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.