Patagonia

Arequipa, 29.12.: 2 bus rides, 2 flights and a total of 24 hours separated us from Punta Arenas, the southernmost city of Chile. A border crossing with a corresponding waiting time and 2 planes with 15 cm wide plastic seats (slight exaggeration allowed), which couldn't be reclined even an inch, didn't exactly provide a comfortable journey to Patagonia. Completely exhausted, we reached our hostel in the early morning, hoping for a warm welcome and at least the possibility of using the common areas. The "charming" hostel owner, however, didn't care about our lack of sleep, and even though our beds in the dorm room were already free, we weren't allowed to check-in. When we tried to prepare breakfast, she reminded us for the third time that the check-in time was scheduled for 1:00 pm and therefore the use of the kitchen was not possible. Very sympathetic the good lady. She definitely managed to make sure that we didn't spend much time in the hostel and felt totally unwelcome there for 3 days. And when she tried to rip us off during payment, that was the final straw. If you want to know where not to sleep in Punta Arenas, we definitely have an address for you.

Patagonia is simply THE dream for nature lovers. Due to our planned route, we chose January as the travel time for Patagonia, which is the high season. For all those interested in Patagonia, here's a tip: If you want to avoid the mass tourism and prefer not to hike in a single file up the mountain, it's better to choose the travel month of March. It may be a little colder at that time, but in our opinion, you can perceive the beauty of nature more intensely with fewer people. It is also possible to make the trip a little more flexible/spontaneous, as buses and accommodations are not completely booked out.

In each blog entry, we report on the highlights of our South America trip and believe that nothing can be more beautiful, impressive, and fascinating... and then came PATAGONIA!

We visited four places where we explored the fascinating area of the southern tip of the continent with excursions, tours, and hikes.

Here is a brief overview of our activities in this dreamlike region:

Punta Arenas 

After a well-deserved nap, we visited various tour operators to get an overview of the possibilities in the region. We finally booked a trip to Tierra del Fuego for the last day of the year. We were surprised to find that the south of Patagonia is quite flat - we couldn't find any mountains. The region is characterized by gently rolling pastureland (a paradise for sheep and guanacos = relatives of llamas) with many flowers and bushes in countless shades of green. The Tierra del Fuego archipelago is separated from the mainland by the Strait of Magellan and known for its harsh weather conditions. There we could admire emperor penguins about one meter tall, with orange beaks and spots on their heads and chests, in a bay. Although the tour unfortunately had a certain "zoo character", it was still a special and fun experience to see these animals waddling around in a group. It was also interesting to learn that the parents do not bury their fertilized egg (like many other species of penguins), but carry it between their feet - each parent for about a week, then they switch. When the animals want to rest, they simply lie down comfortably on their bellies - so far, so good. However, it is curious that they never sleep lying down, because to take a nap, they stand up, put their weight on their heels, and hide their heads between their armpits. Doesn't have to make sense to us 😉 

The excursion ended at 9 pm, a time when we usually relax and go to bed. However, the special nature of New Year's Eve overcame our tiredness, and we decided to take a walk in search of champagne to celebrate at midnight. Apart from the unusual fact that it stayed light in Punta Arenas until 11 pm, it was even more surprising that our search for a good bottle was unsuccessful. All shops, restaurants, bars... were closed! So we spent our first New Year's Eve without any alcohol in our blood. As bad as this may sound, it wasn't that bad. On the contrary: we found a very nice spot on the beach, and we welcomed the year 2020 with the obligatory New Year's waltz, which started as a waltz and ended as a tango (Note from the female editor: at least that's what we like to think, because even with a lot of imagination, a professional dancer wouldn't recognize any tango elements in our jumping around). A very special and beautiful New Year's Eve that will surely remain in our memory forever.

We took advantage of our non-hungover state on New Year's Day and enjoyed a wonderful sunrise along the coast. The running route was so beautiful that we didn't want to turn around. With a mixture of strolling along the beach promenade, eating the best hot dog in the world (with avocado, corn, tomatoes, potato chips, etc.), and playing Jolly, we spent a relaxing end to the first day of the year and, at the same time, the last day in Punta Arenas. 

