Last week we attempted to ride the ferry north to Caleta Tortel on standby and we did not make it on. In the end, this was not too disappointing, since we instead took a lovely 3-day trip up and through Torres del Paine National Park. It is hard to express how beautiful of a place it is. Not only were we happy to have gone, now it is on our list to come back to for a multi-day hike around the towers. Tonight we will be getting on the ferry with our original ticket reservation. It is hard to believe it will be most of another week until we are back on our bikes!
When we didn’t get on the ferry last week, Daisy began to plan a multi-day trip to see the park by car (*gasp*, car, I know!). We reserved a campsite for two nights, park tickets for the Mylodon Cave and Torres del Paine, and a boat tour to Grey Glacier. It was both fun and very strange to be traveling by car instead of by bicycle. As we were bumping along the gravel park roads, speeding up the steep hills, and kicking up immense dust clouds, I was happy we weren’t cycling!
The Mylodon Cave Park was, as you might guess, a big cave where the remains of a mylodon were found. A mylodon is an extinct 2.5-m tall sloth-like creature. It was a pleasant stroll to the cave and then a brisk hike up to an overlook. We felt the view was grand, but we were just getting started.
While driving north towards the park we stopped at several overlooks to view the majestic mountains and pristine lakes. It was not lost on us that the very strong winds were not a problem in a car. Eventually we arrived at the park’s edge and saw the famous towers. It was a truly amazing sight. The rock formations rise 8,000 feet from the foreground. We soaked in the view of the towers from different angles throughout the 3-day trip.
West of the towers is Grey Lake, named for its color due to the glacier-fed silty water. Glacier Grey is at the end of the 17 km lake, and is viewed up close during a 3-hour boat tour. The water was calm and we saw all three faces of the glacier. We were told the height of the ice face is about 90 feet above water and up to 300 feet below the water. It is immense and the pictures don’t do it justice. I especially enjoyed when the boat pulled up next to an iceberg, and one of the workers got out a long harpoon to hack off a piece of ice to bring aboard the boat for photos and to cool down drinks.
The area is filled with lakes and rivers – water seems abundant. (Or else it is melting ice that is abundant!) We took advantage of the many, many viewpoints during our drive through the park. By the end, we were leaving A and H in the car for our quick strolls to beam in happiness at the views.
Back in Puerto Natales we had a day to repack and prepare for the ferry journey. We revisited a few of our favorite sites: a playground, a cafe, and the big grocery store.