Road Trip to the Rockies: Button Rock Preserve

Button Rock Preserve

Trail(s): Sleepy Lion Trail
Location: Button Rock Preserve
Fees: Free
Distance: 4.7 miles
Dogs Allowed: Yes

I was pleasantly surprised by Button Rock Preserve, operated by the City of Longmont.  Many time, “Preserve” is synonymous with “No Dogs Allowed”, but this preserve had a leash, off-leash, and no dogs allowed area.

I got a late start this morning and I didn’t arrive to the trailhead until around noon.  I expected that many people would be finishing up their 4.7 mile hike, but the parking lot was full of families, hikers, climbers, and dogs on this sunny, yet crisp winter day.

The beginning of the trail follows a slightly graded dirt road.  Generally, hiking up a road with lots of people isn’t my favorite type of hike, but it passes by climbing cliffs, a dam, and the small Longmont Reservoir which just look like a wide, slow moving portion of the North St. Vrain Creek which is also skirted by the road all within 3/4 of a mile. Continue reading “Road Trip to the Rockies: Button Rock Preserve” →

Road Trip to the Rockies: Windy Yet Wonderful Hike to Mills Lake

Mills Lakes

Location: Rocky Mountain National Park
Fees: $20 day pass as of post
Elevation: 9,240-9,955 feet
Distance: 5.3 miles

Another Saturday, another missed forecast…these weathermen!  We planned a hike in Rocky Mountain National Park to Mills Lake.  While we expected cold weather (27-35 degrees) and blue skies, 40 mph sustainable winds were not in the forecast.  The wind was supposed to be over on Friday! Continue reading “Road Trip to the Rockies: Windy Yet Wonderful Hike to Mills Lake” →

village in the high atlas mountains

Hiking in the High Atlas Mountains!

We began our morning with a nice breakfast at Riad Karmela.  We found a table in the corner of the courtyard and picked our favorite foods from the buffet which included a variety of breads, jams, fruits, juices, vegetables, cheese, meats and eggs.

GO HIKING!
unruly donkey and owner on trail to petra

From Little Petra to Petra…Phenomenal

Hiking from Little Petra to Petra

I count today as our first real day in Jordan. The forecast improved as it called for sunny weather with a temperature around 50 degrees. Much better than the fog, rain and snow of yesterday. Our guide planned to meet us at the hotel at 7:00am, so we went upstairs to breakfast when it opened at 6:30am. They cooked us tasty scrambled eggs to go with a buffet of pita bread, hummus, olives, jams, and za’atar (my new favorite spice).

We filled our bellies, met our guide (Ramiz), picked up our to-go lunch at the front desk, bought water (3 litres for only 1JD) at the convenience store and prepared for our long day at Little Petra and Petra which included a 6-mile hike between the two, not counting exploring both sites. We didn’t know what we were getting into!

EXPLORE!

Fantastic Forest Lakes!

Wow…we are two for two for picking good hikes on Thursdays recently. Last week, Mohawk Lakes was amazing, and this week Forest Lakes was a pleasure!

Diana, Tanya, and I made it to the trailhead of Forest Lakes shortly have 9:30am. For some reason it seemed like forever to get to the East Portal of Moffat Tunnel. We went through a short construction zone, drove behind a hay truck, and finally reached the long dirt road at Rollinsville which led to our destination.

It was slightly nippy in the parking lot, so we added a few layers before we started up the trail. The path took us through an aspen grove, past an old house, and across a creek at during the first minutes of our hike. In about a mile, we reached a junction where we could turn right to go to Forest Lakes or go straight to Crater Lakes.

After shedding a layer and indulging in a few wild raspberries, we took the right turn up the mountain. We gradually gained altitude as we criss-crossed log bridges over beautiful waterfalls. A few purple and yellows wildflowers dotted the green, lush forest. The mushrooms were profuse. We worked up a sweat as we continued climbing through the evergreens draped in moss on this humid day. We were surprised to reach the lower Forest Lake so quickly. I suppose we hiked 30 minute miles which is normal, but last week we took so many detours it took forever to reach the lake. This time, 1.5 hours later, we were enjoying the reflections of the mountain peaks in the placid waters, as a nearby fisherman cast his line in search of a hungry trout.

