Bariloche

November 11th, 2007

Arrived in Bariloche - tired but ready to explore.

Today we took a bike ride - 25 km (about 15 miles) - of very hilly terrain. The views were incredible - as Bariloche is a beautiful town (and a beautiful city as well). However, on the bike ride, we didn't have the memory card for our camera, so hopefully we can return and get that done.

Check out the Alf picture though - there is WAY too much Alf down here. WE even cought some episodes on TV. Yup - lots of Alf and lots of early 90's power ballads. Excellent.

On the Valdez Peninsula

Nov 9th, 2007

Today was a bit of a bust, but redeemed by our excellent company. We set out to drive around the peninsula today - starting with Punta Norte - famed for its penguins and sea lions. The wildlife was not as a-plenty as we'd all hoped for (especially after our incredible experience in Punto Tumbo the previous day). The weather was cold and overcast, and the landscape as desolate and uninspiring as one can imagine. It was enjoyable nonetheless to be traveling with new people - (Simon and Morena / UK)...;

Around 4 or 5 pm, we dropped Simon and Morena back at the hostel and drove the 1.5 hours back through the boring landscape to Puerto Madryn. There we returned the rental car, and boarded the bus for the last stop on our itinerary - Bariloche. We were unable to refill the gas tank, as there was no gas due to a strike brought upon by the results of the election a few weeks ago. Kristina, despite a landslide vistory, is still a controversial president - especially to the poor people.

Our bus ride to Bariloche was a real doozy. We were sitting in front of a couple who made homeless people smell good. Between general BO and dirty clothing and other poor natural human odors - they exuded one of the most unpleasant human aromas imaginable. Every time they moved, Gregg had to rush to cover his nose, and I felt a wave or nausea. Gregg didn't fully recline his seat all night, because that would only bring his nose closer to the smell. It was SO bad that the service employee on the bus approached me and Gregg, and asked us what the deal with the odor was - that he could barely stand to walk in the back of the bus.

Additionally, a large man who slept all but maybe 10 minutes of the ride, was a loud snorer - which kept Gregg up all night.

PENGUINS! (and Punto Tumbo)

November 8th, 2007

Today was penguin day!!!! Gregg and I, along with Morena and Simon rented a car - and drove the 2 or 3 hours south to Punto Tumbo - a premier penguin watching destination. And that it was!!!! The penguins were EVERYWHERE!!! many of them were buried in holes protecting the eggs that will hatch any day now. The others were waddling around, seemingly unperturbed by the spattering of humans paying them a visit.

We had opted to go later in the afternoon - which wound up being a great decision. all the tour buses had gone for the day, so there weren't many crowds competing for penguin attention. aside the penguins was the Atlantic ocean, filled with sea lions gathering together in search of food.

It was really an amazing day. It wasn't even tarnished when I got Penguin Poop all over my pantaloons and jacket. (I was kneeling down to photograph some penguin eggs - and stood up to find I was covered in poop.)

The drive back was long and boring - aside from the mountains, Patagonia has a desolate and lifeless landscape. It spans farther than I can even fathom, without any visual variance, whatsoever.

We passed Puerto Madryn, where we had started our day, and continued onto Puerto Pirimedes, where we would begin the next days' drive around the Valdez Peninsula. I was more tired then I can even remember and my head flopped into sleep every few minutes. The drive seemed to take forever, and I was thankful Gregg was awake enough to do it, while the rest of us slept. I think they probably put sleeping pills in our dinner.

When we arrived at the hostel, the four of us had our pick of beds - our room had about 8 bunk beds to choose from, and no one else around.

Puerto Madryn

November 7th, 2007

Today we left El Calafate around noon, arriving at Rio Gallegos at 4:30. We departed Rio Gallegos 4 hours later, heading for Puerto Madryn, a city on the coast with good proximity to the marine wildlife in the area.

On the bus, we had leather seats that reclined fairly far - and watched movies, which allowed the time to pass fairly easily. The gasoline smell that pervaded the whole ride left us feeling a bit off. On the bus we had met Morena, and Italian living in the UK, and Simon, the Brit she was engaged to, and lived with in London. We all joined together and rented an apartment, planning to split a car rental and head to the various wildlife areas over the next few days.

We explored the town a small amount, walking along the beach to an eco museum, and then returned back to our apartment for some take home pizza.

Penguins - here we come!!!!

El Calafate, again...

November 6th, 2007

It has been relatively uneventful since leaving El Chalten. I had a great time there, and was a bit sad to leave....We had to stay in El Calafate longer than we wished to, for scheduling purposes.

