Torres del Paine - Day Three

Trip Start Aug 18, 2005
1
21
46
Trip End Jan 30, 2006


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Sunday, October 16, 2005

Midday on day two we realized that day three would also border on ten hours. We at least would walk 28 km. Although visiting the Valle de Frances was a success and in every way ideal, we had to backtrack 90 minutes, which meant for us that we would rewalk that route on day three, putting our morale at an instant low. As Steve and I joked before we entered the park, we would have to `man upī on this trip, and this was one of those times. So, we trudged along towards Campamento Italiano, the point at which we would begin to cover new ground. We found the camp and ran into some spaniards for the countless time, crossed a wavy rope bridge over a river, and began a fresh path for us.
Refugio Pehoe was our new destination. That was the place where we could unload our packs, set up camp, and have lunch. Steve and I bought some bread in the mini-market for our tuna and sat down in the cafeteria. This refugio was much different from the others that we had stayed in
Almost to Grey Glacier
Almost to Grey Glacier
. It had access to the lake, which had access to the road, so the building was made from different material, was much larger and more luxurious. In turn, the attitude of the employees also changed. Instead of treating patrons like campers and hikers, they behaved as if they were working in a hotel. Within 30 seconds Steve and I were accosted by three people who told us that as campers we were not allowed to eat inside the cafeteria with the other residents, a major change in attitude from other refugios. We had begun packing up our lunch after the first person told us, and then the two other employees started busting our balls in a completely disrespectful way during the process. Steve and I were pretty angered, but we left without incident.
After a nice rest, we set out towards Grey Glacier, our last landmark on the route called the W. No one gave us an exact time on how long it would take to arrive at the glacier or at a decent lookout, but we decided to depart and hope that we could make it back before nightfall. It was another beautiful day. Maybe we were being rewarded after taking that brutal punishment on the first day. A new lake presented itself, which had the first icebergs that I had ever seen. Very cool. We arrived at a great lookout towards Grey Glacier after about two hours of walking. Although we could have continued and eventually walked onto the glacier, we were tired and content. Dinner and rest sounded too good to pass up. And wine for celebration. Nearly 70 km (42 miles?) and 27 hours later, we had finished the W in one piece, a great accomplishment in my opinion.
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