From the lower lake, we hiked another 0.75 miles to the upper lake. We were admiring the contrast of the green forest, blue sky, and gray boulders when we suddenly noticed the upper lake. It was so big, it was kind of funny we didn’t even see it at first, but now we know why they are called Forest Lakes. The lakes were really tucked in beneath the pines and camouflaged by the greenery.

After stopping for a few pictures, we climbed up on an awesome boulder with a lovely view of the lake for lunch. The only downside to our lunch spot was having to watch the only other hikers at the lake fly a drone over their friend who was fishing. I don’t know if they were trying to spot fish or to just capture the action, but the constant buzz was a bit disappointing. We had just discussed how tranquil it was on this hike. It was far less crowded than Mohawk Lakes…in fact we had most of the trail to ourselves.

Fortunately, they only made a few passes with the drone, but in the short time we snacked, the clouds rolled in and socked down. While it was amazing to watch the surrounding peaks disappear in minutes, we also knew we shouldn’t admire the change of weather for long. We were already chilled from the sweat on our backs, the overcast skies, and cool 50 degree temperatures. I found myself in a puffy jacked, wool hat and gloves as I finished up lunch!

Soon, a sprinkle started, which turned into a steady drizzle. The tree cover didn’t seem to keep us clear of the rain, but we stayed dry enough with our raingear. It’s funny because the only other times Tanya and I have ever hiked in this area, it was cold and damp too. We wondered if this location attracted more moisture. Despite the early rain, we enjoyed another great hike. ETB

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Our Last Day in Parque Nacional Torres del Paine

At 3:30 am, the stars twinkled overhead. We dressed in pants and long sleeves and packed our jackets, hats, gloves, and snacks up to Torres del Paine under of the guidance of our headlamps along with a trail of lights from other campers. The ranger suggested we arrive by 4:45am to see the sunrise. I think we got there sooner.

Once again, we climbed up the rocky hillside for a perfect view only we weren’t sure exactly where the sun would rise. We broke a sweat as we ascended and piled on extra layers of clothes. It’s amazing how warm both our sleeping bag and the sun is, as the darkness in Patagonia is cold! I put on all my clothes and had to dance around occasionally to keep my feet and hands from going numb.

the moon
first light

The thin wisps of clouds behind the torres turned pink around 5 am. I think we may have waited an additional 1.5 hours to see the sun light up all the torres on the diagonal. It was breath taking to watch the grey granite torres turn more and more orange with every minute as the color moved down the rocks. As we waited we saw an avalanche. The morning couldn’t have been any better! It was spectacular to end 2015 and begin 2016 at the Torres del Paine…and with perfect weather to boot!

Photos every 15 minutes starting at 5am. Watch the light change!:

IMG_7977 sunrise 1

pink clouds
pink clouds
light started hitting the torres
light started hitting the torres…not on rock to right or south torre
light moving down the torres…hasn’t hit south torre yet
light moving down the torres

IMG_8034 sunrise 5

from a different angle, but the light keeps moving down

Other photos from New Year’s morning:

David hiked to the top of the ridge which is off limits when the rangers are around
Zoomed in!

With our legs on the tired side, we strolled down to camp, heated some water for oatmeal and coffee, and packed up our gear. I read it took 3.5 to 4 hours to get down to the hotel for the shuttle ride. We had tickets for the 2:30 Bus Gomez who really has their act together. We had to get the 2 pm shuttle from the hotel to Laguna Amarga for 2,800 pesos and wanted enough time to eat lunch by the hotel that is $500/night and requires a two night minimum stay. As such, we hiked down at a slow pace around 8:45am. I think it only took us 2.5 hours so we chilled out with some other campers while we waited for our transportation. One girl quipped, “This is going to be a stinky bus ride.” No doubt!

