Doing the W

So we did it. Hallye and I have completed our four day trek of what is known to Patagonian trekkers as the W trail in Torres del Paine national park. In total,we clocked around 85 Kilometers in four days. That is over fifty miles! This was no walk in the park either..it was a hard trek up and down and around some massive rocks and hills. The W trail is named so becuase it takes the form of a W when trekked from one point to the other. The first day after getting off the catamaran which took us to ou first campsite, we set up camp and started off on our first hike. On the bus to the park entrance, we met up with an Aussie who shared his plan of attack for the trail with us and invited us to join him. That made four of us and our little group bonded quickly. The first day was a 7 hour total hike which we did in just 5.5 up to Greys Glacier. Along the way, we took turns setting the pace, got to know eachother, and made up a team name and cheer. We were known among the four of us for the next three days as TEAM PAINE. And little would we know then that we were truly a force to be reckoned with. We sustained minor injuries, cold nights, and rain while breaking almost every time estimation that the trail guide had set for us. After seeing the glacier on the first day, we gladly returned to camp in the dark and prepared for our first night in the patagonian cold.

As I have said, one of the greatest parts about travelling is the people you meet. I do not think I could have made it through the four hard days and three cold nights without the people I was with through it all. At night, Aaron, Chris,Hallye, and I would pack into one of the tents after fixing a warm meal and play cards by flashlight and listen to music and sip on whiskey *which served as an instant warming device*. We had good times and forgot the fact that we would be cold in the middle of the night and have to wake up the next morning super early just to begin another day of trekking. The two guys kept Hallye and I moving at a quick pace *even though Chris said we were making them walk faster than they would by themselves. Hallye and I are very proud of ourselves for accomplishing such a feat and I think Aaron even referred to us once as GI Janes.

On the second day, we woke up early to trek up Valle Frances where a panoramic view of all the snowy mountains could be seen. After just a couple hours of trekking, I had to stop because my boots had rubbed the back of my heel so much that the entire area was exposed revealing the underside of a blister. I had a lot of blood on my socks and it hurt so bad so I had to turn around and go back to camp. I missed out on seeing the view that day. The others say it was absolutely amazing. I did not loose out completely however because I had made it far enough to see a mountain that was producing avalanches every several minutes. I found a rock to sit on and just watched and listened for the loud thundering cracks followed by ice and snow tumbling down. It was a good thing I chose to rest because the next day required us to trek for eight hours with our packs on towards the next campsite. I woke up feeling better and was able to keep up with the others on that long day.

The weather we had down there was beautiful. We were worried when arriving in Puerto Natales because the Strait of Magellan was clouded over and we could barely make out the form of Tierra del Fuego across the way. We feared it would be like that all over the southern tip but we actually had sunshine for three days. On the final day, we got up at 6 so we could hike up to the actual torres and see them drenched in pink and orange of the sunrise. That morning proved to be our first experience with wind, rain, and cloud cover.We didn´t get to see the melange of colors on the huge towers but they were visible nonetheless. After that we headed back to catch the bus back to Puerto Natales to stay the night. Now Hallye and I are waiting for our 1 oclock ride to Bariloche, Argentina. We are looking forward to the cheaper prices and huge steak dinners. We also have plans to reunite TEAM PAINE in Buenos Aires for a celebratory week. The next couple weeks therefore are going to be filled with enjoying ourselves. Trekking the W allowed us a reward. It is waiting for us now in Argentina. Until next time...
Katie