21-27.01.11 Puerto Varas & Pucon

After successfully docking at the tiny port of Puerto Montt we decided to head for the picturesque town of Puerto Varas some 20km north. This was the first place during our whole trip we just ‘rocked up’, ergo - turned up without a reservation and expecting a bed. To our delight we found a hostel called ‘Ellenhaus’ within 200mtrs from where the bus dropped us. There is a massive German influence here in Northern Patagonia and the Chilean Lake District thanks to immigration and colonisation during the 19^th century, evident in the alpine lodge style architecture. It felt a little like the Bavarian Alps. After a quick bag drop we stumbled across a German beer festival. As our friends know, we don’t really drink alcohol but we decided to have a couple of pints of Golden Kross and something else sounding very German - just to blend in. Naturally, we followed this with a German frankfurter with sauerkraut. Hey why not? This is Chile you know...

Puerto Varas German Beer Festival

 

Hot Dog Aleman

After a brief stay in Puerto Varas we caught a 6hr bus North to Pucon, famously infamous for the infinitely famous active ‘Volcan Villarrica’. The last eruption was in 1984 involving a cascade of molten lava spewing dangerously close to the town of Pucon. In winter this volcano now becomes a ski resort for the daring. However, it’s summer here meaning it is possible to climb to the summit with the help of a guide. 

We quickly booked ourselves a guide and headed up Villarrica at 7am the next morning. The weatherman got it bang on. The morning sky was azure blue with the menacing Villarrica smoking in the distance, a stark reminder of what was to come. 

Close proximity of Villarrica Volcano to Pucon

 

The climb itself is 1400 mtrs to the summit at 2980 mtrs. There was an option to take the chairlift the first 400 mtrs which of course we declined on the basis it was cheating. From the chairlift most of the climbing was done in snow. Our original group of 25 was cut to 7 splitting the cheaters from the stupid. Our group consisted of Rach, myself, Marios (a Spanish speaking Greek from Guildford) and 4 young Isrealis fresh out of 3 years of National Service. No pressure there then. After some tips on how to use an ice axe and walking in snow our guide set a good pace. We quickly passed the ‘chair lift cheaters’ and after some hairy moments reached the summit in around 5 hours.

The accent up Villarrica

The summit itself was bizzare. Thunderous noises from within the crater were followed by plumes of sulphurous gas. We were advised it is not a good idea to stick around and Rach was finding the sulphur pretty uncomfortable.

Rach & Marios at the crater

Smoking crater

Rach having just having had a very near miss when the ground of the crater gave way - try a zoom on her face it is a picture!

After a quick circuit of the craters rim we donned our waterproofs and, with plastic paddles between our legs, we sledged down the mountain belly laughing all the way. 5 hours up 1 hour down.

The following day we attended a BBQ organised by Miriam and Francesca, the girls who run the El Refugio Hostel. Around 20 guests from at least 6 countries enjoyed the steak and vino well into the early hours. We left early due to an early start the following day.

The following morning we caught an early bus to the un-pronounceable Huerquehue National Park for an 18km trek called the Los Lagos Circuit. It visits numerous lakes set amongst the spectacular forests and mountains of Chile’s Lake District. The walk itself involved around 700 mtrs of height gain and 7hrs walking.  The sun was scorching but thankfully the forest provided ample cover. That said, we attracted the attention of many horse flies, like normal flies only 3 times bigger with a nasty bite.

A crystal clear Lago Chico

View of Volcan Villarrica from a ´Los Lagos´mirador

After a couple of days walking we visited the Los Pozones thermal springs an hour or so from Pucon. The varying temperature pools were scattered along a crystal clear riverbank in a dramatic valley. A great way to relax, pool hopping and sunbathing before heading back to Pucon to catch the night bus to Santiago, Chile’s capital city.

Los Pozones Termas

17-21.01.11 - Navimag Ferry Chilean Fjords (Puerto Natales to Puerto Montt)

We checked our bags in at the suspiciously quiet port and went for something to eat in Puerto Natales with our Danish friend Line. Word at the port was the ferry would sail after a short delay. We couldn't help but notice there seemed to be some tension in the air with military groups hiding in the shadows. We were told we would board at 12 midnight. After a hearty meal it was time to try some Pisco (Chilean grape brandy). Rach had a Pisco Sour, a cocktail of Pisco, lemon juice, sugar and a beaten egg. Our friendly host gave us a Chilean and a Peruvian Pisco on the house to sample the difference between the two. As we came to pay our bill disaster struck. Easily the largest vehicular convoy of protestors passed the window of the restaurant heading for the port. Cars beeping, black flags waving, groups of men shouting. No doubt enroute to block the port and stir things up. We headed to the port to find the military had blocked the roads leading to the ferry and were directing protestors in opposing directions. We cautiously walked through the protestors and spoke to the guards who told us to come back in a couple of hours. They didn't want to stir up the crowd by letting us tourists through. Nightmare! - we were indefintely separated from all of our bags and we didn't know if the ferry would set sail without us. We decided to try the back route. We walked around a few blocks to the other side of the port to find the military there too. Oddly, these guys were really friendly and could tell we were foreigners. They let us through with no drama.

