Monday, October 31, 2022

South America Trip - Day 4

Our guide, Alvaro, passed us the news last night that the planned visit to a penguin colony at Isla Magdalena National Park would need to be canceled.  The main reason for this was that the wind in the Strait of Magellan was expected to be too strong (more than 25 knots) for the small boat used to ferry visitors.  An alternate plan, to explore Cueva del Milodon, was also not going to be possible because the Tres Horas de Puerto Natales (auto race) was taking place during the time when we needed to be arriving at our hotel in that city.  As a result, Alvaro suggested we drive straight to our destination so we'd have more time for lunch, the Torres del Paine “W” hike orientation, dinner and packing prior to our early wake up on November 1.  We were all a bit disappointed but started our morning with full knowledge of the curtailed activities.  I slept alright but woke (0600) with a nagging feeling that it was actually later.  I got ready, packed up my bag and then headed down to breakfast (0715).  It was surprising to find almost everyone there because I’m used to late sleepers, I guess... The hotel’s breakfast was pretty good and I ate my fill, not entirely sure when the next meal might be.  Alvaro joined me and we had a good talk about his worldwide hiking adventures.  Despite the many amazing trips he’d already done, I was surprised that he was interested in my own experiences in the White Mountains.  At around 0830, I went back to my room to get my suitcase.  About 30 minutes later, all 13 members of our group had convened in the lobby, checked out of the hotel and were loading our bags in the back of our 20 passenger touring van.  Shortly after that (0905), we drove out of Punta Arenas (via city streets).  Alvaro put on his "tour guide" hat and shared lots information about the town and I found I’d actually checked out most of the points of interest and read about much of the history.  The rest of the group, however, was very engaged because they apparently hadn’t had as much time in town.  One place I hadn’t visited was the Zona Franca (tax free area) and it looked like an interesting place to check out next time...  Soon, we were on Ruta 9, headed north.  Another name for the highway was Ruta del Fin de Mundo and we all got a chuckle about that.  After passing the airport, the terrain was extremely barren and windswept.  We saw lots of wind turbines and radar domes (for StarLink internet).  We ended up driving very close to the Strait and the water looked deceptively calm.  By the time we reached the ferry port, located about 20 minutes north of town, it was a different story.  Alvaro pointed out the little ferry boats (basically, covered Zodiacs) that we might have used to visit the penguin colony and I think we all were happy to be on solid ground.  I was actually able to see Isla Magdalena from there but I was certain that the ride would have been unpleasant.  Continuing north for another 30 minutes, we traveled further inland and saw very little signs of civilization.  We made a planned stop at at gas station (to use the restrooms) and I played with a friendly cat who lived there.  Most of us were surprised to need money to pay for use of the facilities but Alvaro "saved the day."  Back in the van, we drove for almost 200 more kilometers without stopping.  If the remoteness of this area wasn’t already apparent in the rather barren landscapes near Punta Arenas, the drive on this road drove the point home! Our route roughly followed the Chile-Argentina border and we saw signs of defensive pillboxes from a potential conflict, fortunately averted, that almost took place between these neighbors in the early 1980s.  Other than those signs of humans, though, the land was desolate (it looked like West Texas to me).  In the distance (west and north), we started to catch glimpses of snow capped mountains.  Eventually, the low scrub brush transitioned to light forests (it looked like Wyoming to me).  In the meantime, we passed lots of domestic animals (cows, horses, llamas and LOTS of sheep).  A bigger bonus, however, was seeing wild Guanacos (relatives of llamas and alpacas), Nandus (AKA Darwin’s Rheas, looked like ostriches), Upland Geese, soaring Condors and (surprisingly) flamingos.  I can’t imagine a better tour of the local fauna than what we got!  By about 1200, we entered an area that Alvaro described as a “Fiordland" (I’ve only seen similar terrain in Norway, Iceland and Alaska).  Meanwhile, the white capped mountains grew larger and larger on the horizon until we could also see the Ultima Esperanza Sound, an inland strait of water that connects to the Pacific Ocean.  