Jack is let loose with the camera… and Emma has a bath

       

 

  

Bill Withers would have called it a ‘lovely day’  It was just that.  Our short trip from Pucon to Los Posones was a memorable one; nothing remarkable happened, it’s just that our eyes were indulged in the most beatific alpine valleys, populated by milka chocolate-box cows and rolling green pastures.  A fiver licensed you 3 hours of uninterrupted soaking in a choice of 6 outdoor thermal pools.  During our descent, we buddied up with a German guy, who is in South America to visit a Shaman friend of his in Peru (this will no doubt feature in a later blog).  Our day was spent partly in a contented silence, partly philosophising, and whilst Emma soaked up the rays, I let loose with the little camera to capture some shots of the flora that was in abundance. 

Upon my return to Emma, we found out that the pools were ranked in temperature and so the last pool was a scorcher – the two pictures of Emma are her braving this piping hot waters!

We leave Pucon tomorrow for a Yoga retreat – grande abrazos!

A Day in the Life

 

Breathing.  Consciousness waking, rising, dew dripping, thoughts meandering, girlfriend smiling, choices presenting, worries dissipating, eyes feeding on land’s offering, sands shifting between toes a’twitching, lens capturing lips meeting and kisses kissing.

A castle by a castle.

     

Simple things.

 

Love, laughter and good food makes a man feel like a king.

A peerless sunset on an active volcano makes a king feel very humble indeed.

3 step guide to Termas

Step 1… Hitch-hike in a JCB Digger for about 30km (seriously)

 

 

Step 2… ask a boat man to row you across this stunning river

 

Step 3… Unwind and relax in this natural thermal spring, located at the heart of a deep alpine gorge, neighboured by serene, gigantic volcanoes.  When you want the water to be a little hotter, dig down deeper to release the hot gases and water.  Eat a sandwich.

 

That really was our day.  At present we are enjoying the idyllic Chilean Lake District, which in terms of beauty and tranquillity, is a definite highlight.  Our home is currently our little tent, right on the shore of Lago Llanquihue, Ensenada; where each night, we are indulged by the most incredible sunset, one framed by the lake and volcanoes Osorno and Calbuco (Osorno imitating a mini Moutn Fuji-san for symmetry and beauty).  The district is famous for it’s hot springs (termas), so Emma and I decided to make this our focus of the month, travelling only to destinations where we could find these natural thermal baths.  The region has certainly capitalised on this feature, with the tourism industry providing many spa-hotels/resorts.  We however, were looking for something a little more rugged and natural and so trekked out on a blisteringly hot Friday to find these termas.  Locals kindly informed us that there were indeed natural, free springs nearby (35km) but the route had no public transport: that’s fine by us, Emma now has a black belt in hitch-hiking.  So to begin, a lovely couple of Brazilians took us a couple of km before dropping us of at another junction.  32km left.  Roadworks going on. No buses.  And then, one of those moments where time stops… imperiously negotiating the corner, like a golden God, was a pristine 10 tonne JCB Excavator-truck.  (An aside… my Mam will tell you that the one thing I loved –really really loved - as a toddler was… diggers.  I mean, I would go insane for them yelling ‘Digger! Digger! Digger!’ when ever we trundled past building works.  Played with them, drew them, talked about them.  Diggers.)

Emma stuck her thumb out and as Tommy Cooper would say “Just like that!” a lifetime dream came true – the bloody thing pulled over!

We were a little dumb-struck, with the grinning Chilean handler motioning, '”Hop in!” Both of us were buzzing with the thrills of being in the cockpit belly of this impressive mechanical beast, and yet a little intimidated by the legion of levers, switches, dials and gears, aware that one false slip could do some serious damage.  32km later we hopped off (I kind of danced off) and with a surety in our hearts that anything, any dream is possible, held hands and took the path down to the awaiting springs. 

Pain(e) – All hail ‘The W’

 

It’s easy; travelling in 2011 that is.  The days of unchartered territories and undiscovered places are just about gone – we have this whole world mapped out and the tourism industry, gleefully, makes it so easy for us now.  Many people told us that we were ‘brave’ to have left our jobs and lives in England to travel South America but, respectfully, we disagree.  The advent of the information age makes finding places a doddle (thanks Google maps and GPS); booking places to stay child’s play (that would be hostelbookers et al) and experiencing those magical ‘must-see’ moments, straight-forward and routine (the omnipotent Lonely Planet guide books).  So there we have it, travelling the world is not the hardship many would have you believe, in fact in many cases it is not dissimilar to those paint by numbers sets you used to find in your Christmas stockings. 

What is my point?  My point is that this can lead to boredom, or more precisely, a feeling of going through the motions.  Enter ‘The W.’  For those of you that have read about Chilean Patagonia, you will know that adjacent to the small town of Puerto Natales is a heavenly eden called ‘Parque National del Torres Del Paine’ where standing aloft and dominating this technicolour landscape are the most ancient and titanic behemoths, the granite Torres Del Paine, literally ‘Towers of Pain.’ ‘The W’ is a 5 day trek/hike/sometimes scramble, that leads you from the base of the Torres, to the top, through the 360° panoramic of Valles Frances, and finally to the magnificent Glacier Grey.

Hard.

Hard, hard work.

Yes we love the outdoors, and class ourselves as not necessarily super-fit people, but certainly healthy and of moderate fitness.  The first day delivered gruelling hardships, with the entree being a 2 hour hike uphill (both of us carry backpacks laden with tent, camping apparel, clothing and supplies) which was only 1/4 of the day’s work.  This continued, with us clearing at least 20km every day (the most being 28km in one day), sometimes with backpacks, sometimes without, certainly on uneven terrain and most definitely with an array of uphill sorties.  But the purpose of this blog post is not to ‘yarp-on’ about the ethereal beauty of the parque, or administer a do’s and don'ts list of Torres Del Paine advice. No, this is a small but significant celebration.  It marks both of us finding something within through enduring hardship; pushing ourselves physically, psychologically, emotionally and even spiritually, to achieve something special that will live-on inside us. 

The first picture above is me (Jack) standing at the top of a mountain, having risen at 5am, (leaving Emma and a warm sleeping bag behind, despite having trekked for 10 hours the day and night before) to see the Torres at sunrise, as the majestic sun peels through the eastern folds to illuminate those beautiful and wise peaks.  I was tired but comfortable in my tent when my buddy Dom woke me with offerings of hot maté and an extremely steep 1km, 1 hour boulder scramble.  I wanted to stay. I wanted to go. I wanted to stay. I wanted to go. I wanted to go. I wanted to go. I was going.

The second is Emma.  Emma will tell you (honestly) that she doesn’t like to walk long distances, so hauling herself up to the top of Valles Frances on the third day, having walked for 5 hours already, took every ounce of grit and resolve she had.  The cheese and vegemite sandwich prepared for her  by our Australian buddies at the top of the mirador, was a treasure she will never forget!  Finally, the gongonzola grins in the last picture, marks our terminal at Glacier Grey, having completed a world-class 5-day hike, together. 

What was it like? That’s just it, the pictures and our stories don’t it justice.  You can’t buy this tour, you can only be sure that should you undertake this hike, every droplet of sweat and aching limb, will be rewarded with the most enchanting and remarkable sights, and go for it.