In to the Park

We were finally able to sleep in a little bit, until 9. I updated the blog and finished my packing for the W hike before sitting down to a nice breakfast put on by the hotel.

After breakfast we all packed up our main bags and secured them in the "gear room" at the hostel where we would leave them until our return from the W.

With our bags packed, we set out for some final maneuvers about town before the bus ride to the Park. I split off from the group when I saw a fire truck and went to check it out.

The view from the shower at the hostel.

The breakfast room.

Not a bad view out towards the mountains of TDP.

Nice Mitsu 4 door ute.

The where J?

Chile and Argentina both have such a cool assortment of vehicles.

Fire truck exit.

The fire truck above is what I saw, so upon further investigation I saw that it was parked outside the firehouse. The door was open so I strolled right in. After a few minutes of Hola? Hola?, I finally met Jorge one of the bomberos (firefighters) at this station. He gave me a great tour of their apparatus and despite my rudimentary Spanish we were able to communicate and learn about each other's fire departments.

Probably one of the baddest brush trucks I've ever seen in person. Carries 3000 liters of water and is quatro por quatro or four wheel drive. It's a Renault and it is a mid to late 80's model.

 

Out back Jorge showed me their antique, although I suppose it could be pressed in to service. This 70s Ford Darley pumper looks much like a vintage US pumper.

I like the stylized number 2 on the grill. Jorge tells me the house is Station 2.

Cool artwork in the station's apparatus bay.

Their MAN 1985 rescue pumper is behind the station next to the police station since they are working on the street in front of the firehouse. It also carries 3000 liters of water.

After the firehouse tour, I met back up with group and we continued to explore the streets of Puerto Natales. I'll let the pictures do the explanation:

Not really sure what to make of this sign on a bus seen in PN.

We tried to find a decent outdoor store in PN, with not much luck until I spotted a North Face sign down a side street. Further investigation revealed a decent shop called One Aco (guanaco) that carried good brands including Icebreaker which I was looking for. This t-shirt has a nice graphic representation of the hike we were to do the next day. We would be doing the hike starting from right to left.

The nice girl behind the counter, Soledad, helped me find the Icebreaker socks and base layers I was looking for.

I found a nice jewelry shop similar to the one in Scotland, where the silver smith made the products in the same shop. Here he works some silver.

The silver smith's work bench.

His handiwork in action.

Puerto Natales has some interesting modern architecture amidst the vernacular styles.

The lake front in PN.

A large hotel on the lake shore.

Looking towards the TDP park.

A neat sculpture down by the lake.

An interesting modern hotel down by the lake.

Ships plying the waters of the lake.

Another Ford we can't have in the States.

The One Aco shop.

The dried fruit and nut shop again.

More empenadas from the supermercado. Reheated in the retro kitchen of the hostel.

The street signs of PN have the milodon on them. The milodon was a giant sloth, the remains of which were discovered nearby.

The elementary school in PN.

Another gear store with a cool skylight.

A friendly black lab street dog.

 After we checked out some shops and stocked up for the hike, we returned to the hostel and arranged our packs to stay and backpacks to take on the hike. We gathered our things and trekked over to meet the bus. It was a 2 1/2 hour bus ride through a countryside that reminded me of Montana, Wyoming and even parts of the Southwest.

Cool small home on the outskirts of PN.

TDP to the left.

Another windy outpost. The Chilean and Magellanic region flags.

The view out the window of the bus. Now I know that the prominent peaks in the center of the picture are the Torres Del Paine.

The first of many expedition campers that I would see on the trip. This seemed a magical spot to camp.

Paine Chico Sur on the left with the snow and the spires to the right of it are the Torres Del Paine.

After the bus ride, we stopped at the park entrance at Laguna Amarga where we were to pay the entrance fee, watch the mandatory video and get our park passes. We also happened upon these wildland firefighters readying for operations of some sort. I talked to the firefighter wearing the red jacket for a bit. He wasn't as talkative as Jorge in PN, but I got out of him that they have about 25 firefighters for the whole park. We were to learn later that the Czech government purchased a helicopter for the Park after one of their citizens started the disastrous 2011 fire.

The shuttle bus for the short 5 minute ride in to the Park and to the Refugio we were to stay in for the night.

Now this is the kind of bus I need!

We heard a helicopter and soon enough it appeared only to land right in front of us.

The firefighters on the porch loaded up in the helicopter to fly off somewhere.

Thankfully we didn't take the old suspension bridge.

 We took the park shuttle (a smaller bus of course) in to the Refugio de Las Torres. The Refugios in the park are lodges with different types of accommodations ranging from cabins to dorm rooms to cabins.

We checked in and got our bags settled in Refugio Norte, our bunk room for the night. Six (7 with EF) of us bunked in one room!

Taking our bags up the road to the refugio.

A nice retro poster.

The Refugio's dining room.

A bulletin board with the postings of hometowns of all of the visitors to the Refugio.

The bar area.

A signpost to various cities.

Hotel de Las Torres.

 Before dinner, we strolled up to the Hotel, the swankier lodgings in the Torres compound. FF was eagle eyed and noticed a "Keep Loudoun Beautiful" T-shirt on a guy sitting out front of the Hotel. I stopped and talked with him to discover it was Rick Webber and his wife who were on holiday. Rick retired after 30+ years working for Loudoun and was the director of Solid Waste Management and the landfill. We talked and shared our travel experiences and Loudoun stories. Amazing that I traveled as far south as you can go and still run in to someone from Loudoun!

Yet another sweet Hi Lux that we can't get in the States.

The entrance room of the Hotel.

A sweet Leyland expedition camper.

The hotel with Paine Chico Sure behind it.

First night's dinner.

The open kitchen.

Pork chop with a pasta side.

A Chilean wine to go with it.

The sunset behind Paine Chico Sur and the Torres.

Stickers on the Refugio's bunkroom. Can you spot the Hudson Trail Outfitters sticker?

After the walk to the Hotel and the great dinner, we were all ready to get to bed. The next day was the beginning of our W hike!

Next up: the beginning of the W, on to Las Torres.