Gulliver's Travels 02/17/2020

Patagonia, South America

   I've always liked the name of Patagonia.  Maybe that explains why I've now been there three times, in 1998, 2003, and last December.  No, I actually go there because it is so incredibly rugged, beautiful, and absent the tourist crowds found at other beautiful places in the world.  Plus, during the short daylight days of Wisconsin in December, I like the sunsets there at 11 PM, making it a more cheerful place than home.
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   I left home on December 16th, flying first to Santiago, Chile, then on to Punta Arenas, near the tip of South America.  Then I took a bus to Puerto Natales, where I took several day trips into two national parks, one in Chile and one in Argentina, on the east side of the Andes Mountains.  I've been to both parks before, but they are so fantastic that a return trip was warranted.  Then on Christmas Day I flew back to Santiago before flying to Easter Island, a couple of thousand miles west in the Southern Pacific.  Where else would an inveterate traveler go on Christmas?  Maybe next Easter I'll go to Christmas Island.

Torres del Paine Nacional Parque, Chile

   Or, if you speak English, it's Paine Towers National Park--though the Paine means green in the indigenous people's tongue.  It's my fourth favorite natural place in the world, beating every one of the 62 US national parks I've visited.  Only Mt. Rainier in Washington and Arches in Utah come close.   But.....it's WINDY, most days I've been there 40-70 MPH was the norm, at least for part of the day.  I backpacked there in 1998 for six days, at times finding it difficult to walk into the wind.  Yet, there are still plenty of days and places where it is sunny and only mildly windy.
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The three Paine Towers from outside the park

The towers from just inside the park boundaries

Finally getting a glimpse of the tops of the towers

Hiking to the towers, an 8-hour, 13-mile long trek (it was easier in 1998!)

At the lake at the base of the towers, rising 6000 feet to the 9350 foot summit

Nearly tame guanacos are relatives of llamas, alpacas, and camels.

Yes, they are cute.

Guanacos seem to like the "cuernos," or horns of the mountains, the distinctive feature of the park, as much as I do.

The low vegetation makes a nice presentation of the cuernos.

Explora Lodge, one of several simple hotels costing hundreds of dollars a night

At times the clouds make the area rather ominous looking.

I just can't get enough of the cuernos!

Grey Lake, fed by unseen Grey Glacier

An ice floe in Grey Lake

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​Los Glaciares Nacional Parque (Glacier National Park), Argentina

   This park is on the east side of the Andes Mountains, basically opposite to Torres del Paine.  This park is drier and less windy, so one is less likely to die of exposure.  It is my 11th favorite natural place in the world, so I also get real excited visiting it.

The Fitzroy Massif, its summit at 11,073 feet, took me a whole day trek to its base.

Perito Moreno Glacier, with a total length of 19 miles

​Epilogue

   Patagonia, just sounding out its name should inspire one to visit it.  Is it too far away to visit, so close to Antarctica?  Well, it does take many flights and bus rides to get there.  But the good stuff it has is so very, very neat, the payoff so big, that to me it's a no brainer.  Just have to go.