Puerto Natales

A place - mainly known for its national park "Torres del Paine", which we didn't want to miss. On the first day, we explored the national park by bus tour and visited various lagoons and glaciers. This gave us the opportunity to get an overview of the entire park.

The following day, the classic hike was on the agenda: a hike to the lagoon at the foot of the three "Torres" with a (provided the weather gods cooperate) fantastic view of the famous rock formations of Torres del Paine. We were aware that we would not be alone on this hike, but we were still surprised by the number of people, although they were spread out over the entire route. Although we took the first bus at 7:00 am to the park, we could only start our hike during rush hour. The reason for this was that we didn't want to take a shuttle from the park entrance to the starting point of the hike (which would have cost 3.50 euros per person), and instead, we covered the 7 km on foot. Few people came up with this brilliant idea, so we had this part of the route completely to ourselves. When we arrived at the lagoon, we were unfortunately denied the full view of the rock towers. Fortunately, we had already seen the whole splendor from a distance when we covered our additional kilometers in the early morning. So we didn't regret our cost-saving decision, and with already 28 km on our legs, we considered hiking back the same route. Then, by chance, a large sign saying "Happy Hour" caught our eye at the restaurant in the parking lot, and we had to make a decision: shuttle or beer? Those who know us probably know how our decision turned out 😊 After an 8-hour hike and an empty stomach, the Calafate beer (Calafate = berry fruit from Patagonia) went straight to our heads.

Slightly tipsy, we remained true to our decision - despite longing for a bed or at least a bus seat. We tied our shoes again and successfully completed another 7 kilometers, as the good mood made us forget about our aching legs a little. Finally, when we arrived at the park entrance, we ate our last food supplies before tiredly boarding the bus. Despite the bumpy road, we fell asleep after a few minutes like two babies and woke up again in Puerto Natales at around 9 pm.

El Calafate

The name of the national park "Los Glaciares" is not by chance. We took a boat trip on Lake Argentino to various glaciers, all of which flow into the milky turquoise lake in an impressive way. This sight was topped by the floating icebergs, which had broken off from the glacier walls and drifted around in the water in various sizes and formations.

The second excursion took us to the most famous, touristy, and spectacular ice field in this region - the Perito Moreno Glacier. We were amazed all the time, and for photographer Jürgen, it was almost an addiction to stop every few meters and take another picture of the vertical 70-meter-high ice wall. We were also impressed by the chunks of ice that broke off from the ice wall due to the relatively high temperature, plunged into the depths with a loud rumble, and sent a high fountain into the air. 

El Chaltén

... also called "the capital of hiking". Not without reason, because from here you could undertake numerous trekking tours on your own. Therefore, we decided to stay for a total of 6 nights and switch between challenging and restorative hikes every day. Each one was more beautiful than the other! 

What remains particularly memorable is the hike to Laguna “De los Tres” with a view of Mount “Fitz Roy”. Throughout the entire hike, we were able to enjoy incredible views of the mighty rock formations. At the end of the 4-hour ascent, we were rewarded with an unforgettable view. This time, we were lucky with the weather, and we could admire the lagoon and the summit under a blue sky.

As a second major day hike, we embarked on a tour to Laguna Torre, where we enjoyed a delightful snack with a great view of glaciers and icebergs in the sun on a rock. 

Our third trek took us to Mount "Loma del Pliegue Tumbado" - a name that doesn't stick in your memory right away. The ascent was tougher than expected due to our tired legs, but this time too, we were rewarded for our efforts. A 360-degree panorama that is second to none.

After a little over two weeks in Patagonia, we are looking forward to a change in temperature and continue our journey towards Buenos Aires. We have two to three weeks planned in northern Argentina before we travel to our last South American country - Brazil!

So... farewell to the cold and off to warmer climates with us 😊

Hasta pronto!

Martina and Jürgen

PS: as always, you can find more photos in the "Pictures" section