Torres Del Paine - An Unexpected Adventure

Due to planning issues, I had abandoned the idea of trekking in Torres Del Paine. It just seemed nothing was working out and I didn't want to press things. However, Joy had already done the W and was looking for someone to join her in the backside to complete her circuit. She knew the area and what was needed, so really all I had to do was show up and join! It was pretty hard to say no when the plans presented themselves, and I am glad I said yes.

We spent our Thanksgiving on a bus for over 15 hours. Luckily we were able to smuggle on a little wine to celebrate our day of thanks.

Joy, scarfin down some dessert

I really was grateful for our new adventure and my new travel partner. We arrived at Puerto Natales at midnight, and made the walk to our Hostel, Erratic Rock. This hostel immediately felt like home. Well, after Joy set off the alarm by forgetting the door code that is. We let ourselves into our room, only a double had been available to us, so we shared a queen sized bed. I was more excited about having 2 pillows! It was tempting to just crash out, but we had given ourselves a day of rest and decided it wouldn't hurt to wander next door to Base Camp (Hostel Bar) in hopes that their Thanksgiving Celebration was still underway.

They weren't,  but everyone was joyful and  healthily drunk and welcoming.  The bartender pulled out leftover desserts which was quite a welcome sight. Joy had previously stayed here, and knew most of the staff by name, and we were instantly among friends. Three of them had lived in Anacortes for a few years as kayaking guides and climbers so there was no shortage of conversation (in English!!) We also asked important questions about our trip and decided we needed 4 nights rather than 3, which took away our rest day. We would have to get up,  get food,  gear, cash, pack and catch the 2:30 shuttle. You would think sleep would be the logical choice, but company was good, laughter plentiful and we went out instead.  Bed came at 4am...

This hostel, Erratic Rock, is absolutely amazing. They cook you breakfast in the morning,  and serve it. I'm not talking bread and jam. Omelets.  Yogurt. Good cereal. And it's in a kitchen that makes you feel like you are at home. A sign declares "No Electronics at Breakfast" so you are forced to eat like a family. Bill, our host, dotes on you and even does your dishes (breakfast only).

The first view of the park, and the towers

Juanaco, similar to a Llama

Joy in front. We thought we were in the great winderness

Anyway, we ventured out and accomplished our tasks and hit the road. It's my first camping on this trip, and I was nervous about how my feet and knees would hold up with the weight. Luckily,  our weight was split. The biggest reason I didn't hike the W was because I am alone and knew I couldn't handle the weight for those days. Especially without the lightweight food options I am used to.Joy and I worked well together, we got all of our tasks done with time to spare. A quick nap on the bus ride and we were in the park, ready to start our adventure.

Our hike started out with a 4 hour trek, relatively flat and relaxed. The scenery was beautiful, remote, peaceful. There are no dangerous creatures in Patagonia,  the only predator is the Puma, which don't generally pose a threat to humans. So it was quite a surprise when I was startled by a creature who then began to chase me. We had stumbled upon a skunk, who looked about as spooked as I was. But even being half of the size of the skunks back home, skunks ALWAYS have the advantage.  Joy, is yelling "What do we do, what do we do?!" As I am trying to get past so we can continue down the trail. All the while this pissed off skunk keeps chasing us back,  paws in little fists as it beats the ground in front of it like an angry bull. Joy started backing the way we came, as I'm off the trail, feet getting stabbed by spiky plants. The skunk decided to run towards Joy which gave us the advantage of getting back on the trail and running,  angry skunk in tail.  Joy screaming "it's coming towards me, what do I do!" Eventually,  we were both on the trail with the stupid skunk in the distance.

Camp Seron.

What a way to start off our 4 day trip eh? Later, almost to camp, we are enjoying our scenic adventure.  Apparently less than 5% of people try the complete circuit through the pass, so we didn't expect to see many people. We saw an abundance of hares, birds and other critters and really started to feel far from civilization. All of a sudden this big, noisy thing appears through the trees and here we are, thrust into a damn Tundra commercial,  this big green truck barreling through our peaceful scenery.  Not quite as far from civilization as we thought.

Camp,  needless to say, was a welcome sight. Even as civilized as it seemed.