The shuttles ran at 9, 2, 4, 7:30, according to the chalk board at the ranch style hotel, but one came early around 1, so we hopped on and paid our fare. Sadly, we both fell asleep on the slow, 20 minute bus ride to the administration office where we waited in the shade of a shelter with several others for our 2 hour bus ride to Puerto Natales. We learned to dress according to the weather for the bus rides as A/C and heat were lacking. In shorts and T-shirts, we were hot!

From the bus station, we meandered through the quiet town as most everything was closed for New Year’s Day to Kau Lodge. This time at least we got twin beds that weren’t bunk beds. With nothing clean to wear, the shower became our washer and later in the evening we celebrated New Year’s dinner at Afrigonia which received spectacular reviews on Trip Advisor. I suppose we should have stuck with the regular menu as the king crab special was expensive, over cooked, and somewhat flavorless, especially with out warm butter. Having said that, with as much crab as I have shelled and eaten in my lifetime, I’ve never had a giant king crab placed in front of me. It was a fun experience, and David liked the curried shrimp and scallops he ordered. Not being a curry fan, I skipped that.

The coffee shop at our hotel has happy hour and makes tangerine sours. Apparently happy hour wasn’t over even though it was 9pm, so we ended the night with a sour and dessert. I think I passed out before 10, but who knows. We were up before 6 getting breakfast and a taxi to the bus station for the 7:15 am Bus Fernandez to Punta Arenas. This may have been the nicest bus with assigned seats, a bathroom, and temperature controlled.

We enjoyed our last view of the countryside…wind blown trees, lamb, guanacos, bus stops in the middle of nowhere, flowers that looked like blue bonnets, estancias and more. Three hours later we arrived at the airport, very early for our flight, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. The airport was small, but nice with two restaurants and three shops or so. The cash machine was out of order, so glad we didn’t need any money! We were trying to get rid of the rest of ours, and I have to say the restaurant upstairs was really good! I got a chicken sandwich that had about two avocados of guacamole…not the thin spread that barely covers the bread that restaurants in the States serve! We had an awesome trip, though I’m looking forward to home. ETB

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Hiking to Mirador Torres del Paine in Parque Nacional Torres del Paine

After a very good egg breakfast, we left Los Cuernos just before 8 with our box lunch in hand. The park map suggested it would take about 7.5 hours to Campamento Torres by taking the “short cut” and not hiking by the hotel in the valley. As such we prepared ourselves for a long day of backpacking.

We climbed up and down the undulating, rocky path and wondered why it wasn’t cut closer to the lake’s shore that seemed much more level than the track we were traversing. We passed through some intermittent trees, but mostly followed the shoreline of the lake for a few hours under a partly cloudy sky. Along the way we spotted a few hares and listened to chirping song birds.

Capacity Two People…We found this out after we crossed as most of the signs are only one direction!
boat on the lake
Nordernskjöld Lake

As we cut across the valley of rolling hills and wild flowers, the sun became more intense. We crossed many streams and tried not to kill ourselves on the primitive bridges and in mud pits. Soon we began a steep climb. From speaking with the group we met last night at dinner, I thought we had only just begun the climb to the intersecting trail from the hotel. I planned on refueling over lunch at the trail intersection to tackle the rest of the incline. We snacked on our pork tenderloin sandwich for energy and continued.

Little did I know, though winded, we had plowed through the hardest part relatively quickly. We reached a look out over the valley and saw a Refugio below. I thought this must be Refugios Torre Norte and Torre Central. From these we would continue the steep climb. As we rounded a tight turn, a young man commented, “You are almost there”.

David quipped, “Yeah, right”.

The young Asian replied, “No really! That building down there is Chileno.”