I spent most of the trip talking with Kirk and Janice (Canadian doctors) and found that we had a lot in common.  By 1230, we’d reached Puerto Natales itself and stopped at the Hotel Natalino.  We quickly unloaded the van, checked on our rooms (not ready yet) and stored our bags in the lobby.  While waiting to get into our rooms, we fortunately had lunch reservations at Le Finestre, a local Italian Pizzeria.  We had to walk a few blocks (very windy) to reach it.  At 1300, we were sitting inside the cozy restaurant and ordering our food.  I split a Torino (essentially meat lovers) pizza with Terry and also ate half of a Mediterranean salad (it was huge but no one else seemed interested in sharing).  We all got adult beverages - I had something called Glaciares del Sur IPA and it was good.  While eating, we spent a lot of time talking about our many travels.  After two nights of hearing about all the places the retirees and doctors have been, I believe I may be the least traveled person in the trip...  However, the conversation sure helped on updating my bucket list, though!  We finished eating at 1430, walked back to the hotel, retrieved our bags, dropped our stuff in the rooms and then reconvened in the hotel restaurant for our Torres del Paine orientation.  At 1500, we met our local guide, Chris, and he took the six of us who’d planned to hike the “W” Route through our itinerary for the next five days.  We discussed weather conditions, packing and Refugio perks.  The discussion lasted until around 1615 and we got some Active Adventures "SWAG."  Alvaro and Chris then distributed the gear that most of us had rented - I got a 60L backpack, hiking poles and a sleeping bag/liner.  After that, I returned to my room and spent some time practicing my Spanish with the desk clerk ladies.  They gave me a map of town and told me about holiday closures (All Saints Day).  Upon leaving the hotel, I converted $50 USD into Chilean Pesos at a nearby hole-in-the-wall currency exchange.  Alvaro had offered a tour of town at around this time but I decided against going on that trip.  Instead, I walked down to the southern entrance of town to see the Milodon statue - this area of Chile is known for the pre-historic creature.  Today, the location was also an excellent place to watch part of the Tres Horas race.  It was VERY windy but I enjoyed hanging out in the crowd with the locals and watching the action.  On the way back into town, I watched black headed swans serenely riding the whitecaps and marveled at the majestic mountains that dominated the horizon on the opposite side of the Sound.  Along the way, I passed by a huge ferry boat (the “Esperanza”) that was loading up - this is the only way (a five day ferry ride!) that most of the locals can use to reach the closest Chilean city with a road that connects to Santiago.  I also saw lots more stray dogs, all friendly, and chuckled to see how their fur was so unkept in the wind.  Puerto Natales is only about a quarter of the size/population of Punta Arenas so I ended up walking almost a full circuit of town (half was along the windy waterfront) - overall, I probably walked about four miles.  The place reminded me very much of Valdez, AK.  Once I was finally back in the middle of town (1730), I started to see lots of kids trick-or-treating in the local businesses that weren’t closed for the holiday.  Alvaro had indicated that this was a new tradition (started in the last 10 years) for Chile and the little Natalinos seemed to embracing the fun... I reached the hotel just before 1800 and tried (unsuccessfully) to get ready for the backtracking trip the next day.  At 1900, our group of 13 met in the lobby again and walked to our restaurant, Cormoran de las Rocas, so we could eat dinner.  The ambiance there was nice and we had a great view - out across the windy Sound - from our table.  At one point, we watched a fishing boat trying to reach the shoreline through the high surf (yikes)... The owner of the restaurant was a friend of Alvaro’s and food was mostly local fare.  I teamed up with Kirk to tackle a meal called “Tabla Criole de Carnes”, a giant plate of assorted cooked meats and steak fries.  We couldn’t finish all the food but gave it our best shot!  Our group stayed at the restaurant until around 2045 and then walked back to the hotel.  In the main square, nearby, a giant Halloween party (for the local adults and also the race car drivers) was in full swing.  Despite being tempted to attend, we returned to our rooms.  I spent the rest of the evening trying to prepare for the W Trek - I repacked backpack several times before I felt ready...  I ended up going to bed at around 2200.  Heading into Torres del Paine NP tomorrow!