I am on the second part of my Feb travels. I just spent two nights in the swelteringly hot Buenos Aires. Now, I am in Montevideo, Uruguay and off to Punta Del Este, Uruguay tomorrow!
Brady
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Patagonia!
On the 29th of Jan, we flew on a 6am flight to the bottom of the world. Punta Arenas. Arguably the southernmost city in the world. However, given that Argentina hates to be outdone by other countries (see the Fauklands War of the 1980s and their persistence that those islands are theirs), Argentina, of course, lays claim that Ushuaia is in fact the southernmost. ANYWAY. Punta Arenas and Patagonia in general are very beautiful but at the same time can be dismal places. As we soon found out, the best thing to do in this po-dunk little town is leave -- so we did. To Puerto Natales. A smaller, somewhat more remote town three hours north of Punta Arenas (see Patagonia Map and see Map of Chile).
Puerto Natales - A sleepy, windswept town that functions as the main jumping off point to all backpackers who are headed to Torres del Paine National Park. The Torres (see picture below) are the main attraction and are seen on two types of treks: the W (4-5 days) and the Circuit (7-9 days). Due to our limited time and the fact the the national park (BBC article about the fire), we were limited to a 4 night 5 day trek to see the highlights of this spectacular place.
Torres del Paine - INCREDIBLE. I already want to go back and do the full circuit. The fire ravaged parts of the park are pretty saddening and hard to bear. Still, some of the most beautiful valleys and mountainsides are preserved. Notable places are the Valle de Frances, Los Cuernos, Paine Grande, and obviously, Los Torres. See the Just Pictures section for more photos!
El Calafate - Across the border in Argentina, this town resembles a Colorado ski town more so than a tucked-away town in Patagonia. Like all of Patagonia, this town featured sometimes howling winds and rapidly changing weather. BUT, featured an incredible array of chocolate stores, ice cream shops and pizza joints (not to mention parrillas or Argentine beef and steak restaurants). The town is largely a tourist trap, but has access to the Perito Moreno glacier (see Just Pictures for the shots of the glacier).
El Chalten - We went here on a day trip from El Calafate to attempt to see Mount Fitz Roy. Fitz Roy. Google will have to suffice because the entire, ENTIRE, time we hiked around this national park it SNOWED. It snowed consistently for four hours in the middle of the summer. That is basically the story of Patagonia. Wind. Sun. Rain. Snow. Before lunch.
Lastly, we ended our whirlwind tour of the south end of the world with two days in Punta Arenas. I enjoyed some time to myself with my kindle in a small coffee shop that overlooked the Strait of Magellan. This was really nice because aside from walking, or paying to go see a bunch of penguins, there really is nothing to do there. On the last night, though, I was able to try a roast of Guanaco, a Patagonian llama. Delicious!
Thanks for reading. Enjoy the pictures!
Puerto Natales - A sleepy, windswept town that functions as the main jumping off point to all backpackers who are headed to Torres del Paine National Park. The Torres (see picture below) are the main attraction and are seen on two types of treks: the W (4-5 days) and the Circuit (7-9 days). Due to our limited time and the fact the the national park (BBC article about the fire), we were limited to a 4 night 5 day trek to see the highlights of this spectacular place.
Torres del Paine - INCREDIBLE. I already want to go back and do the full circuit. The fire ravaged parts of the park are pretty saddening and hard to bear. Still, some of the most beautiful valleys and mountainsides are preserved. Notable places are the Valle de Frances, Los Cuernos, Paine Grande, and obviously, Los Torres. See the Just Pictures section for more photos!
El Calafate - Across the border in Argentina, this town resembles a Colorado ski town more so than a tucked-away town in Patagonia. Like all of Patagonia, this town featured sometimes howling winds and rapidly changing weather. BUT, featured an incredible array of chocolate stores, ice cream shops and pizza joints (not to mention parrillas or Argentine beef and steak restaurants). The town is largely a tourist trap, but has access to the Perito Moreno glacier (see Just Pictures for the shots of the glacier).
El Chalten - We went here on a day trip from El Calafate to attempt to see Mount Fitz Roy. Fitz Roy. Google will have to suffice because the entire, ENTIRE, time we hiked around this national park it SNOWED. It snowed consistently for four hours in the middle of the summer. That is basically the story of Patagonia. Wind. Sun. Rain. Snow. Before lunch.
Lastly, we ended our whirlwind tour of the south end of the world with two days in Punta Arenas. I enjoyed some time to myself with my kindle in a small coffee shop that overlooked the Strait of Magellan. This was really nice because aside from walking, or paying to go see a bunch of penguins, there really is nothing to do there. On the last night, though, I was able to try a roast of Guanaco, a Patagonian llama. Delicious!
Thanks for reading. Enjoy the pictures!
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