Day 2 was less eventful,  and therefor dragged on. We had all day to trek 6 hours so we slept in and took our sweet time getting up. About an hour in we ran into 3 guys who had done the pass in the reverse.  We swapped beta and small talk before cresting the hill. You know the wind is bad when printed maps have a wind icon, we weren't disappointed.  The wind was so strong it literally took our breath away. I could see me cheeks shaking under my eyes, and my contacts were trying to slide out. It was all of 5 minutes but suuuuper brutal. Nothing significant happened and it felt like forever before we stumbled onto camp. What a delightful sight that was!

Camp Dickson

Joy and I

This refugio was even more civilized than the last, and even more remote. The host greeted us and told us to set camp and then come in for free hot coffee. I couldn't get over the amenities so far from civilization.  But they had hot showers,  an option to buy meals (4 course, real meals) and even a cozy social area for us to hang out in.  We met a bunch of other people and made some friends.  Most of us would be tackling the pass and it was nice to chat with them all. We even added a friend to our group, as she was traveling alone and we all appreciated the extra company. I still had trouble wrapping my head around this trek. In the North Cascades, you get excited about a pit toilet at 8,000 feet. Here, people got upset the power was only on for 4 hours to charge electronics. It was a mentality I wasn't used to, like a cross between car camping and carrying all your shit from place to place. Its bizarre.

As we settled into our tent the skies opened up and poured, in true Patagonia fashion, with wind whipping everything around.

Regardless of the storm we slept hot and well, waking up again at 9:30. The skies were undecided, short spurts of sun and longer spouts of rain and wind. Luckily, today was only 4.5 hours to camp and we would much rather lag in the morning while we were still warm. It rained lightly on and off, but we were in dense forest for the first time this trip and it was very similar to Washington.  Many waterfalls and river crossings mixed with good conversation made for a quick day. We arrived to camp to yet another surprise,  an indoor cooking area! Perfect ending to a wet day, everyone sitting family style at tables,  eating while our gear dried.  Overall this was a great day.

We woke the next day and everyone broke camp by about 8am, anxious to get through the pass. The ranger interrupted our breakfast and preparations to tell us the pass was indeed open, with fair weather. Just an intermittent rain and wind. Joy and I left camp with Jen, our new trekking friend, and Tomer. (He had arrived to camp late and asked to join us, as you are not supposed to cross the pass alone) Within an hour we were clearing the trees, and it was already evident that the weather was far worse than the ranger had thought. Wind was furious, sometimes knocking us off balance. The rain turned into sleet, and when a wave of wind came we had to take a knee and cover as much of our bodies as we could. The girls were left with bruises from it. In between the crazy waves we rushed to make some progress while we could. You could literally look out and see the waves of wind carrying rain and sleet horizontally across the valley. Visibility was surprisingly good.

Me, Jen, Joy and Tomer just before the crazy weather

About 30 minutes from the pass Tomer asked if I thought we should continue. He thought it was risky and stupid to continue. Little did I know that he had never even been in snow! Had it been a summit day, it would have been am obvious choice to turn back, there is no ego in safety. But it wasn't a summit day, and our options were similar. Turn back, 3 hours to camp in exposed conditions, where we would run out of food and have to backtrack our whole trek. Or, push ahead, in the same conditions, to the next camp covering the same amount of time, but allowing us to leave the park the following day. The girls had never experienced this sort of thing. I asked how they felt, if everyone was of sound mind, were they warm enough, did they believe they could do it etc. The girls were on board with pushing forward, we all just wanted to get out of the shitty conditions and preferred it to be on the other side, closer to our goal.

Checking out an overrun waterfall we had to cross. You can see the Gray Glacier below

Thomas, another hiker, met up with us to cross the pass as a group. We followed him over and shortly after he was gone. He was the guy who slept in, left camp late, and passed everyone regardless of how early they began their day. When we crested the pass none of us expected what we saw. For miles all you could see as the Grey Glacier, magnificently taking over the landscape. This wasn't the glacier view you paid to see on a tour, or back in the cascades. It was unreal. Although none of us have photos as we were running to the tree line for cover. I had already known I was near frostbite on 3 fingers, ridiculous as it wasn't even freezing out, just too wet and cold. I clutched my pack cover with one hand (the wind will rip them clear off in one burst) and tucked the other hand in my armpit. I should have seen the signs, this was not worth losing fingers! (it took 2 days for the proper feeling to return, but there is still nerve damage).

