The Southern Patagonian Ice Field is the second largest non-polar ice field and has many glaciers in both Chile and Argentina. We visited three, the first being Grey Glacier in Chile. It feeds Grey Lake which gets its name from the colour created by the sedimentary silt deposited by the glacier.
Our lodge organised hikes, which ranged in difficulty from easy to “you must be joking”. The scenery and wildlife was incredible. One of the highlights was seeing a pair of pumas with a cub lying on their backs in the grass – sadly too distant for a photo on an iphone.We completed four easy/medium difficulty half day hikes in all weather conditions, the most challenging being a visit to a site with ancient rock art. We rarely saw other hikers as the National Park is so vast.
Torres del Paine is a national park in Southern Chilean Patagonia. It is almost 200 miles from Puento Arenas and is an area of mountains, glaciers, lakes and forests. At 1,800 square km, it is similar in size to Hertfordshire. The centrepiece is the Paine Masif with its three grantite towers, which are at an altitude of around 2,500 metres. The middle tower was first climbed by Chris Bonnington and Don Whillans in 1963.
Our lodge, just outside the park, with spectacular views of Lake Sarmiento and the three towers provided guided hiking excursions.
Patagonia is a region of over 1 million square km – over four times the size of the UK and a third larger than Turkey. Approximately 90% of the region is in Argentina, with the rest in Chile. It sits at the south of South America and is surrounded by the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans with the Andes providing a backbone down the western side and acting as a border. Over the years there have been various disputes over the border with the most recent being adjudictaed by the Pope in the 1980s. With a population of just under 2 million, it is one of the least populated areas of the world (similar to Mongolia).
Despite the mountains, most of the land is designated a steppe. The combination of mountains, steppes and oceans creates very varied weather condistions, frequently with all four seasons in a day. Although we visted in summer, we experienced sun, showers, snow and wind. Temperatures ranged from just above freezing to mid teens but with considerable wind chill at times. We soon discovered that a “Patagonian breeze” is the sort of wind that you have to lean into to stay upright !
Punta Arenas (originally Sandy Point) is a three and a half hour flight due south from Santiago (for us a 4am departure from Colchugua Valley !). At 53 degrees south, it is the largest city south of 46 degrees. Although it is the same latitude south as Nottingham is north, it has a very different feel and climate as it is the gateway to Antarctica. It is situated on the north of the Magellan Straits (used by Magellan in the first circumnavigation of world in 1520) with views over Tierra Del Fuego. Its main economy was sheep farming, but is now oil, gas and tourism, making it a relatively wealthy part of Chile.
When Ernest Shackleton heroically securred the rescue of his Endurance crew, they were taken by the Chilean Navy to Punta Arenas. A celebratory dinner followed and Shackleton stayed as a guest in the mansion which was later converted into a hotel where we stayed.
Situated a two and a half hour drive from Santiago is the Colchagua Valley, one of the best known wine regions in Chile. It has a mediterranean climate and is best known for its full bodied red wines produced from Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Syrah and Carmenere grapes. Wines were first bought to Chile in the 16th C by Spanish missionaries, however French grapes were introduced in the 19th C. Carmenere vines were wiped out in France in 1867 by disease and were thought to be extinct until rediscovered in Chile around 1990, having been previously mistaken for Malbec.
The Colchagua Valley has significant French influence, with many vineyards either owned by, or under the guidance of, French winemakers.
White wines are also produced, mainly from Chardonay or Sauvignon Blanc but they are not the same quality as the red wines.
Wine is Chile’s fifth largest export with China and the UK being the largest markets. There are three main classifications – Reserva (plonk), Gran Reserva (decent) and Icons (excellent and expensive). The better vineyards usually have excellent restaurants, making them doubly attractive !
A two hour drive took us to Piedras Rojas, a salt lagoon at an altitude of 4,100m overlooked by the Andes. The mountains in the region are up to almost 6,000m in height – for comparison Mount Elbrus in Russia has highest point in Europe at 5,642m, Mont Blanc is the third highest at 4,809m. The mountains are volcanic, some dormant but some active with the last eruption in December 2022 and there is currently an orange warning, one before the maximum.
The lagoon is set amongst red rocks, hence the name. Our guide, Gaspar, took us on a gentle hike around part of the lagoon wary of the high altitude. Although not freezing, the wind chill made it seem very cold even in the bright sun.
We then visited the Miscanti and Miniques lagoons before heading off for a high altitude picnic among the rocks.
During the drive we passed the foothills of the active Lascar Volcano at almost 6,000m and crossed the Tropic of Capricorn (going west the tropic of Capricorn passes through Queensland and east of south America it passes through Namibia).
The Vilama River is the main water source for San Pedro de Atacama. We hiked to a hidden waterfall via steep rocky slopes at altitudes up to 3,400m. While not a long hike, this was the most strenuous and technically demanding hike we undertook due to the terrain and slope, but it was worth it for the scenery, waterfall and cacti.
The cacti are now protected, but were used by the locals as a source of wood as there were no trees and they have a hard wood centre. They grow very slowly, only 1m every 50 years, with deep roots searching for water. On our trip to the salt flats we had stopped at a small village where there was a church with a roof made from this type of cactus.
This was intended to be a medium level hike to the Devil’s mouth and walk through a narrow canyon. We managed to do the difficult half before having to turn back when the guide found out that our car could not get to the pick up point because the road had disappeared. We managed to get to the lookout point but then had to do the difficult part in reverse, down the steep rocky mountainside. No injuries, a spectacular view and almost no one else on the route – well worth the effort (including on the guide’s part, taking care of our safety!).
Our lodge provided half day and full day excursions in the desert, of varying levels of physical difficulty and altitude. Most of the excursions are between 2,400m and 3,400m but two are above 4,000m. Our initial plans were disrupted by the weather as roads were either flooded or blocked by snow and ice. To manage the altitude we planned the higher trips after a couple of days of acclimatisation as well as taking other advice, including no alcohol !
On our first day we visited Vallecito, which is a quiet part of Moon Valley. We then visited Salar de Atacama, the largest salt flat in Chile. We discovered that the mornings would be bright and sunny with clouds developing in the afternoon to give high winds and thunderstorms by late afternoon. At the salt flat we experienced rain and a sandstorm. The salt lake is home to flamingos feeding on 1cm long shrimps that inhabit the salty lagoon, giving the flamingos their pink colour.
Shilli-Fully Travels 