Monday morning our lucky weather streak broke. We had scheduled a trip to the Perito Moreno Glacier - about a 1.5 hour bus ride from town. It was gray and freezing and drizzly out. The Glacier was quite nice, and on a warmer day I could have stayed there for hours. However, the poor weather drew me to the only shelter in the area, a tiny snack bar, where I stood for several hours, until our bus driver finally let us board again.

We did however, get lucky while freezing in front of the glacier - and saw an enormous glacial chunk calving off, hitting the water below with a boom.

The most positive part of El Calafate was all the different people we met in our hostel, also cooking dinner and relaxing with a bottle of wine at night. As with our first time passing through El Calafate, there was little of interest to us, and we were eager to be anywhere else.

Our plans to go to Chile next died, while we were at the Glacier. We realized while shivering in the cold, that camping in weather like this might yield some incredible unpleasantries. I had a hunch that we would be hit with bad weather - A hunch which was supported when we looked at forecast. It is rumored that in Patagonia, they can have several different weather systems in a day, which might have made us hopeful - but we had also heard of the incredible expense associated with getting to the park - and didn't think the expense, bundled with the poor weather looming seemed worth the trip.

After gathering itineraries and costs all over town and juggling ideas, we finally settled on our current plan.

We felt our best option was the 4.5 hour bus ride to Rio Gallegos, a coastal city, probably mostly used for layovers to other cities. From Rio Gallegos - the bus would continue north, bringing us to Puerto Madryn 18 hours later. I felt that I was so far from home, that I should have been riding alongside at a different ocean, something more exotic than the Atlantic.

Driving from El Chalten to El Calafate

November 5th, 2007
Some amusing pics from the rest stop / estancia while taking the bus back from El Chalten to El Calafate. There was a baby cow that was following Gregg around.

"Are you my mommy!?"

Lago Peidras Blanco / El Chalten

November 2nd, 2007

I arose early, and still tired and a bit edgy and cranky from the continued lack of nutrition. (as I have mentioned, Argentina is not vegetarian friendly, and I have been subsisting on grains and carbs alone for a few weeks now). Bundled with the sleepless night, I wasn't eager to camp and hike much more without a down day in the hostel to allow for some muscle recovery. My body was starting to be achy, and I knew I had many miles to walk before I was back in town.

Before leaving with our packs - we took a smaller hike to the Lago Piedras Blanco (Both a lake and a Glacier). It was about 3 hours round trip to get there. We walked along a beautiful and peaceful stream that was clear enough to see every stone on the ground beneath it. The weather was sunny and crisp for now, but there were a few thick clouds gathering over the mountains. When we arrived at the glacier, there was a bit of scrambling over large boulders to get to the lake. At this point, I was very tired and dehydrated and sore, and cranky. (Poor Gregg!!!!)

The lake was incredibly beautiful, small and greenish blue - with chunks of glacial ice that had calved off from the large glacier on the other side of the lake. As we walked back to the campsite to gather our things - I told Gregg I thought I would go back to town instead of campaign again. The campsite we had intended to stay at was one hour away - and town was about 2 hours past that. He was angry and irritated with me - and I was irritated and tired in general. It was still early, bad weather appeared to be rolling in. We didn't have much for eating, and I had one page to go in my book - and nothing else to entertain me, should we have to sit in a tent all day because of poor weather. The views of the mountains were obscured - and all I wanted was a warm meal and a bed. We had quite a tiff about this, He was disappointed in my differing opinions on trekking and camping. I was dissapointed that he was dissapointed. It was a stupid and pointless fight brought upon by sleep deprivation.

He decided to stay and camp at Lago Capri, regardless of the gray clouds, and I opted to continue on and return to the hostel. We had ended our very short fight by this point. He said he would return the next day by 2 pm. As I walked down to the town, I felt a bit sad about our tiff, but thought it might be good to have a night apart, as we do spend every waking moment together.

My descent felt like it took forever. Every turn I rounded, I thought I was closer than I was. My body was aching and tired, and I wanted to sit down and have coffee and take a warm shower. For two hours as I descended downhill back to town, my knees ached and I wished I was closer then I was. Once I arrived in town, the walk to the hostel, which is only about 300 feet, felt as if it took hours. I was so relieved to be in the hostel, I knew I had made the right decision for myself in returning. I had walked more miles in the past three days, (probably 30) than I had ever walked in a three day span (probably double in fact). I was unaccustomed to carrying a pack - and I was feeling the effects of dehydration, poor sleep and a poorly balanced diet.

