With White Flag In Hand

I surrendered to Patagonia on Tuesday. She won, though I can´t say it was a very good game. She´s just better than I am.

Woke early Sunday morning to get on a bus out to Parque Nacional Torres del Paine. Had a backpack full of gear for five days-four nights on the trail, a new trekking buddy, and a I can do anything attitude. I was ready.

We had about a three hour drive out to the park, then had to wait for a while for this little ferry, the Catamaran, as they call it, to take us across Lago Pehoe to the beginning of THE W!

My trekking partner was Kerry, a 24 year old girl from England - just outside of Cambridge, I believe. We were both fairly determined to do the W if we had to do it ourselves, but I think we were also both hoping to find someone to go with. So, when we bumped into each other at an information session on Saturday, we decided to buddy up.

Everyone was asking me if I was worried about trekking with someone I didn´t know. Five days is quite a commitment, they said. What if you´re faster than her? What if she´s a wimp? You´re going to share a tent with her? I was sort of mulling over these questions myself, but I figured if I survived living with various strangers in New York (a total of 5 in 2.5 years), I could survive five days with anyone.

I found out on the last day of hiking that Kerry hadn´t done a day of hiking in her life! If she´d told me that when we met, I probably would´ve bailed out on her.

Anyway, we arrived at the western starting point of the W around 12:30 PM on Sunday, and we were on the trail, heading up to Glacier Grey at 12:55 PM. Everyone had told us, oh, the first day is the easiest. Just 3.5 hours. No big deal. Well, they start you on this "easy" day for a reason, which is - you are carrying the heaviest backpack you´ll carry on day 1 because you have all of your food and your body needs a day to get used to the stress you´re putting on it.

The weather was gorgeous on Sunday - sunny and cool - and the hike was fairly easy, with gorgeous scenery. Turquoise lakes everywhere and about halfway in, you get a stunning view of Glacier Grey. There´s an iceberg, Kerry squealed, in her very proper British accent. I´ve never seen an iceberg before!

Kerry and I turned out to be terrific trekking partners because we had similar notions about pace - no need to hurry, but no need to dilly-dally, either. And, for someone who´s never hiked a day in her life, she did quite well, I´d say.

We arrived to Camping Grey around 4:30, right on schedule, and we actually beat most people to the campsite, which shocked me. There were folks who had been on the catamaran with us who showed up around 7:30. What have you been doing out there? How did you take 7 hours on a 3.5 hour hike?

Kerry and I were pros, from the beginning. We got that tent up, we got our stove going, had a cupasoup, some five minute pasta, cookies, and, of course, some vino that we´d carried in plastic bottles (a brilliant tip I learned from camping with those Suizas). I think we were both feeling very proud of ourselves. The previous times I´ve done any "real" camping, I´ve gone with take-charge people, who do everything for me. But this was entirely me doing stuff for ME!

The sun went down around 8:45, and it was getting quite chilly, so we got on into our sleeping bags around 9 PM. I put on my ipod and laid there in the darkness and was overwhelmed by peace. Some people say that "the peace of God" is found in Patagonia, and I´d say I felt pretty close to that.

I woke in the middle of the night to rain drops padding down on the tent. Great, I thought. But, the next morning, I woke to a totally dry tent and a clearing sky. At least we know the tent´s waterproof, I said to Kerry.

We had oatmeal and coffee for breakfast, and it was muy rico. We had prepared a big ziploc full of instant oatmeal, powdered milk, cinnamon, and sugar - throw in some boiling water and some dried bananas, and you have a bueno desayuno! Really, there is something so rewarding about preparing your own food out there, hovering over your stove, watching the water boil, filling your chilly body with warmth.

The second day of hiking was much easier than the first. We had to retrace our steps to the starting point - 3.5 hours - then 2.5 more hours to the next campsite. The wind on the second day was incredible. People talk about the wind in Patagonia, but in truth, you cannot understand it until it comes up behind you and shoves you out of its way. It´s startling! Just walking along and bam! I actually thought it was Kerry the first time, pushing me from behind.

The wind, of course, doesn´t seem like such a bad thing until it starts carrying a little rain with it. For about twenty minutes the second day, there was a bit of rain, but it felt like hail with the power of the wind behind it. Fortunately, it only rained on us for those twenty minutes. The weather is so changeable there. You look up in one direction and it´s a beautiful day, then you turn your head, and there are storm clouds. Sun and rain and sun and rain, all day long. Hence, there are many, many rainbows in Patagonia!

We arrived at Camping Italiano, set up camp, and then retreated to the cooking shed to prepare our dinner. We hung out for a long time with Justin and Kim, a couple from South Africa (who we had actually had breakfast with as well). I asked them about a zillion questions about South Africa - what an interesting place. I would like a history lesson on this topic, por favor.

After dinner, we boiled one more pot of water, soley for the purpose of filling our nalgenes. We then took those hot nalgenes and stuffed them down in our sleeping bags. I am certain this brilliant move saved our evening. So toasty and cozy in the tent that night - almost uncomfortably hot for a bit.

I woke again in the middle of the night to hear rain but rolled over, feeling safe with the knowledge that our tent survived the previous night of rain. Well, by the time 7 AM rolled around, that tent was not waterproof at all. The whole floor was wet. Not only that, but it was still pouring down rain. Well, this is going to be an interesting day, I thought. When we finally emerged from the soaking tent a couple hours later, we found not only rain but SNOW! All of the tents were iced over on the top, and there were little patches of snow on the ground.