Glacier for days...

Less than 5 minutes from camp, Diego,  a ranger from El Paso camp came sprinting down the trail, asking how many people were behind us. We knew 2 had turned back, but were unsure about the English family of 4, 2 were my age and 2 were easily in their 60s. Diego informed us the pass was supposed to be closed due to the storm and that we never should have been let to pass. Apparently the rangers on either side were not in communication. We had planned to bypass camp after checking in but were told we couldn't leave. Conditions further down the trail were grim as well, with rivers flooded and damage from the storm. We would now miss our ferry and in turn, I would miss my bus and flight to Bariloche. Felipe, the other ranger, invited us into their shack, a tiny two room structure. Due to the miscommunication, there were 23 of us trapped for the night. People coming the reverse direction, as well as all of us who were let past in 2 days of supposed Pass closings due to weather. Luckily, the hospitality was incredible, as 23 of us filtered in and out keeping warm by the wood stove and trying to dry our impossible loads of wet gear.

Cooking bread, and boots and socks...

Trying to dry out int he shelter

Everything and everyone was wet

Thomas, the solo hiker, had fallen and dislocated his shoulder not long after leaving us. He wasn't able to receive care, as there were no trained professionals, so he was put up in their spare cot to wait out the storm in pain. Luckily I travel with Vicodin for my back, and it seemed cruel to have him lay there without help or relief so I gave him enough to keep him comfortable throughout the night. We all knew one another by name by the end of the night, and everyone seemed to sleep fitful and wet, anxiously awaiting clearance to leave in the morning. We woke to shouts, the generator was out of gas and therefor there was no radio communication with the Gray camp below. They had left fuel on the other side of the river the previous day but the river was not safe to pass. Word was we could only leave if the rain continued to stay at bay and water levels dropped.

Stuck, with a little sun peaking out, we began exploring. Getting stuck allowed us great weather and views of the glacier. I even found a warm pool on top of the rocks to wash my hair, something little to feel better after 2 days feeling like a wet cat. Around 1 we heard more shouts, the rangers were back, with the fuel and they asked us to gather in the cooking shelter for a meeting. We were cleared to leave, but the rangers would have to assist us as the water levels were still dangerous and alternate crossings would be necessary. Within an hour everyone had packed and headed out in groups to await the crossing. I checked on Thomas, as he would have to make the trek as well, even in his condition. It would not be a comfortable trip for him.

Snapping shots of the crazy view

Jen and I above the Gray Glacier

Sometimes its all about the little things. Like bathing in a puddle on a big rock formation

The crossings were long, drawn out, and exciting.

Diego and Tomer helping people across the river

Diego and James helping people over the washed out banks. Rocks fell frequently and I ended up with one in my shin

All runouts ended in Glacier...

A series of ladders and more water crossings

We still had 6 hours to make it to Paine Grande, the far camp where Joy and I would catch our ferry the following morning. Any longer being stuck ad she would have missed her flight, and a 10 day cruise to Antarctica. We made it to camp around 11pm. On the way, Jen had hinted I should join her to finish her circuit. It would only add 2 nights, and I had already missed my flight. The hotel at Paine Grande had a computer and  I was able to book a new flight. I still have no idea if I will get a refund for the missed flight. The airline here is complicated.

Joy and I excited to be free after 24 hours cooped up

I had picked up a box of wine at Gray when we passed, as we were sure the Paine Grande shop would be closed when we arrived. After Jen and I sought out hot showers before our continued trek, Joy, Jen and I shared our celebratory wine with 4 other Americans we had been stuck with. The rest of our forced-together family had chosen to stay at Gray.

The following day we awarded ourselves with a giant breakfast at the hotel before parting ways. Joy had been my travel companion for 2 weeks now, and although we were couped up and irritable the day before, I knew I would miss her company and laughter. I hoped her Antarctica trip was amazing. She had been such a big help to me over the past few days.

Last bit of hiking with Joy :(

Paine Grande was like Woodstock

HOT MEAL!

