are motoring towards Kansas City.

Taz our diabetic cat who has to be boarded when we are gone because she needs insulin shots!

We get on the turnpike at Topeka and once we pass Lawrence there are flashing signs at intervals cautioning motorists to watch out for ice on overpasses and bridges. Upon reading this information we call Air Park Express, where we will be leaving our car, and ask the very helpful woman who answers the phone about hotels close to them and about road conditions. It turns out there are lots of hotels to choose from within a mile of the facility and she gives us the exit to take off of I29 to get to the hotels. She also says that the roads were okay when she came to work about an hour ago but the forecast is for worsening conditions. Yikes.

The road conditions seem fine until we turn off the turnpike onto I435 and cross into Missouri. We soon begin to encounter the “worsening conditions”. There is snow blowing across the highway for a short distance, then we drive through some freezing rain, then there is an area where snow has blanketed the fields but the road seems to be okay. It is getting dark when we turn off on exit twelve and we breathe a sigh of relief since we made it without incidence. We nix the first hotel we stop at after looking at the room but find a Comfort Inn a block away and say this will do. There is no restaurant but Paul finds a vending machine in the lobby and we have a package of crackers and cookies for supper.  I reluctantly agree to watch the KU vs KSU basketball game since there really is nothing else to do and I am stunned when my team, K-State beats Paul’s team Kansas. Sometimes miracles happen!

The next morning, we go down for breakfast and it appears that the bad weather that was forecasted for last night never materialized. Cars and trucks are zooming by on I29 and Paul walks outside and says there appears to be little in the way of ice. After we eat, Paul goes to exercise on the hotels treadmill and I walk the hallways and stairs of the hotel. After all we will be sitting for hours on a plane before long.  We shower and laze around since we don’t have to check out until noon. I happen to look out our window just past eleven and tell Paul things have changed. Ice is building up on the windshields of parked cars and patchy ice can be seen on the asphalt. Shoot.

We carry our luggage downstairs and check out. Paul goes to get the car but due to having to scrape the thick coat of ice off of our windshield it takes him awhile to arrive at the door to load our luggage. Paul drives slowly and safely to the car park and then gives our keys to the attendant. There are two other people waiting for the airport shuttle who were driving on the highway just now. Both of them witnessed accidents along the way including one where a jeep slid across the highway barely missing a school bus. We encourage our shuttle driver to take his time as we pass some vehicles that have slid into the ditch. Our driver delivers us to the American terminal and now we have to hope no flights will be canceled. Our flight isn’t until three-thirty so I nervously look at the departure board now and then and am so grateful every time I see, “on time” next to our flight number.

More snow sculptures from the November storm

We arrive in Dallas a bit late but we have plenty of cushion time before our flight to Santiago. The jet is packed full with lots of people traveling with children but all is fairly tranquil for the duration of the flight. I manage to sleep four hours of the nine-hour flight but Paul only slept for a couple of hours. We arrive at Santiago a bit late but again we have plenty of time before we have to board our flight to Port Mont. Thank you Hillary for making sure we had adequate time between flights!

There is nothing that gives Paul and I more relief then walking out of the baggage claim area and seeing someone holding up a placard with the name Paul Miller written on it. The pretty young woman greets us with a smile and hug, then apologizes for not speaking much English. We apologize for not speaking any Spanish and follow her to the car. We are only 20 minutes from Puerto Varas where we are spending our first night in Chile. The young woman does point out the stunning trio of volcanoes, in which two of the cone-shaped mountains dominate the skyline. The most eye-catching volcano, Osorno, is the proverbial conical shape and snow-capped, while the middle volcano, Tronador, sitting far in the distance is also sporting a snow cap. The monstrous volcano Calbuco, on the left has no blanket of snow and we find out later that this volcano last erupted in 2015. Let us hope that this active mountain is not thinking about blowing its top any time soon.

Osorno on the left and Calbuco on the right.

Our driver parks the car and escorts us to the hotel, Mero Gaucho, where we are staying tonight. I already like this place because it has birds painted on the outside wall. The owners have turned this 1930’s house into a very attractive hotel. The floors are wood, (original floors I’m pretty sure), as are many of the walls, a beautiful staircase leads up to the small but adequate rooms, (our room has a wonderful terrace) and someone is a very good interior decorator as the lobby is very appealing.

A really poor photo of our hotel.

Mero Gaucho lobby

Breakfast area

After checking in with the friendly receptionist and depositing our bags in our room we decide to check out the small city of Puerto Varas. The receptionist has drawn suggestions of where to walk to see historical buildings, where some good eating places are, among other things of interest but we forgot to take the map along so we just wander. We first walk to Lake Llanquihue where the three volcanos serve as a backdrop. The view is just breathtaking with the deep blue water, the snow-capped volcano and the bright sunlight which accents the whole scene. The people we meet often look us in the eye and say “Ola” plus when we are crossing streets the drivers stop and politely motion us to cross. Wow, in every other South American and Central American country we have visited, crossing the street is a “run for your life” encounter as pedestrians get no respect.

Paul poses on our way to Lake Llanquihue

An interesting sculpture

Paul and I do find one of the restaurants our helpful receptionist suggested, The Daruma Tea House. We decide to share a barbecue pork sandwich and what a great choice we made. The meat is melt in your mouth tender and it is topped with a creamy coleslaw. A bit messy to eat but as good of a sandwich as I have ever had. Paul wants dessert and after agonizing over all the choices of delectable pastries on display, he settles on a piece of cake which the waiter explains is a special German recipe. I have a couple of bites and it is quite good.

Look at the size of these roses!

After our early supper we happen to walk by the office of Bird Chile which is the company that will be driving and guiding us for the next few days. We walk in and introduce ourselves to the young women that are in the office. We end up shoring up our plans for tomorrow and find out that the owner of Bird Chile is going to be our guide. Well all right!

A close up of one of the drummers.

As we are heading back to Mero Gaucho, the sound of drums catches our attention and we turn left instead of right to search for the drummers. There is a small park where a trio of men are putting on quite a show. I wished I had taken video because the performance of the drummers was just incredible. The men, well two men and a boy,  beat out a tempo on the drum carried on their backs while spinning in an ever-tightening circle. A strap attached to their shoes would crash cymbals together whenever they placed their heels on the pavement. I have no idea how they managed to walk a straight line when they finished with their pirouetting but they did. It made me dizzy just watching them. Naturally, they passed a hat around at the end of the show and Paul gladly put money into it.

The trio of drummers that put on a heck of a show

The youngest member could spin like a top

We walk back to the hotel and prepare for our departure tomorrow. We both shower and are asleep by nine o’clock.

Next blog, Chiloe Island.