We made our way over to the cooking shed, which was overflowing with people, trying to stay dry. Justin and Kim and Mishka (our Belgian friend) and also our Scottish friend (who was finishing the whole Circuit - 10 days in the park) all talked of bailing. It hadn´t occurred to me yet to just ditch the whole effort; I was prepared to tough it out. But it became clear that pushing forward was going to be both uncomfortable (wet tent, wet sleeping bag) and unsafe (ice on the rocks, not warm enough clothes, etc.)

In the end, I think most everyone that woke up at Camping Italiano on Tuesday morning trekked back to the starting point that day, in order to catch the Catamaran back and get on a bus back to Puerto Natales.

I was disappointed, I must say. But, as Kenny Rogers says, you gotta know when to fold em... know when to walk away, know when to run. Pushing forward just didn´t make any sense.

The walk back to the Catamaran wasn´t terrible, though I was drenched within ten minutes. At one point, I told Kerry I needed to stop to potty, and she said, you really could just go in your pants and nobody would know the difference. Gross, but true. I didn´t do that of course, but when I did finally steer off to squat, I realized I could not feel my bottom. Pulled the pants down but could not feel them sliding down off of my body. And there´s nothing like putting your already numb bottom out into the freezing rain. Wow!

We arrived around 2 PM and then proceded to sit for the next four hours (the next ferry wasn´t til 6:30), feasting on our leftover cookies and chocolate and coffee, commiserating with Justin and Kim and Mishka.

The bus ride back to Puerto Natales was an exercise in patience. Though I had changed shirts and socks, I was still in my wet (though drying) pants, and I just wanted to GET THERE. The ride was about three hours, and I just kept closing my eyes and trying to meditate, desperate for my mind to be anywhere else.

We arrived around 11 PM, soaking hikers spilling into the streets of Puerto Natales with no hostel reservation. Of course, it was still pouring down rain. Mishka and I popped into a cab and headed down to our hostel from Friday and Saturday night, hoping there would be space for us. I opened the door to the hostel, spotted the owner, and quickly made my way over to him. You look like a duck, he said. You look like you would like to be smacked, I wanted to say. Is there room? I aksed. No, he said absent-mindedly.

The owner, Omar, is such a weirdo. Always somewhere else entirely when you are trying to ask an important question.

FOCUS, Omar. I need a bed. Can you please call some other hostels. I cannot go wandering around in this rain. Ellen, chica, chill out, Omar said.

Well, this moment is about as bad as my temperament ever gets. I looked at Mishka, my eyes filling with tears. I just wanted to scream. Finally, Omar found one bed at a hostel a few blocks away, and Mishka was kind enough to walk me all the way there. Mishka reminds me a bit of Gerard Depardieu. He´s sort of got the friendly French giant thing going on. But he´s Belgian.

Anyway, the owner of this hostel found a place for Omar at another hostel, and I headed straight into a hot shower. After a quick bowl of oatmeal, I was in the bed, relieved. What a miserable day.

Yesterday was spent doing laundry, airing out the backpack, returning rented equipment, making plans.

And plans I did make! I knew I wanted to make my way up to Santiago, but hadn´t quite figured out how I was going to do it. The cheapest option was the 30 hour bus to Puerto Montt, though I´d heard that the buses weren´t very nice, and my bad humor from the evening before was still lingering. I was not feeling like being patient with any more discomfort. The other option was to shell out about $400 for four days on a ferry to Puerto Montt. I´d heard mixed reviews of the ferry, though, and just wasn´t feeling eager to spend that kind of money just to avoid the bus (though I think I would have). I was going over all of these options when I ran into Ian and Helen (my Scottish friends from Chalten, who I have run into a few times now. They are terrific.) I think there are really cheap flights to Santiago, Helen said. Sky Airlines, just around the corner. So I popped into the office, inquired, and indeed, I could get a flight to Santiago for the next day (today) for just $120. Done!

So here I am in Santiago. The flight today was incredible. If only they had this kind of service in the states...and why don´t they? In the four hours I was on the plane, they offered me two (TWO!) whole meals, both with salad and dessert. What is this place? The food was great, too. And free wine and beer! And more leg room!

Yesterday, I also booked a ticket to Easter Island. Yipeeeeeee! I am heading out there for 8 days on April 6th, and I cannot wait. The ticket was painfully expensive, but Easter Island is the reason I became interested in visiting South America in the first place, so to not go would just be silly. Six years ago, sitting in my "Arts of the Pacific" class, I learned about the island and the Rapa Nui and I told myself then, I WILL visit this place. And now I´m going to. Dream realized. And I´ve lined up the trip with my two British friends from the hostel in Puerto Natales, Liam and Mike, so bueno to have people with to hang out with if I want to.

So now I have about two weeks to do Santiago and whatever else I want to do in the area. I don´t have a guidebook for Chile yet, so I really don´t know what I´m going to do, but I think there will be some side trips to Chiloe, Valparaiso, and Vina del Mar.

As much as I want to be this outdoorsy person (and maybe I am a teeny bit), I have to admit that arriving in the city today was thrilling and a huge relief. Back to civilization!

Two of my friends from Bariloche are now studying at the school here in Santiago, so I am going to meet up with one of them tomorrow for some sight-seeing and catching up. For now, I think I am going to have an early evening here in the hostel (though they are apparently serving free pisco sours downstairs...).

Happy Easter everyone. It´s about bunny rabbits down here, too. I saw several kindergarten-aged kids on the streets today painted up with bunny faces, wearing bunny ears. I may actually try to go to some big Catholic mass around here - probably would be a classic Santiago experience!

Adios for now. And much love, as always.