A Journey To South America
A Continent I Always Wanted To Visit
10th October to 20th
November 2018 (42 days)
10th Oct – leave London Heathrow T5 at 16.45pm
and arrive in Madrid 20.10pm (2.25 hrs). Leave Madrid at 23.55pm and arrive in
Santiago, Chile ( the cosmopolitan Chilean capital!) at 8.35am on 11th
Oct (13.40hrs). Staying at Santiago
Backpackers 11th to 14th Oct. I join the trek party on 14th Oct
and stay at Happy House Hostel, and leave there on 16th Oct. Various activities in the city.
16th Oct – arrive in Pucon – the Lake District
of Chile. Here we climb Mt. Villarica
Volcano, mountain bike, horse riding and
white water rafting. We also visit
natural hot springs which I am looking forward to.
19th Oct – cross the Andes mountains into Argentina
for the first time to Bariloche on the shores of Nahuel Huapi Lake, flanked by
the peaks of the Andean mountains. