Have backpacks will travel....

Part of the fun of travelling is meeting people; from locals to fellow travellers, who share their travel stories and offer advice. We certainly hope not to repeat the accidental detour that three American students (whom we met recently) made on their way to Chile....One of them was given the task of finding cheap flights over the internet. She snapped up an incredible deal and booked them all on a flight to Santiago. It wasn't until they had just taken off that they started to become suspicious. Surely a flight from Miami to Chile should take longer than the 2 hours the pilot had just announced? They asked the flight attendant where they were heading and he replied "Santiago....Dominican Republic"!!! and subsequently forfeited their bar bill for the inflight entertainment they had provided him with. This detour resulted in them having to take a return flight to Miami, and then pay a hefty sum for a last minute flight to their wanted destination of Santiago, Chile. As they said they'd "read up on Chile, and didn't know anything about Dominican Republic, so what was the point of staying?!" Surely, this could happen to any student of any nationality and in no way reflects a connection between the larger American population and George W Bush remaining in power.

Following on from the momentum of completing the "W" we decided to trek up the active volcano "Villarrica" near Pucon. This involved arriving at the tour office at 4am! to receive our kit which included ice pick, crampons and a hard helmet to walk up the snow covered volcano. It took aproximately 4 hours of steady pace to reach the top. There was no lava visible, but we did get to see the huge crater emitting a continuous sulphur gas. The video also shows the vents which surround the crater and emit small pockets of the gas.

Trekking up in the morning sun

We made it

We were lucky to spend an hour at the top. Sometimes on a windy day the noxious fumes make it impossible to hang around longer than a few minutes. The best bit of the day then arrived - getting to slide down the volcano on our bottoms - down the carved out chutes, using the icepicks to (try to) control our speed. This made the walk up even more worthwhile! We were enjoying ourselves too much to bother getting the camera out, so unfortunately, no shots were taken of us sliding down.

The view at the bottom, after the morning's trek

We really liked Pucon, there are loads of activites to keep you entertained, and when the weather is so fabulous, lots of cafe bars to sit at, watching the volcano smoking away.

The view of Villarrica from Pucon centre

The next day, we relaxed with a walk in the Huerquehue National Park to see the monkey puzzle trees.

After a taste of danger, we chose to book to go white water rafting. We tried to book on the cowardly grade 3 course, but the tour operator basically told us it was for families, and since we had no six year kid in tow, we would have to opt for the grade 4. We were so glad that we did; neither of us had rafted before (Andyb won't cycle for fear of injuries) and we surprised ourselves at how much we enjoyed the thrill of crashing into the rocks and the waves. We even got to experience a "grade 4 and a half" rapid (though it could have been the guide bigging it up). It has all been captured on DVD, which can be seen on a t.v. near you soon! Andrew has now turned into an adrenaline junky, and has been toying with the idea of base jumping.

We spent 6 days, 5 nights trekking the "W" circuit in Torres del Paine National Park in Chile. Lisab was allocated the job of "catering manager" and following advice from the people at Erratic Rock Hostel in Natales (free talk every day aprox 3pm - very good for inexperienced trekkers) decided to ration the food into daily portions. Poor Andyb's face literally sunk as he was told "no" the lunch packs were neither (a) just for him or (b) a joke. Andyb oversaw proceedings as "project manager" (this role mainly involved carrying a heavier backpack).

Catering Manager guarding the food (on her backside as usual)

Who's eaten my porridge? (Andrew always managed to lift the pan just high enough, out of Lisa's reach, to ensure he got his fairer share of the breakfast ration).

The weather is notorious for providing 4 seasons IN A DAY, but during our time in the park we experienced a mainly dry (if very windy) climate. We chose to spend an extra day trekking to see the southern icefield. Unfortunately, a sign told us that the passage was closed due to a landslide and being sensible, conformist types, we proceeded no further. Later we discovered that the signs were left over from winter and to "ignore" them. Overall however, the park is well organised, with clear paths and good camping facilities.

Although we only got to see the tip of the southern icefield, our extra day's hike awarded us great views of Glacier Grey.

Close up of the glacier.

View from Valle Frances

On the last day we awoke early to climb the mountain to see the famous towers (this is becoming something of a habit). Due to a flurry of snow, we only got to view an outline of the towers, though we were still close enough to witness the imposing nature of these great lumps of granite. It was also a very pretty sight to see the freshly fallen snow on the surrounding trees and lower mountains.

The 3 towers

At the end of the trek, some people who we'd met were checking each others' backpacks for weight. Even the guanaco laughed at Lisab's light pack. She insists this was due to her expert provision rationing, that ensured no food was left after 6 days - severely lightening her load (and nothing to do with her husband being used as a pack horse).

Following this few days hard slog we rewarded ourselves with a relaxing cruise (read bog standard ferry) through the Chilean fjords from Puerto Natales to Puerto Montt on the Navimag. We may have seen lots of wildlife were it not for the continuous rain that prevented us from staying out on deck for more than 3 minutes at a time. One highlight of the trip was getting off the ship at Puerto Eden, a tiny fishing village which houses only aproximately 200 people. It was also a good way to unwind after carrying our house and all supplies on our backs for the best part of a week.

Puerto Eden