David and I looked at each other in dismay. We couldn’t believe we had reached El Chileno Refugio, operated by Fantástic Sur, so soon. We weren’t staying at Chileno, but we knew it was only 1.5 hours from Campamento Torres, and that we had just ascended the steepest part of the trail! About a mile earlier, we were discussing Chileno’s advertisement “Feeling tired, stop in to reserve a horse ride down the mountain”. Given we met 30 years ago riding horses, we thought it might be fun. By the same token, the weather was nice and we didn’t want to waste any time in the offices. Furthermore, we wanted the freedom to chose our schedule in the morning so with a bounce in our step, we strode forward.

view of the valley
Check out the Rolling Stones llips!

As we hiked past the Refugio and through the camp grounds along the powder blue river with the Torres in sight, signs displayed 1 km to Campamento Torres. I was trying so hard to contain my excitement and hike slowly, but I don’t think I was succeeding. Anytime I have ever seen a photo that made my jaw drop, and I looked to see where the photo was taken, it was always the Torres in Patagonia. I have wanted to come here for years. With each step, I just kept hoping the clouds would cooperate!

The path led us across several bridges, many only supporting two people at a time, some only one, as we climbed up and down the steep terrain through a beautiful forest. As much as we enjoyed the forest, this elevation change was slightly unexpected based on our review of the map and our conversation with the group we met at dinner last night.

Soon we reached a sign for the camp. We were amped! We had reached the camp in 5 hours instead of 7.5 hours. With smiles spread across our faces and an energized laugh, we began looking around for the check in building. It wasn’t in sight! Confused, we wondered if we should have split off the path somewhere. It wasn’t long before some fellow trekkers hiking the opposite direction came along.

We asked, “How far is it to the campgrounds.”

The European gentleman replied, “45 minutes with your luggage.”

We must have looked at him in bewilderment because he quickly pointed to his partner and exclaimed, “Her English is better!”

With the language barrier, David asked with hand gestures, “Did you see an area with tents where you can sleep?”

She confirmed that the campground was 45 minutes away and there we signs pointing down to the camp and up to the Torres.

Ugh…a few more Kilometers! We probably would have enjoyed the lush vegetation much more had we not been so demoralized! We prodded on and reached camp in six hours instead of the 7.5 hour projection. I suppose we still should have been proud of ourselves, but by this time we were ready to dump our heavy packs, set up camp, and hike the last hour to the Torres lookout.

We presented the ranger with our reservation slip that took me a little while to find given the countless bus tickets, food tickets, and reservations slips I carried in my travel purse. We immediately headed to the back of the campground, found a flat spot beneath low hanging trees, and set up our tent. We threw our packs inside, planned on laying our sleeping out later, and stashed some snacks, water, and layers in our day packs. We were ready to tackle the final kilometer.

kitchen and offices

I couldn’t contain myself as I zoomed up the path. David remarked, “You know how sometimes you say I get crazed over good meals?”

I replied, “Yes, I know. I’m crazed over this photo!”

We criss-crossed a small stream on ladder-like bridges as we maneuvered over boulders, stairs of rocks and loose scree. The terrain was slightly similar to the top of a 14er though at a much lower altitude. Coming from 5,280 feet was a blessing for us, as it made the climbs somewhat easy.

With the Torres in sight, we rounded the bend and soon found the grey lake with the granite columns towering above. It was spectacular! And much to our surprise, there were far less people there than we expected. With a limited hiking area, we were able to scramble over some boulders to an area that allowed us to snap photos without anyone else in the pictures!

Loaded with many snacks, we hung out for probably three hours as we watched the cloud formations swirl around the north torre and many times change directions. Of course, I could never decide when the sky seemed the clearest, so I just snapped one photo after the next. I had to capture the waterfalls, the surrounding peaks, the valley behind us, and of course the Torres poking through the clouds. What a way to spend New Year’s Eve! We celebrated back in the tent with ricotta and spinach ravioli drenched in red sauce with a sprinkle of cheese, a bottle of red wine that David lugged all the way from Los Cuernos, Godiva Chocolate that I got for Christmas.

