Chile 2016

Monday7thNovember

And hop! A short hop later (2 hours and 1300 km nonetheless), here we are in the Magellan Strait region. After picking up our rental car, we head directly a bit further north, 230 km from here, to the city of Puerto Natales where we will settle for 2 days and 3 nights.

The typical landscape of the Magallanes region, with its endless fields.

Our room at Hospedaje Teresa, run by the little grandmother of the same name.  

Tuesday8thNovember

Puerto Natales is on the shore of Almirante Montt Gulf.

Beyond this gulf, over 200 km wide, countless islands and channels reach the Pacific Ocean.

Black-necked swans (Cygnus melancoryphus).

Here we are now on road Y290 which takes us to Torres del Paine Natural Park.

The road is decent but turns into a gravel track at some point... It takes us 2h30 to cover the 100 kilometers to the park...

Horses are numerous in this part of Patagonia.

We follow Lago El Toro, a sign that we are approaching the park. And indeed, in the distance, we begin to clearly distinguish the famous peaks that gave the park its name.

The mountains seem illuminated by the Sun, but the menacing grey clouds do not bode well for the weather to come there...

Zoom on the Paine peaks.

Altitude 28 meters, latitude 51°10'642", longitude 72°58'556"
It's good, we're on the right road, just a few more kilometers and we're there...

To not go unnoticed, distinguish yourself well from your congeners with a very white coat...  

His technique is to get as close as possible to the photographer... This is a Austral blackbird (Curaeus curaeus).

Our objective for the day is simple: approach the Grey Glacier which flows into Lake Grey. Well, the objective is almost achieved because we are a few hundred meters from it. We just need to cross the Pingo River with this small suspension bridge, then go through a small wood and we are there!

Here we are at the edge of Grey Lake. For now, the rain is shy, but conversely, the wind is completely unleashed, blowing as much lake water as beach gravel onto us!

Icebergs arrive here. They come from the glacier that can be seen in the very background.

A small island is located at the end of this "beach". You can walk around it to get even closer to the lake.

Photo on the right, the boat facing the glacier that we will take in a few hours to get as close as possible to the ice cliffs.

The sign tells us everything about the lake: sediments (silt) give the lake its grey color. 600 meters deep. 30 km² surface area. Water temperature from 2 to 5 °C...

The trees have a hard life if the wind we are facing lasts all year!

Boarding the "Grey III" boat takes place next to the small island. We will be about thirty people on board.

On the small upper deck, it's a storm of power 2... You have to hold on tight or stay close to the ground... Fortunately, we can all take shelter inside. But to take photos, you have to face the unleashed elements...  

We are gradually approaching the glacier and the wind is becoming milder. We briefly dock on the right bank of the lake to pick up some hikers coming from nearby trails. When we see the small group arriving inside, we realize that it is actually a television crew... French, what's more... But I don't see anyone famous... Although this person vaguely rings a bell... Just then, this person puts on their glasses... And yes, I think I recognize him: "Faut pas rêver", "Des trains pas comme les autres", it's him, Philippe Googler!

They are filming the show "Des trains pas comme les autres" around the Andes Mountains between Argentina and Chile. So yes, they are on a boat, but we won't quibble... And we are incognito, so we kept a low profile so as not to bother them like shameless groupies...

In any case, this doesn't bother the Chilean tourists on the boat. Especially since here we are, facing the ice giant. After all, that's why we came.

So naturally, we can't help but compare it with the Perito Moreno glacier, which is located just on the other side of the Andes Mountains on the Argentine side, and where 7 years ago, we enjoyed a small trek on the sun-drenched glacier. The blue of Perito Moreno was superb then, but the Grey glacier has nothing to be ashamed of because despite the gloom, it's not grey that passes through my lens but indeed blue (you can compare with my photos from that time here...)

For the France 5 team, it seems to be a break for the end of the day. Philippe Gougler and his puffer jacket   are not being filmed, only the cameraman is taking some shots.

The 30 meters of ice are shaped as it thaws, simultaneously feeding the lake with its water...

All architectures are permitted, including arches whose hours are surely numbered...

Added to the architecture are the designs of the strata, streaking in one direction and another across the facades of the structures...

And in the middle floats a totally transparent iceberg, a surprising object, an unfinished sculpture facing its original block.

And we are already leaving Grey, on this lake of the same name, whose calm will surely follow this storm that makes the grey of the waves rise...

And inside the boat, glasses of Pisco Sour, a Chilean alcohol, are served, chilled by pieces of glacier recovered from a nearby iceberg...

And let's fast forward in time (after the 2 and a half hour drive back...) to find ourselves at a restaurant in Puerto Natales in front of a soup, a very popular starter among Chileans!