When I arrived at the hostel, my roommate was a French girl named Veronique. She spoke English, and invited me to dinner with a German girl and a Dutch girl she had met while traveling. We ate at a restaurant that actually had two vegetarian dishes (Hallelujah!!!)...and had a wonderful time drinking wine and talking about our travels. I felt inferior however, two of them spoke 3 languages, and the third girl, the Dutch girl, spoke 5 languages fluently! After dinner we went to a cafe a few doors down and had hot choco. I don't often meet and spend time with other travelers while on my trips - It is always hard for me to approach people and make conversation - so I thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

When we returned back to the hostel, it felt wonderful to sit in bed and look through my pictures and relax.

Note: The last several pictures are actually from the day after this entry - they are Gregg's pictures from his camping night away from me, and the following morning before he met up with me again in town.

Poincenot and beyond

November 2, 2007

The sun is going down and it is cold here in the Poincenot Campground beneath Mt Fitz Roy. (In Los Glaciares Nacional Parque). Carrying all our camping gear in was a bit grueling, as the first half of the trek was quite uphill. The incline was substantially greater and more prolonged than either of us has anticipated. As far as hiking goes, it was not all that steep - but I was already drained from 9 - 10 miles of hiking yesterday. Carrying the pack also made the incline feel greater and longer. I took some Aleve at the beginning of the hike, which allowed some of the pain in my lower back and legs to subside.

We have been lucky - the weather could not have been nicer today. There was barely a cloud in the sky, and no wind. A man we met informed us that just four days prior, there was snow covering much of the ground. We had truly come for the arrival of spring - and coincided with a window of weather that was uncommonly good for this town. The temperature was cool and crisp enough that we didn't overheat while walking.

As we hiked up to our camp, we had no views of Mt Fitz Roy for the first half of the hike - but it was the focal point of the landscape for the second half. Every peak in area was prominent and clear and illuminated by the bright sunlight.

After about 3 to 3.5 hours of hiking, we reached our campsite. There were already several different groups there. It was rather more rustic that many American campsites - just one outhouse, and that was it - however, unlike America, it was free of charge.

We pitched our tent and boiled water for tea before grabbing our much lighter daypacks and heading to Lago De Los Tres - (a nearby lake).
This hike was a bit more then I bargained for. It was relatively short, maybe a mile or two - but it was EXTREMELY steep the entire way up, with no break in pitch. In fact it only got steeper the higher it got. I do favor hiking up prolonged steepness, I much prefer varied terrain. I was fairly miserable on this hike, and could not wait to be back at camp. Gregg enjoyed it immensely, and made it up a good deal before I did. At the top, the sun was in poor position for photos - and the lake was covered with snow still. However, it was a fantastic and close view of Fitz Roy, which I appreciated. My body is not accustomed to all this hiking, and I was beginning to get sore. Additionally, I had not eaten or drank anywhere near what I should have.

Walking down was much faster and more enjoyable, though it was a bit hard to keep traction on the sliding rocks and steep path. When we reached camp again, I felt out of it. I was hungry and dehydrated, and probably experiencing the effects of low blood sugar - which always knocks me out after I haven't eaten or drank enough on a hike. We made a dinner of burnt soup (I think this is a first for me, burning soup, but my stove was boiling the water over at even the lowest temperature!) - and then spaghetti and poor quality tomato sauce. It raised my energy, but I still longed for some non carbohydrate nutrients.

Gregg retired to the tent at that point, even though it was still maybe only 8 pm (and since we are in so far south in the hemisphere, the sun sets very late here - at 9 or 9:30)...while he rested, I wrote in my journal sitting on a log. There were English speakers sitting aside some tents nearby - I asked if I could join them. There was one Israeli, and two Americans (from Colorado). We drank hot choco, and sat and talked for several hours. The most amusing part of the conversation was when the Israeli exclaimed that you cannot touch Penguins because they have AIDS (I suppose there is a small possiblity this is true, but the rest of us were dubious). I still, however, am looking forward to arriving at the coast in a week or so, and seeing these penguins.

I slept very poorly that night. For the past year, I have not slept well in tents, although I don't know why. Probably because my sleeping bag is a mummy sac, and I like to move quite a bit in my sleep. Also, the wind was as violent as I have ever heard. It whipped all night long, whistling and howling, although there was no rain and I stayed warm after bundling up.

Lago Torres and El Chalten

October 31, 2007

Today we did a day trek of about 9 - 10 miles round trip, on one of the most famous and iconical of Patagonian hikes. As we left town, the winds were whipping at 40-ish mph (on Gregg's estimate), making movement a bit clumsy. As we ascended up in the hills, the wind subsided. The temperature was crisp and perfect, with us both wearing 2 to three layers.