Torres del Paine
left side
middle
right side

We hardly made it to 9pm, much less midnight, but we planned on waking at 3:45am to go up for sunrise as long as we could see the stars when we woke up. Today was all that I could have hoped and more! We had such good weather for the whole trip, I was worried our luck might run out. Fortunately, luck was on our side, and the landscape met my high expectations (which doesn’t always happen). ETB

For David’s map and corresponding pictures, click here: map of our hike

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Valle del Francés in Parque Nacional Torres del Paine

We arose early today. It’s not hard to do given it’s light at 5am. The moon lit the sky over the towers briefly before the clouds blew in. We packed up our camp and sat for the traditional South American camping breakfast. Toast, cheese, ham, oats, yogurt and surprisingly eggs that didn’t look like grits (yesterday was the first time we were served eggs for breakfast, but their texture was strange).

We turned in our lunch tickets for a to go box and stuffed it in our pack before we headed toward Campamento Italiano and the Valle del Francés. The wind gusted violently this morning. I was thankful to be following somewhat flat terrain through tall grass and low bushes by the lake so I could keep my balance. Soon we entered a stand of dead trees. It is amazing how well leafless trees block the wind. We turned from cold to hot as the morning sun gleamed on the white trunks. Eventually the dead trees turned to live ones, and we were in and out of stunted forest.

Lago Pehoé
Nordernskjöld Lake

The path was muddy from the many waterfalls that spilled down the walls to our left into the lake on our right. Many of the boardwalks and bridges were in complete disrepair and may have been the only run down thing we’ve seen at the park thus far. Some of them looked rather dangerous. I was careful to walk on the boards with supports beams, and looked for ones that might pop up from being loose. Sometimes I just followed along the side in the mud.

Francés Glacier

After we made it around the lake and up and over the ridge, we walked through the prettiest forest yet with large trees and soon arrived at a rickety, suspension bridge over an aqua river with a fantastic view of Francés Glacier. This bridge led us to Campamento Italiano which is free and operated by the park. We filled out a form and provided our reservation tickets to the ranger before we seeked a campsite. We didn’t look long because we wanted to climb up to Británico whose trailhead begins at the camp. We found a flat spot not too far from all the amenities (a kitchen and bathrooms which were 80 yards away). Had we scouted at all, we could have found a quieter spot along the river.

our campsite at Campamento Italiano
ranger station

We set up our tent quickly, packed up our day packs and followed the trail up the Valle del Francés. Signs pointed us in the direction of Británico. Our walk took us through the campground in the woods and then along a scree path. The gentle sloping path turned steep as we exited the forest to the rocks where we enjoyed a nice view of Francés while eating part of our lunch. We were still at the bottom of the trail, and I was feeling antsy as I wanted to reach the top during the nice weather given it is so unpredictable. Though during our short stop, we did spot another ice calving.

suspension bridge

The path, peppered with location signs, crossed countless waterfalls. At times when the trail leveled out, it turned into a small stream. We trounced through the water, climbed over boulders, and wandered through more forest until we stopped again at Francés lookout. Several people had stopped here for lunch as it provided a close up view of the glacier. We didn’t stay long, but kept going toward Británico lookout. We passed through an open space with dead trees, more forest, and more rocky steep areas before we finally reached our resting point surrounded by granite towers and walls a few hours later. What a magnificent panoramic view!

Francés Glacier
Nordernskjöld Lake from Francés Lookout
Francés lookout
Francés Glacier
took three pics from left to right…this is the left side
middle
right
cloudy
clear a few hours later
Británico Lookout
bird visited us
view from Británico lookout

Lucky for us, while slightly breezy, the usually windy lookout point was rather pleasant. We hung out with a handful of hikers for a few hours as we watched the clouds shift. Each set of peaks and walls, once wrapped in clouds soon protruded into blue sky. We sure have been fortunate with the weather! Come late afternoon, we ran out of snacks so we meandered slowly back to camp. Hearing several thunderous booms in the warming day, we decided to make one more stop at the glacier and wait to see ice calve. On the way up, we saw a few poofs of snow. At our final stop, we basically saw a waterfall of ice tumble down the rocks. With that, we finished our descent. After a ten mile day, we chopped up cheese and sausage and complemented it with dried fruit and walnuts for dinner. We were asleep by 9:15! The only disappointment is neither our pictures nor my description can do this place justice. It is so beautiful! ETB

For David’s map and corresponding pictures, click here: map of our hike

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A Day Off In Parque Nacional Torres Del Paine

So the beauty of reserving camping at Refugio Paine Grande two nights in a row is twofold.