After breakfast Jen and I continued on our way to finish our trek and complete the circuit. I was anxious to leave the fancy hotel and its woodstock-esque campsite and crowds. Already we were getting a taste of the diversity of the W. On the backside there are few people and you know each other by name by day 2. The trails are wide and well maintained, even without bridges to cross most water crossings. The toilets are clean, with toilet paper. People are courteous and respectful. After one day on the W, however, it was like a trekking Disney Land. Some people were decked out and dressed to the nines, smelling of strong perfumes and toting their fancy gear. The drastic differences between groups of people was startling. Every toilet was clogged, apparently the signs in every damn bathroom in South America stating "no toilet paper in toilets" doesn't apply to all classes. After day 1 it was clear this part of our trip would be very different than the rest.

We hiked to Italiano, where we were allowed to leave our packs for the day hike to Valley Frances. It was all up, but the views were astounding. The backside of the circuit was backcountry, wide views, lots of country landscape. One the W it was more drastic and sudden, and a little cramped. Still beautiful in its on way. Once we finished we grabbed our packs and left for Cuernos, a nicer camp which would cut time off our trek the following day. On the way we were stopped by this incredible view, so out of place. Brilliant blue waters, hot sun beating down, and the most pristine beach. As we approached I started shedding gear to go into the water. It was the coldest water Ive ever stepped foot in, but I couldn't help reveling in its beauty and randomness. Yesterday we were soaking wet and cold standing over a glacier. Today we were laying on a beach that, by appearances. could have been out of a travel catalog to a Caribbean vacation. I spent some time soaking up the sun while Jen hid in the shade, and just enjoyed it. 2 condors appeared from nowhere (for no reason I can think of) and glided low along the beach, quite a sight.

Yard sale on my pack, trying to dry gear!

Who put that tropical beach there?!

Coldest water I have ever been in. Reduced the inflammation in my legs and feet though!

We soon moved onto camp. It was a much nicer camp than we were used to, but again, very different. The Refugio was like an Aspen Ski Lodge, everyone out on the patio with glasses of wine and champagne, like they just drove there from home. Not even a hint that we were in a National Park, far from civilization. Someone was making serious money in this park, that's for sure. We decided to buy another box of wine and wash some clothed in the utility sink. While our clothes dried on the bushes we sat in the sun some more, enjoying the change of scenery and fun conversation. At sunset we wandered to the beach to watch. The views here never disappoint.

Sunset on the beach at Chileno

Valley Frances

The next day was the toughest. Maybe it was the knowledge that it was the last big day, or the ridiculous steep incline, or the freak rain that hit us mid-day. Either way, we were dragging serious ass. On a strike of luck, after crossing a suspension bridge I noticed something in the bushes back across the river. I tossed my pack, crossed downstream of the bridge, climbed some rocks and was now the new owner of a fancy new rain cover. The kind that zip up for airplanes to protect your pack. My current cover was too small for my 50l pack, and the new one couldnt have come at a better time. Not 30 minutes later our beautiful ridiculously hot day turned into a windy rainstorm. At least my stuff would be dry this time! We also learned not to ask Patagonia for some air conditioning.

We arrived at Chileno, another ski-lodge looking refugio. After our grueling day we decided on a break. Hot coffee for me, a fanta for Jen, and some good company and conversation was just the break we needed. I was renewed with energy to make it to the next camp, although Jen didn't feel the same. At high camp (Torres) the rangers informed us we should set up camp, make food and head up to the towers as they were currently on display but may cloud over soon. Before we could even finish our tasks it began to rain, and we called it an early night. We both decided we were too wiped to try to see the towers at sunrise. I woke to people stirring, as most head up to watch for the phenomenon of the towers turning orange at sunrise. I felt ill, sore from head to toe and sick. My face hurt from sinus pain and I was shaking with cold. Jen said her legs were not going to function. We had had our share. Deciding we were satisfied we made a quick breakfast and broke camp. We only had a few hours to get down to the Hotel and finish out our trek.

Jen and I, you can barely make out Hotel Torres in the back, our goal on our last day!

 We were super happy to be back in civilization. Erratic rock put me up again and we finished our trip off at Base Camp retelling stories, laughing and enjoying the company and new friends. This was the perfect end to my adventure, and I made memories (and friends) to last a lifetime.