The path took us uphill in the beginning, although it felt very moderate, as the pitches were never steep for very long, and they were separated by enough flatter terrain that we didn't really need any breaks. After the first mile, the views were striking - Mountains Fitz Roy and Torres were both in view for much of the hike. It was really energizing to see the symbol that, for so long has defined Patagonia for me (and indeed it is also the logo for the Patagonia clothing company).

It is unfortunate, but it is very difficult for me to get excited while traveling anymore, because while I certainly haven't 'seen it all' I have seen enough of a sampling to no longer feel like I am looking at things with my eyes wide open, like you do the first time you see something. But today, especially when we reached the terminus of our hike, I felt quite energized by the scenery. I was fairly eager to photograph the whole way out, and it was exciting to feel that way again. However - I thought I had forgotten my Circular Polarizer (After the hike I of course found it in my bag) So as excited as I was to photograph, I didn't implement the proper methods to take images that reflected the beauty we were seeing. That was frustrating.

When we reached the end of our hike, the wind was whipping, quite possibly the strongest I have ever seen it. It was very hard to walk, as we were headed into it. It was even harder to hear each other. Even though the wind was strong, it was still warm, and no sand was blowing in our eyes. Lago Torres (Lake Torres) - which was the end of the hike, was among the most serene (as serene as 50 mph wind can be)..places I have been. Glaciel lakes have the most beautiful teal color - enhanced by the blue glacial chunks that had calved off and were now afloat in it. Between the bluest of skies, ice chunks, glacial pieces and famed spires above - I couldn't really imagine anything that could improve upon the view (except maybe puppies, penguins and a few less clouds - not to mention having the proper photographic equipment). Gregg and I both separately came to the conclusion that we felt like we were in Antarctica.

We arrived back ready to sit down, hungry and perhaps a bit tired. It wasn't necessarily a terribly hard hike but I was definitely ready for it to be done when we arrived back.

Tomorrow, we will assess the weather and then set off on a two, possibly three day trek in the same general area. We expect any mix of cold, sun, rain, wind - as the town generally expects any combination of them in any given day.

This may well have been the best hike I have even taken in my life - definitely one of the best destinations to any hike I have yet taken.

El Calafate - El Chalten - PATAGONIA!!!

October 30, 2007
En route to El Chalten by bus, rocks were popping up from the packed down dirt road, hitting our windows. Outside there was rolling rocky vastness similar to parts of the southwest. Everything as far as I could see was muted and gray and brown, with the exception of a few intermittent lakes.

I feel like today has spanned about three days. We woke up in Buenos Aires at 4 am in preparation for our 6 am flight to El Calafate, Patagonia. According to news from other travelers in the bus terminal, Buenos Aires has since shut down its flights, while the workers strike. If this is true, we must have been one of the lucky last flights out before the strike.

When we arrived at the airport, we were both still experiencing stomach discomfort - queasiness...general badness - most likely due to something we both ate. This persisted on and off throughout the day - but was the worst in the morning.

The flight was 5 hours, with a "technical stop" or "layover" in Ushuaia - the southernmost city in the world. Depending on our weather and enjoyment in El Calafate and El Chalten, this might be our only exposure to the city. The flight was long and uncomfortable for both of us, as we were seated in front of an emergency row, which resulted in seats that didn't recline.

After the long flight to El Calafate, it was a short, but expensive (apparently that is to be the hallmark of our trip - expensive)...cab ride to the terminal, or bus station - so we could secure seats on the evenings' ride to El Chalten.

We were then left with over 5 hours to walk about El Calafate - an overpriced touristy town which would have otherwise captured our interest for no more than a couple of hours. In fact, aside from some nice buildings, El Calafate didn't strike us for any other reason than its high prices, although we know it to be the gateway to some of the greatest natural splendor on earth.

El Chalten is very remote, so much so, it lacks a paved road, or even an ATM or bank. I can't even imagine how far away the nearest one might be, 3 hour at the very least.

As we pulled closer and closer to El Chalten, Mt Fitz Roy, the iconical image of the Patagonia clothing company was striking in the distance, getting closer and closer as we neared. It was just as breathtaking as the images I have adored for so long. As we pulled in, It was after 10 pm and dark out, reminding us how long a day it had been getting here.

The town was so quaint and small, that its city lights literally looked like fireflies in the dark as we pulled nearer.

The mountains are much closer than I thought they would be, and the town seems to have a natural charm. Our hostel is huge and welcoming, and comfortable enough in its first impression. It has been a long day - but the views of the mountains are encouraging me for the next phase of this trip. I am glad to no longer be in Buenos Aires. El Chalten is about as much of a contrast as can be found to the noise and crowding of the big city.