1. In case of bad weather we could choose which day would be better suited for a hike to Glacier Grey

2. We could hike with a day pack, as opposed to backpacking to Refugio Grey on day 1 and backpacking back to Refugio Paine Grande on day 2

It rained off and on from midnight until 11 am. The wind battered our tent. Though the only, single pole alpine tent set up in camp, it survived handily. Since we hiked to Glacier Grey yesterday, we got to take a day off from hiking on a gloomy day. We showered when no one was around, though I would have liked my shower better had it been hot. It was cool with an occasional surge of luke warm water.

During the dreary morning, we played cards and read in the dining area. We warmed up with a hot lunch of lentil soup with salad and bread as we watched the changing weather pattern. Eventually, the sun peaked out. We thought we’d take advantage of the clearing sky to stretch our legs.

We strolled down to Lago Pehoé and found the trail that leads from the park’s administrative headquarters to our campground. This section is part of the Q route. There is also an O route. Both of these routes include the W, but extend to a less crowded section of the park. Having said that, we didn’t find our hike to Glacier Grey to be terribly crowded, especially in the evening.

So we climbed the path to the top of the ridge and admired the landscape from above our campground. On our way down, we saw a woman eating berries. We asked what they were and she replied, “Calafate berries”. We decided to try some, though I didn’t find them that tasty.

Lago Pehoé
Lago Pehoé
berries

Dinner tonight was roast on rice with salad and cream of lentil soup with a terrible dessert and peach juice. After David’s third glass of juice, I said, “You know, I think that juice is straight from the canned peaches that were used for the peach tart last night.” He laughed and replied, “Yeah, and I think the cream of lentil soup is leftover water from the hot lunch that was served today.” Well, at least they aren’t wasteful!

Tomorrow we are headed to Campamento Italiano and Valle de Francés and the forecast seems promising! ETB

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Hiking to Glacier Grey in Parque Nacional Torres Del Paine

Our bunk beds were rough for David. He nearly killed himself before we started the W route in Parque Nacional Torres Del Paine. Still in one piece, we had out breakfast at 6:30am. The lodges are very accommodating for those who leave before the scheduled breakfast time. As usual we got cheese, meat, yogurt, and toast. Eggs would be nice. They put eggs in soup, on pizza, and with a million other things, but not with breakfast.

IMG_3616 breakfast

We shared a cab with two more hikers to the bus station. The 30 minute walk is only a $3 cab ride! We had Buses Gomez tickets that our lodge purchased for us in advance for the 7:30am bus. As soon as it pulled into the terminal we walked outside. This was a brilliant choice. David threw the bags underneath, while I handed over the tickets, and we were the first of five to board the bus and to snag good seats. Being early kept us from waiting for a second bus, though they caravaned together so it didn’t matter too much.

at the bus station

The bus took us past estancias, guanacos and several farm animals during our two-hour transport to the park. We even spotted a grey fox trotting across the hills while waiting a few minutes by a construction site. As the park scenery came into view, at first I was very upset to be sitting on the right-hand side of the bus. Eventually, the road turned, however, and I got to snap some photos.

llama
view from bus

Several companies operate at the same time. They stop at a small town for a restroom break and soon arrive at Laguna Amarga. Here all passengers must fill out paperwork, purchase park passes, make campsite reservations for free locations, and watch a video on the rules of the park. David’s papers were in his backpack as was the itinerary I made which had the dates for reservations I needed. While I had it memorized, I felt better to have this in hand when making reservations, so we had to do some digging under the bus. I don’t recommend this. Luckily, we were able to get reservations at the free campgrounds when we wanted because some dates were already full. It was amazing that with all the people, no one seems to get left. The buses wait around a while, but it a little chaotic.