Scene at Puerto Natales port when we left the restaurant

In the boarding room we were then told boarding was delayed until 2am but we eventually boarded at 4am.  The protestors had dissappeared, again it was eerily quiet in the port. 90 of us were ushered to the ferry. We were directed to our cabins and the ferry set sail at 8.30am. Only 4.5hrs after it's scheduled departure. After 7 days of waiting around in Puerto Natales we were back on route as planned. Sadly we were denied the opportunity to trek the 5 day 'W' at Torres Del Paine, one of our highlights for this trip. We were, quite simply, gutted...

This is usually full of containers, trucks and trailors exporting goods out of Pataonia. It was empty due to the strikes. It will have massive implications on the local economy for weeks

A couple of hours later we arrived at the narowest part of the route, the Angostura White narrows only 80 mtrs wide. The ship was 30! As we passed through the narrows we were joined by a family of dolphins. Next we passed through the Sobrenes straits, the most southerly part of our whole South American trip. As daylight diminished we entered the Amalia Estuary at the wall of the Skua Glacier, belonging to the South Patagonian Ice Field. The evening was spent sharing a dyer 'carton' of wine and listening to even worse 90's pop in the bar.

Angostura White Narrows, Chilean Fjords Southern Patagonia

Scenery around the English Narrows. Complete with rainbow.

The Skua Glacier, Amalia Estuary

 

Rach at the hideously small wheel of the ship. Seriously, this was it.

 

The following day we arrived at Puerto Eden located on Wellington Island. The remote island town is home to only 150 inhabitants, many of them from the indiginous sea fairing tribe 'the Kaweskar' who roamed the Magellan Straits. Access to and from the town is from the Navimag which arrives only once a week. From here we continued up the English Narrows (Angostura Inglesa) allowing only one ship at a time. As dusk fell we past the ghostly 'Capitan Leonidas', a cargo ship that ran aground in the 1970's. It is now used as a lighthouse to warn other sailors. Our crew told us we may be able to see hump back whales. No joy - although we did see a few seals and sea lions.

Puerto Eden, home to 150 inhabitants including the remaining Kasweskar people

  The ghostly Capitan Leonidas

That evening we sailed into the open Pacific Ocean. Our ship was being hit by 3-4 metre waves during dinner which made for comedy viewing. People trying to carry trays with soup, spaghetti bolognese and drinks over slippery vinyl to a moving table. Fortunately the crew were on hand to help. That evening the waves increased to 4-6 metres. Many passengers were sea sick but neither Rach or I suffered thanks to the pills. That evening we tried to watch 'Inception' on the big screen in the dining room. Chairs, tables and people were flying everywhere. We decided to call it a night around midnight and head for our bunks. At 1am we both woke to a massive crash. After a few moments silence I heard Rach whisper from beneith 2 blankets and a bed spread 'Ryan we are not going to go over are we?'. 'Of course not' I replied. 'It's not possible'. I wasn't really sure. Some time afterwards we fell asleep. Our heads whacking the headboards every couple of seconds...

On our final day we awoke to mist, lots of it and rain too. I went out on deck which was covered in spagetti bolognese. At least the rain would soon wash it off. We could see nothing of the 3 volcanoes we passed. The day was spent reading and anticipating the evenings entertainment. That night was Bingo Night. The raucous game of  Bingo was a really good laugh, a great end to a great experience. Rach won game 2 which meant she had to dance to Shaggy's 'Boombastic' on her own in front of 90 not-so-strangers.

Er, Bingo!

After a relatively calm night we entered the Corcovado Gulf past Chiloe Island and reached Puerto Montt around 11am. On arrival at our hostel we were not surprised in the slightest to see half the ship staying here too. Oh well....

Rach with our friend Line from Denmark nearing Puerto Montt

Passengers walking off the ferry at the end of the 4 day trip in Puerto Montt

10-17.01.11 Puerto Natales and Torres del Paine (not quite)

We were pretty sad to be leaving Argentina but the draw of the majestic Torres del Paine national park was too strong so across the border to Chile we went.  Puerto Natales is about 160km from the park and the perfect place to get supplies for our 5 day, 4 night trek named the ‘W’ trek.

