Another early morning and we were our way to Torres del Paine.
Weather: sunny
Views: amazing
Total hiking time: 5 hrs
The roads to the park are absolutely awful and range between potholes and gravel washboards. So it took us a bit longer than expected to get to the park, where we arrived just in time for our catamaran to our lodge.
The rental
We got this small VW with an iffy gas gauge - always helpful when gas stops are so far and few in between. The other "feature" was the extra "air conditioning". The seal between the door and car wasn't quite, so when driving on paved highways you get this loud whistling sound like you're on a small plane. When you're driving on a dirt road your extra treat is layer of dust in your car.
We suspect with the winds here that someone opened the door to a gust which just wrenched the door. There were several breaks in the glass too, but that seems to be the norm here.
We ran into another Canadian couple who drove up from Ushuaia (REALLY barren drive) and their windshield even featured a hole. But I'll count our blessings, since when we last ran into them their car nearly died on the way to Calafate.
The Park
Outstanding. On our first day we hiked part of the famous "W" trek, going to Glacier Gray. Since we had a later start and wasn't sure what time we'd lose daylight, we didn't quite make it to the glacier. Still, outstanding views with the weather.
Injuries: Tiffany - 2 blisters; Mike - sunburn on the face
We got back in time for a badly needed shower and dinner, which included in our stay at Paine Grande. While it was nothing spectacular, it filled the gut.
Best discovery: Austral beer, Calafate. An amber ale with calafate berry. Would love to be able to drink at home.
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