Friday, January 31, 2014

Torres Del Paine (Patagonia continued and engagement hike!!!)


After spending a week in Ushuaia, we crossed the border into the Chilean side of Patagonia. Our main destination was Torres Del Paine National Park. We decided to go on a 70 mile  trail that circles the Torres Del Paine mountain range before going up the mountains and valleys. The hardest part for us was figuring out food to bring for 7 days that would provide us with enough calories but not weigh our packs down too much. This resulted in 7 days of oatmeal and pasta along with snacks.Yummy.
Making breakfast the morning before going to the Park.
TORRES DEL PAINE!!!! Such a clear view of where we spent 7 days playing among the mountains!

A nice looking sign of some of the trails and campsites that we stayed at. The trail signs and map had conflicting distances so that made for some frustrating calculations during the hike.
This is the first day of the hike. We got very lucky with the weather and the views that we had this day.


We realized that our trekking poles double as a mono pod for taking pictures of ourselves!!
Colleen among an endless field of daisey's.
This hawk along with 4 others was at our first campsite begging for food, and posing for great pictures

So many beautiful colors!

Lunch and stretching break before going over the pass.

The trail was a little treacherous at times. Lots of log balancing to avoid muddy bogs. 
The view from on top of the pass! This glacier is called Grey Glacier it is 30km long and that is the Andes mountain range in the background!
This is the the top of John Gardner Pass where I proposed to Colleen! The winds were blowing at 60 mph  and it was freezing, she didn't understand why I wanted to hang out up there. I distracted her with the view and when she turned back around I was down on one knee holding out the ring. The most beautiful thing I have ever seen was her saying yes.


Another view of Grey Glacier.

Heading down the pass after a long but very exciting day!

One of many river crossings in the rain throughout the hike.

Grey Lake full of ice bergs from Grey Glacier.

One of the best parts of the hike is all the water is fresh glacier water.  No need for a water filter, iodine, or even a water bottle. Just stick your face in and drink up!

This is in the French Valley, one of the day hikes that we did. On this day we hiked 18 miles, our legs were toast!

We were fortunate enough to see 3 avalanches coming down this mountain from different parts of the glacier falling off.
The scenery was constantly changing throughout the hike from mountains and glaciers to thick forests.
A nice lunch on Lago Nordenskjold. Some of the first sunshine we had seen in a few days. We took advantage of this opportunity to dry out all of our stuff and soak up some rays. 

On our last day of the trek we were going to wake up early and hike to the base of the torres (towers) which the park is named after. Due to heavy rain we had to delay this triumphant finish until mid morning. Once we got up there the towers were covered in clouds but we did find this rainbow waiting for us!


We made it! This is the longest hike either of us has done! Woo!





Sunday, January 19, 2014

Hola Argentina!

In Ecuador we realized that our pace was going too slow for us to make it to Patagonia before winter hit. So we decided to fly to Paraguay, see a few sights in northern Argentina and B-line it to Patagonia. Paraguay was a bust. We arrived and everything was closed from Christmas until Jan 2nd, it was 97+ degrees and humid, and we both got sick. So after a few days of eating gas station food because literally nothing else was open we decided to get the next bus out of there. From there we went to Iguazu Falls, then down to Buenos Aires and then to Patagonia! Our first stops in Patagonia were in Puerto Piramides and then Ushuaia (the end of the world!).

Crossing the border from Paraguay to Brazil. We only got to see Brazil through the window of the bus on our way to Argentina.

Iguazu Falls. By far the most beautiful waterfalls I have ever seen!

Another view of the falls. We hiked through the national park for an entire day to see the falls from all angles.

This is a Puma track that was on one of the trails in the park, not far from this was a pile of vomit. It was kind of spooky walking back to the visitors center.
After Iguazu falls we went to Beunos Aires for a few days. This is the view of a sunrise from our hostel.
A family diner with our new friends at a hostel in Buenos Aires. Steak and potatoes with a salad and red wine. The steak down here is delicious.
And then we found this nice burger in a shop on the beach.
After Buenos Aires we went to Puerto Piramides to check out some Sea Lions, Elephant Seals and Penguins. This is where Patagonia begins on the East coast.

A nice beach hike to check out a Sea Lion colony.

We found these whale bones washed up on the beach and made them look a little happier!

A male Sea lion coming up to check us out as we walked by.

One of the many Sea Lion colonies in Puerto Piramides. We sat here for a few hours watching the males bark at eachother. It was mating and birthing season so there was lots of drama.

We took a guided tour to check out these Sea Lions and there were a few Elephant Seals in the mix. This time of year the Sea Lions are giving birth so there were lots of pups on this beautiful beach.

Armadillo begging for food in the parking lot.

We also got to see some penguins on the tour! It was very cold this afternoon so we didnt hang out for very long.

Crossing the Staight of Magellen on our way to Ushuaia! This was a very windy ride on the ferry. We were riding up top when a wave came and drenched most the people. Luckily we stayed dry.

The end of the world!

A day hike through these awesome trees to get to a glacier outside of Ushuaia.

Our campsite in Ushuaia was at this old ski area. We had great views of the city and ocean.

The full moon rising as the sun was setting at 10:30 p.m. It was an amazing sight. It has taken us a little while to get used ot such long days. It doesnt get dark until midnight and the sun starts coming up around 5.

Hiking into Tierra del Fuego National Park!

We stopped and ate lunch at this beautiful beach! This hike followed the coast for 5 miles. Normally when we go treking we leave a bag full of things we dont need at a hostel so we only have to carry the essentials. For some reason we did not do that this time and hiked with all of our stuff! Luckily the amazing views distractd us from our aching backs.


Our campsite for a few nights as we explored the park.

Lago Roca. The distant mountains are in Chile. This lake is on the border.


This is the Guanaco trail, one of the only open summit hikes in the park. The first half was in the forest and the second half on top of the world!

Almost to the summit! A view of Lago Roca from up top.
We ran into this guy on top! He has some great views from his house.

This was the best view I have ever seen from the top of a mountain. We could see endless mountain ranges, the Beagle Canal, Ushuaia, and Lago Roca. Absolutely breath taking!

Getting slapped in the face by the tent, the winds were very powerful our last night in the park. So far our tent is holding strong! We are going on a 70 mile trek in a few days so the real test is ahead!

GO BORONCOS!