Said goodbye to new friends on Navimag & made our way through the quaint town of Puerto Natales to the bus station. We are on a mission to get the bus to get to the catamaran that takes us across Lago Pahoe to the Paine Grande Lodge. A mission with a purpose!! We are booked in and paid for the next three nights!
Until you get to a town you have no idea how easy or hard it will be to find the bus station. In this case it was a no brainer and we actually had time to kill.
The bus rocked in the wind as it made its way across the flat plains towards Torres del Paine Park National. Apparently the winds can reach 150km/hr in the park.
The Tores showed their heads as we arrived at the park office. Clouds played around them at time obliterating everything. Beautiful, hauntingly magical way to begin this journey!
At Lago Pahoe the wind howled and the rain poured. The catamaran pounded the huge waves as it made its way to Paine Grand Lodge. At one point I wa questioning the wisdom of this trip  (at one point?). Sun, wind, waves, rain and a soft landing. About 60 people were waiting to go the other way... what do they know that we don´t?
At right angles to the wind we forced our way through the gale to the Refugio. It was an oasis in a storm. Warm, bright and welcoming with our name written clearly on the reservation list!! We´ve warm and set to go.
Indeed this is picture perfect Patagonia! Woke to blue sky and sun. It´s still blowing a gale but that´s what it does here. Breakfast, cafeteria style, was eaten next to a window with one of the huge mountains gleaming in the sun outside.   Today we do the middle of the W circuit. Heading north east towards Camp Britanaco. Every time we turned a corner the camera was out. Views towards Cerro Paine Grande and Glaciar Frances took our breath wawy. With the sun shining it all looked spectacular! Every step was another picture. On the way home it was the same. Different lights, different colours!! We braved board walks, mud bogs, alluvial flows, walking along creek geds, boulders and above all rough rugged mountains. Each mountain seems to have it´s own cloud system. Blowing up then seeming to dissipate in the blue sky. I sound like a romantic but really it was spectacular... there is no other word for it.
We passed Camp Italiano after crossing a swinging bridge (yes girls... your mom did that walk and didn´t get ... too... scared). From there the trail got a tad nasty climbing past Glaciar Frances north. I felt a few parts of my body I wish weren´t making their presence known.
Calving glaciars pounding to the valley floor. Waterfalls. Sun... rough peaks... snow... azure glaciars!!
Then, after all that amazing scenery we were almost home and ran in to Jason and Irene (from our Galapagos trip). There were no other people on the path at that time.... what a coincidence. Got a picture and shared a chocolate bar then headed back to our warm bed.

The next day we did a trek to Grey Glaciar. (West side of the W circuit). This day wasn´t as warm and we actually ended the walk in driving rain but it was a good day. Got right to the base of the glaciar after trekking through a valley and up (& up & up) and down (& down & down) a lot of rocky hills. Across rivers and along forest paths. Another beautiful day though it was colder.
So much to see in this beautiful park. We had to go but not without many good memories of this place. Got lots of pictures of the Torres on our last day. The sun was shining again and the whole range was clearly visible.
I want to say it is as beautiful as the Rocky Mountains in Canada.... and it is but it is so different. The rough rugged peaks shoot straight up out of the land. Even the dry landscape leading up to the park is beautiful in it´s own stark way. Millions of sheep and cows graze the plains... then llamas at the park entrance .... then those beautiful peaks just seeming to come out of nowhere. They are not a part of the Andes.... they are a system unto themselves.
For my climbing and camping friends....   put this place on your list of must sees. Patagonia does live up to it´s billing as one of the most beautiful places in the world!
Back in Puerto Natales for a night then off on Christmas Eve for Punta Arenas.
I am writing this on Christmas Day here in Punta Arenas. The sun is shining again. We managed to find a church for mass but even most of them are closed today.   Go figure!?
Took a walk around town after mass... down to the port.... this afternoon we are going to visit a penguin colony. Interesting way to spend Christmas.
Felis Navidad to my family and friends