Day 17 – Punta Arenas, Bad Romance

We spent the morning lingering on deck, making the most of the final hours of bliss until the silhouette of land intervened and reminded me that magical experiences come to an end, but then there are always more experiences waiting to begin. Naturally, Commerson’s Dolphins, also known as pandas that like to swim upside down (because they are cute, black and white), leapt and spinned around our boat of which I finally snapped some clear close ups.

Commerson’s Dolphin

The afternoon ‘plan’ involved a land excursion to marvel at the Andean Condors, a massive glorified vulture restricted to the Andes. I’m still struggling to wrap my head around the bio mechanics and the fundamental difference in how the Andean Condors and Wandering Albatrosses handle the air. In any case, there is something so profoundly beautiful about how both species are strictly monogamous.

We arrived Punta Arenas at 11am expecting an afternoon visit to the condor colony at Estancia Olga Teresa. To be fair, this was an unexpected excursion and while I appreciate the team’s effort, the plan was compromised due to landing paperwork and positioning the ship. What really got my goat was the noticeable anxiety of the expedition team, high stress levels which made the hours spent waiting for a “smaller” boat feel even longer. We arrived a day early due to a medical emergency involving a passenger’s retina detachment. The logistics turned out to be a mess and it was a race against time.

The struggle is real

We finally boarded one of the two buses at 2pm and reached the Estancia at 3:30pm. The condor colony consisted of two condors flying so high up, they looked like dots unless you had a supersonic telescopic lens. I gave up and walked around the small lake with a few ducks and tweeting birds hiding in the bushes. At 4:30pm, we were ushered out, arriving back at the port at 6:oo pm watching the ship from the window because only two water taxis were running to transport over 60 guests back. We sat on the bus for a full hour and were late for the 7pm formal dinner (out of all nights). To top it off, the night was never-ending because the auction to fund mouse eradication in the Falklands went on for hours. I did not want to hear about another mouse, bird or money, I just wanted to GTF out of there.

Day 18- Punta Arenas – Puerto Natales – Torres Del Paine

But then the tide turned.

After saying our goodbyes, we finally disembarked. I was headed with a small group to Cerro Castillo in Torres Del Paine for a few days photographing pumas. Along the way, we stopped at Nao Victoria Museum a maritime museum to see replicas of the ships significant to the Magellanic region’s history I’ve written about previously.

Punta Arenas to Puerto Natales 

The journey took about three hours, with rheas, the native ostriches of the region, dotted all across the landscape. We stopped at Hotel Rio Rubens for lunch, which brought back a rush of memories reminding me exactly why I fell in love with Patagonia in the first place, specifically Chile. Estancias in the middle of nowhere, lovely people and delicious steak. It has been twelve years since my last visit and the magic of Patagonia Chile remains unchanged. We even squeezed in a photo stop in Natales where we photographed ducks and upland geese under the most spectacular and dramatic southern skies.

Puerto Natales to Cerro Castillo

Two hours later, we arrived at Estancia El Ovejero Patagónico. I was instantly in love with the remoteness of the Estancia. It was filled with old sewing machines which reminded me of my grouchy grandma hunched over her own machine. Between wool paraphernalia all around and sewing machines, I guess the owner wanted to create a space that feels connected to the history of the region even though I can’t see the connection between wool and sewing machines.

You know how it is when you revisit a place you once loved, there’s always that risk of ‘what on earth was I thinking?’ But, Chilean Patagonia still takes my breath away.

It’s a hell of a long trip to get down here, but who said I enjoy things that come easy? Now if only I can learn Spanish and stop nodding like a hopeful idiot because I have no clue what’s going on.