Puerto Natales architecture - mainly consists of sheet metal external walls

 

The lake and mountains from the town

We had a full day to shop for our supplies and after a chat with the hostel owner ‘Omar’ about equipment and appropriate foods to take with us, we headed off to the shops.  The ideal foods for the multi-day trek are fat and carbohydrates.  The idea is not to have a nutritious meal but stock up on energy.  Porridge mixed with dried milk and rice cereal for breakfast, 2 cereal bars with dried fruit and nuts for lunch, rice or noodles with tuna or dried beef for our evening meal.  We rented out minimal camping equipment from our hostel and packed our rucksacks ready to catch the 7.30am bus the next morning. 

At around 5pm in the evening we started to hear vehicles beeping their horns and saw they had black flags attached to their cars indicating that they were in protest.  We had heard about this earlier in the day but it seemed to have been dismissed as ‘probably’ not going to happen.  The local news reported that from midnight on the 11th January all businesses and public transport in the Magellanes region would shut down indefinitely in protest against a recently announced rise in gas prices.  We understand that gas prices are rising throughout all of Chile but the Magellanes region (Southern Patagonia) were to have a more significant rise than say the Northern regions.  In Southern Patagonia winter lasts for 8+ months of the year and as public transport is scarce, they rely heavily on using their own transport to get around.  A gas rise of around 20% would cripple a lot of businesses in this region who use natural gas to heat their homes, drive their cars and run their businesses. Wages here are relatively low yet the price of living is high.  Needless to say, we fully understand why the locals are striking.

Wednesday 12th Jan, our intended start date for the `W`, came and went with road blocks to all routes in and out of town.  We read on the internet that 2 people had died and 4 were injured in a fire at a road block in Punta Arenas the capital of the region.  Luckily, the demonstrations in Puerto Natales were peaceful but no-one was allowed to enter or leave.  We were advised that the National Park was now closed with 1,500 people still trapped people in the park.

Thursday 13th Jan brought a new found hope as the government were meeting at 10am to discuss the issues.  A public tourist meeting held that evening in the main square advised that it was unfortunate but that we were being used as political hostages in the negotiations.  We were advised to stay calm, and not to get aggressive or involved in the demonstrations.  They also advised that they were unable to represent us and that the Red Cross had been brought in to offer support whilst the military were on hand to keep the peace.

That evening, Ryan and I went out for dinner whilst hundreds of other tourists queued up at the Red Cross to register their details and seek accommodation.  I was more gutted that we hadn`t made the BBC news.

After no news on the Friday, we decided to make use of Saturday and walk up the only hill in close proximity – Mirador Dorotea.  The first 2 hours took us through the town and over fields to the main road to Punta Arenas, the official border crossing to Argentina 30kms away and past one of the road blockades.  The blockade was strange really, we expected it to be a bit hostile although we knew we would be able to pass on foot no problem.  It was actually quite the opposite with bbq’s and tents set up, music playing from the cars and whole families protesting.  We walked through no problem with everyone responding to our ‘Holas’ with friendly smiles.

The road blockage

The hike itself was a total of 2.5 hours up and down, rising approx 600m with views of the town, lakes and mountains.  Well, we would have had good views if it hadn’t started to rain the minute we got to the top!  We had to pay an entrance fee of about £6.50 each as the walk was on private property.  Our broken conversation in Spanish with the landlady confirmed that this included drinks and lunch on our return.  The rain was pretty heavy as we approached the farm and we were glad to have the hot drinks provided.  At first we thought our lunch was some bread and crackers with jam but we heard the sizzle of the frying pan and out came some lamb steaks (lamb reared on the farm) and scrambled eggs (from her own hens). It was delicious and we were pleased that it gave us the opportunity to practice our Spanish with someone who didn’t understand a word of English.

Mirador Dorotea

 

View of the `now extremely familiar `Puerto Natales from Mirador Dorotea

 

The lake and mountains (after the rain had cleared)

We finished our walk by a different route, back through the road blocks and past the local Mylodon (an extinct local beast) sculpture.  Some cheeky protestors had armed him with the obligatory black flag in support of the ‘No al alza del Gas’ protests.

Mylodon in protest

The next few days were spent with the rest of the Kaweskar Hostel so called `hostages`.  We were really lucky to have such great people in our hostel and such a great host in ‘Omar’.  The days and nights were spent reading, watching films and eating and drinking with our friends in the evenings.

