Patagonia and a Bit More in Chile

The drive from El Calefate, Argentina to Torres del Paine National Park in Chile is pretty much a full day over a mix of paved and gravel roads.  No reason to hurry, and anyway, the day began pretty wet.  Our hotel, Rio Serrano, was a welcome sight.  It was pretty luxurious and very near to the south entrance of the national park.  The next morning, breakfast was early; you could quickly take a short walk from the hotel to the Rio Serrano for a sunrise view of the Paine massif.

A long exposure transformed the flowing river into a smooth mirror reflecting the mountains' sunrise colors. El Chaltén is to the right peeking through a gap in front range of mountains. It was going to be a good day.

We wasted no time getting underway in our autobus. (Think miles of washboard roads.)   Once through the park entrance, the road heads directly for the massif.  The first stop offers a beautiful view with clear reflections of the mountains.  It was a must stop for all visitors entering the park.  (What draws people to this view?  There are multiple subjects - the massif, its reflection, foreground grasses and an expansive mid-range plain.  Oh, be sure to keep it level. )

This was a quick stop, and we moved on to a closer view with a fascinating foreground that resulted from massive wildfires a decade or more ago.  The compositions here were endless. Loved it.

While the burned trees at our feet were compelling,  there was a message of the sheer brutality of Torre del Paine.  Taking out a longer lens, the granite peak to the right deserved singular attention.  It is simply a smack-down to the viewer seeing the mountain for the first time.  That vertical wall of granite seen in the preceding image as a rather minor part of the composition is on a level with images from Yosemite in California.


Patagonia is not just about mountains, there are also birds, for instance, that thrive in this place.  At our lunch break, the Chimango Caracara appeared looking for food. It is common from southern Bolivia all the way down to Tierra del Fuego.

Later in the afternoon, another notable bird made an appearance, the Andean Condor.  Think of a bird with a wingspan of 10.5 feet (3-1/4 meters) and weighing up to 30 pounds, that can soar with little effort.  This was one of the most exciting sightings of the trip. It's a bird I'd never expected to actually see, and it was really close.  There were several condors, but this one made a low pass on a nearby ridge.  Wow!

After the excitement of an Andean Condor's fly-by, it's hard to engage subjects in the same way.  Guanacos are not unusual, so what's of interest?  The markings flowing bands of cinnamon and white are attractive.  Also notable to me is their steady alertness. The head pops up often, checking for any sign of danger from Puma. Looking closely I noted that the wind has blown up hair tufts on the back. The animal is feeding downwind, so its nose is alert to scent carried from the rear, and the eyes are aware of  the trail ahead.  Alert fore and aft.  Clever.

We ended the day with a calming sunset, plus another great dinner. 

It was quick to bed for very early departure to photograph the night sky before sunrise.  As Mario negotiated the washboard sections of the road that morning, he abruptly stopped to the shouts of "Puma!"  In the headlights' beam we counted four cubs working across the road.  No photos, just memories. Once on location, we had to carefully set up in the darkness while being very aware of a sharp drop-off in front of us.

Even after my eyes adjusted to the dark, I could not see what the camera captured at 25 seconds.  An hour later, the early morning light presented a more typical vision.

We were seeing yet another composition of the massif.  Notice that the two spires at the left are black tipped.  In some cases, the granite is topped with remnants of older rock.

Did we ever tire of the views?  No. It did become confusing as the arrangements shifted, and perhaps that creates something analogous to a musical composer's themes, such as J. S. Bach's Goldberg variations.  And, of course, the reflections in these two images create variations.

After a rest stop at a different entrance to Torres del Paine National Park, our leader, Randy Hanna, spotted a sheep ranch offering a wonderful foreground fronting the spectacular mountains.  We exited the bus eagerly to explore the many compositions presented.  Here is the one I chose as my favorite.

This image has two good teaching points.  First, isn't the image better when there are some clouds mixed with blue sky? This is a reason to savor changeable weather.  The second point is to avoid confusing intersections.  Notice the many buildings in the fore- ground of the image above.  Randy used this as a teaching example where the objective was to have separation between each.  For example, the barn in the front should not intersect with the ranch house to its right. If it did, the viewer would be confused as to what is there. Shifting around to get separation was a challenge but it yields a clearer image.

Here is another example where an interesting sky adds more interest to complement the two mountains that also have different textures.  The cloud blowing off the rear mountain catches some evening light too.

Soon, it was time to leave Torres del Paine. Arriving in Puerto Natales, it was extremely windy with occasional rain.  We had some time before dinner to explore.  I'd yearned for a coffee americano that would be closer to my coffee at home. All the coffee I'd had so far needed a little hot water to bring down the strength.  We wandered into a tiny coffee shop, and this guy knew just what I wanted.  He moistened the grounds for two minutes and then slowly poured the remaining hot water into the cone.  Perfect.

The next morning we visited a boat yard adjacent to the fishing harbor before continuing to Puerto Arenas.  The yard was a resting place for worn-out boats.  It was a feast of interesting relics.

How many years did this boat fish the sea?

 How did this pilot house get this graffiti?

What does AUX.STA.NORMA mean?  Perhaps it is a dinghy for the Norma.

The boatyard is a graveyard for the smaller boats of the local fishermen displaced by larger commercial operators.  It paints a dismal future for fisherman such as this man now living in the hulk a small boat.  

We departed Puerto Natales on our way to a final night in Punta Arenas before departing Chile.  Once in Punta Arenas, Mario headed the bus farther south on the route to El Fin del Mundo, the end of the earth.  It is the farthest south one can drive on the South American continent.  Pulling into a small fishing harbor, we had arrived as two fishing boats were unloading their catch of sea urchins from a ten day outing.  What good fortune!

Every plastic crate in the dinghy was full of sea urchins picked  individually by a diver and hoisted to the surface in a basket.

 

 They were filling a large truck with tall stacks of crates.

My last view was of a line of small fishing boats tied up in a row and tethered to shore by a spread of mooring cables.

The next morning we spread our wings to return from a dream trip.

Thanks to all who made it such a grand adventure.

Paul Schmitt