March 11 Day 24
Woke up nicely, had breakfast, washed etc. The day was cool and overcast with the deck wet from some overnight rain and occasional patches of sunlight. The hills here were more rugged with fewer trees and lots of scrapy rock visible. We chatted with a Brazilian couple who told us of an upgrade to our upcoming hike which would give you a tent, sleeping bag and mattress on all of your campsite, freeing you from hauling, renting and packing all of those things yourself. That was something to look into once we got to Puerto Natales.
Light rain came down on us throughout the day. The scenery was misty and we saw more snow and some glaciers up in the mountains. After lunch Christian the yoga teacher played classical guitar while we lounged in the bar. Everyone then gathered on the top deck to watch as we went through the narrowest part of our trip and emerged into an area with little rocky islands covered with stunted trees.
Our arrival in Puerto Natales was controversial as the website said noon, we were told 5 pm then 8 pm and then 5:30 again. This was a problem for friends of ours who had booked lodging at the actual park and needed a shuttle, which would be hard to find into the evening.
We docked a little after six and everyone had to get their bags ready by 5. We then waited until the ramp was lowered and slowly drifted off to the lounge once we realized that it wasn't happening quickly. They served us dinner in the meantime and we finally walked off at about 8.
The town was definitely rough around the edges, with worn homes, graffiti and an abandoned school along our way but our hostel was warm, friendly and easy to find. We met two ferrymates at the check in desk and as we had tea later some more came in who were just passing by and saw us in the window. We also met Jeff, a Canadian who had ridden his motorbike from Canada and had taken a different ferry from a more remote location. We had some fun conversation and then headed to our room. Apparently, internet was down through most of the town, so nothing to do but read, wash and go to bed.
March 12 Day 25
Today was a day to get ready for our trip. Unfortunately the cold wind on the Navimag had given me a sore throat, but I wasn't about to cancel our trip unless I was completely incapacitated.
We walked 15 minutes to the bus station to get our bus tickets and park passes. We then tried to make an 11 am info session at Erratic Rock but got lost and then found out there was no 11 am session. We had a long talk with the dude who worked there anyway and got some good advice on where to get gear and grub.
On the way out we met our Brazilian friends who will be moving to Toronto and made plans to meet with them for dinner. Then it was a hearty hot lunch for us (also to kill time as most places close from 1 to 3 for siesta) , a visit to the supermarket and then another (the first didn't have peanut butter) and a great dried fruit store for trail mixes and camping dinners. We also got a new hiking pole and that took us almost the whole afternoon.
One thing about Puerto Natales is that it isn't ruled by humans as much as dogs. Very healthy strays are on every street. There were two in front of our hostel, barking at every car that tried to park there and then spent the night sleeping in the living room area. We were told that the locals feed them and maybe neuter them, as we didn't see any puppies. Some had formed small packs but none were as intimidating as the packs we saw in Istanbul.
We decided to rent our gear at the hostel as they had the same prices as everyone else and we wouldn't have to haul the stuff all over town. We then completely repacked our gear, keeping our hiking stuff in the big backpacks and leaving everything else in storage at the hostel.
We had a great dinner with our friends, who were doing the same hike but from the other direction due to trouble booking sites. They had paid to use the camp tents, sleeping bags and pads but when we looked at that it would have cost us more than an extra $100 a night, which was too much of a hit for our budget. We compared info that we had gotten and Meg mapped out their job searches once they got to Toronto. They also recommended a place to stay in the Atacama desert. We polished off a bottle of wine and ate well, then left for our respective hostels as the bus the next day was at 7 am.
Woke up nicely, had breakfast, washed etc. The day was cool and overcast with the deck wet from some overnight rain and occasional patches of sunlight. The hills here were more rugged with fewer trees and lots of scrapy rock visible. We chatted with a Brazilian couple who told us of an upgrade to our upcoming hike which would give you a tent, sleeping bag and mattress on all of your campsite, freeing you from hauling, renting and packing all of those things yourself. That was something to look into once we got to Puerto Natales.
Light rain came down on us throughout the day. The scenery was misty and we saw more snow and some glaciers up in the mountains. After lunch Christian the yoga teacher played classical guitar while we lounged in the bar. Everyone then gathered on the top deck to watch as we went through the narrowest part of our trip and emerged into an area with little rocky islands covered with stunted trees.
Our arrival in Puerto Natales was controversial as the website said noon, we were told 5 pm then 8 pm and then 5:30 again. This was a problem for friends of ours who had booked lodging at the actual park and needed a shuttle, which would be hard to find into the evening.
We docked a little after six and everyone had to get their bags ready by 5. We then waited until the ramp was lowered and slowly drifted off to the lounge once we realized that it wasn't happening quickly. They served us dinner in the meantime and we finally walked off at about 8.
The town was definitely rough around the edges, with worn homes, graffiti and an abandoned school along our way but our hostel was warm, friendly and easy to find. We met two ferrymates at the check in desk and as we had tea later some more came in who were just passing by and saw us in the window. We also met Jeff, a Canadian who had ridden his motorbike from Canada and had taken a different ferry from a more remote location. We had some fun conversation and then headed to our room. Apparently, internet was down through most of the town, so nothing to do but read, wash and go to bed.
March 12 Day 25
Today was a day to get ready for our trip. Unfortunately the cold wind on the Navimag had given me a sore throat, but I wasn't about to cancel our trip unless I was completely incapacitated.
We walked 15 minutes to the bus station to get our bus tickets and park passes. We then tried to make an 11 am info session at Erratic Rock but got lost and then found out there was no 11 am session. We had a long talk with the dude who worked there anyway and got some good advice on where to get gear and grub.
On the way out we met our Brazilian friends who will be moving to Toronto and made plans to meet with them for dinner. Then it was a hearty hot lunch for us (also to kill time as most places close from 1 to 3 for siesta) , a visit to the supermarket and then another (the first didn't have peanut butter) and a great dried fruit store for trail mixes and camping dinners. We also got a new hiking pole and that took us almost the whole afternoon.
One thing about Puerto Natales is that it isn't ruled by humans as much as dogs. Very healthy strays are on every street. There were two in front of our hostel, barking at every car that tried to park there and then spent the night sleeping in the living room area. We were told that the locals feed them and maybe neuter them, as we didn't see any puppies. Some had formed small packs but none were as intimidating as the packs we saw in Istanbul.
We decided to rent our gear at the hostel as they had the same prices as everyone else and we wouldn't have to haul the stuff all over town. We then completely repacked our gear, keeping our hiking stuff in the big backpacks and leaving everything else in storage at the hostel.
We had a great dinner with our friends, who were doing the same hike but from the other direction due to trouble booking sites. They had paid to use the camp tents, sleeping bags and pads but when we looked at that it would have cost us more than an extra $100 a night, which was too much of a hit for our budget. We compared info that we had gotten and Meg mapped out their job searches once they got to Toronto. They also recommended a place to stay in the Atacama desert. We polished off a bottle of wine and ate well, then left for our respective hostels as the bus the next day was at 7 am.
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| In Puerto Natales with one of the godlike creatures that the natives dressed up as in their ceremonies. |
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| Landing at Puerto Natales with the Navimag in the background. |
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| A lonely island on our last, misty day on the ferry. |
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