 Kaweshka Hostel - our home for 7 days

We did finally make the BBC news on the internet (article attached) although the British Embassy (despite two emails) never contacted me to see if we were alright.  The Military and Red Cross are now managing the evacuation of over 2,000 tourists from the region, all of our hostel have either walked or hitch-hiked into Argentina but we have eagerly awaited the departure of the Navimag ferry which we had booked a few weeks ago.  As we write, we have checked in and have to go back to the port for boarding at 8pm.  Fingers crossed we get on that boat and set sail at 4am tomorrow morning.  Although Puerto Natales is a nice enough place, spending 7 days here without even having sight of Torres del Paine has been pretty grim.

BBC News Article

Latin America & Caribbean

16 January 2011 Last updated at 01:32 GMT

Tourists trapped in Chile due to fuel price strikes

By Gideon Long BBC News, Santiago

 

 

Thousands of foreign tourists are trapped in southern Chile due to strikes and road blockades by locals protesting a rise in fuel prices.

The tourists, some of whom have been stuck for four days, had hoped to leave for neighbouring Argentina, but have reportedly been turned back.

The strike was sparked by a government plan to hike gas prices by nearly 17%.
The move has brought the region to a standstill and led to clashes with police, who responded with tear gas.

On Tuesday, two young women were killed when a truck smashed through a blockade.
'Turned back'

About 2,000 tourists are stuck in the cities of Puerto Natales and Punta Arenas, in the deep south of Patagonia.
Most of the tourists, who come from more than 20 countries, had been visiting the majestic Torres del Paine national park, Chile's biggest tourist attraction and a popular destination for hikers.

The demonstrators say they have now relaxed the blockades to allow tourists to leave.

But one American tourist, speaking to the BBC from Puerto Natales, said that when the first group of foreigners had tried to leave for Argentina, they had been turned back.

The Red Cross is assisting tourists, and the Chilean military is on hand to maintain order.

Several foreign governments have advised their citizens not to travel to southern Chile, and some embassies have put pressure on the government in Santiago to resolve the issue.

07-09.01.11 El Calafate & Perito Moreno Glacier

The only positive spin on the frankly absurd 30 hour bus journey to Southern Patagonia was pulling into the services and seeing a Chaka Demus and Pliers Tease Me Tease Me ‘cassette’ for sale. It was a bit dusty and the cabinet didn’t look like it has been opened for a while.

The real draw to El Calafate is the easy access to the Perito Moreno Glacier in Southern Patagonia. The weather here is much colder than we are used to, reaching freezing point over night.  This isnt surprising as we are about 80k away from the Parque National Los Glaciares.  As soon as we arrived at the hostel we were hit with the different tour options ranging from ‘transport only’ to the park to a full day visit to the glacier including a 4 hour ice hike called the 'Big Ice'.  Naturally, we went for the Big Ice hike setting off the following day.

We were picked up by coach at 7am and had our first views of the glacier around 2 hours later from the coach window.  The Perito Moreno Glacier isn't the largest glacier in Patagonia but because it is only 80k from El Calafate and 185m above sea level it is the most accessible.  The condition of this glacier is also stable - a relief when other glaciers have been reported as receding.  Every few minutes you could hear this amazing cracking noise when the ice breaks off into the Lago Argentina.  The sound of even the smallest piece breaking off is phenomenal, and not something we could possible describe adequately through the blog.  

First view of the Perito Moreno Glacier from the window of the bus

We first visited the ´tourist spot’ (several walkways and view points) to photograph the glacier on close proximity.  

4km wide and 30k deep...

 

60m above the surface and 100m below the waterline

Ice bridge created by the water ( We heard it collapsed 1hr later. Only happens every 3 or 4 yrs!)

 The dark bits are where the glacier has carved up the earth helping to create the valley

After boarding a boat we set off on an hour walk through the forest to get kitted out with the crampons and harness we needed to go ice hiking.  

We were in a group of 10 with two guides, one main guide and the other a‘spotter`.  

As the ice moves so much each day (up to 2m in the central zone) each tour is quite different with the terrain always changing.  There were occasions where the surface of the glacier was too steep for us to climb without ice axes and ropes so we had to turn back and find an alternative route.   
 

This really made the experience authentic and not just another tour that is the same from the next.  The ice formations, lagoons and crevasses were incredible as you can see for yourselves in the pictures.

Standard Freemans Catalogue pose...

The potential for jokes and inuendo are limitless....

Rach in action. The guides were fantastic and always there to help when things got a little hairy. We wore harnesses but nobody actually tied a rope to us. We think the harness was to pull us out in case we fell. Forward planning... 

Our favourite shot - Reminds me of Supermans house. Human scale is around half the height of the blue spoldge in the cente

We were on the ice for over 4 hours and in total it was a 6 hour hike.  It was AMAZING.  One of the best things we have done while we have been away, right up there with Iguazu Falls.