I read that we should take the ferry ride for beautiful views so instead of starting the hike at Laguna Amarga, we took the bus to the second stop…Pudeto. Here, we started the line for the 12 o’clock ferry. Boarding the ferry first allowed us to get seats up top for good pictures, however, our bags got stored at the bottom of the pack. I didn’t mind having to wait for our bag, as we had to pay for our $22 one way tickets in cash before we left the ferry anyway. We could have done that anytime during the boat ride, but we wanted to enjoy the view. We felt a like sardines on the ferry, but the spectacular weather made it worth the thirty minute ride across Lago Pehoé.

We had reservations for camping and food at Vertice Patagonia’s Refugio Paine Grande which was located adjacent the ferry dock on the south side of Cerro Paine Grande with magnificent views of los Cuernos del Paine. We checked in, received our laminated food tickets and set up our tent. Fortunately we had our own tent, as tent rentals sold out by the afternoon. The refugio was equipped with mens’ and womens’ bathrooms which included sinks, flush toilets and showers; a kitchen for campers to cook on their camp stoves; a large dining area; a small shop selling limited food supplies; and of course hostel style rooms with bunk beds should guests wish to share a room with strangers and not sleep in a tent.

After getting the lay of the land, I suggested we hike to Glacier Grey today as the last weather update I saw called for rain tomorrow. David was in a more lackadaisical mood until we checked the latest weather forecast with the staff. In Spanish, English, and hand gestures, we learned that tomorrow there would be a chance of rain and low clouds. The gentleman suggested the hike to Lago Grey was only two hours and told us to “go NOW”. Fortunately I had scheduled some buffer time upon arrival at the park because I didn’t have full confidence in the transportation system that they somehow have down to a science with paper tickets!

So we hustled back to our tent, tossed together our day packs and headed toward Glacier Grey around 2:30pm. Just near the turnoff to the trail, I read a sign “11K and 3.5 hours to the glacier”…hmmm. At a quick pace, we followed a light incline up an impressive valley through dead and stunted trees until we reached Los Patos Lagoon. Only 30 minutes into the hike, and we enjoying superb scenery which only got prettier as we climbed. Snow capped peaks towered over the Lago Grey which stretched the entire length of the trail. After about 1.5 hours of hiking, the glacier came into view. It looked magnificent in the nearly cloudless, sunny sky.

beginning the hike
Los Patos Lagoon

We stopped for a brief time to enjoy the grandeur before we continued toward the lookout point by the glacier. This is when we figured out the hike would take three hours at a steady clip as we were going beyond the lake and close to the base of the glacier. The sign and the staff were both right. We were the challenged ones! We had to hurry to finish as we had purchased dinner which ended at 9pm. At least we didn’t have to worry about the light given it doesn’t get dark until 10pm, and we had our headlamps anyway.

While we rushed toward the glacier through intermittent forest, I did not fail to take pictures. Flowers sprinkled the trail and waterfalls tumbled down the mountainside. Soon we reached Olguín bridge not too far from Refugio Grey, also operated by Vértice Patagonia. We passed by the refugio and through the campground to the final lookout point. We climbed out on the rocks, enjoyed a quick snack and view before racing back. Admittedly, I would have liked to enjoy a slower pace, but I also didn’t want to be the last one on the trail or miss our dinner. We capped our hike off by spotting six hares as we descended to our campground.

For David’s map and corresponding pictures, click here: map of our hike

Our cafeteria style dinner was good, though nothing spectacular. The burger patty, potatoes, corn soup, salad and peach tart beat cooking dried camp food. After dinner, we admired an absolutely fantastic sunset that lit up the rocky Cuernos del Paine! We couldn’t have asked for a better day, especially when the clouds blew in just after dark at 10:30 and the rain began at midnight. ETB

view from tent

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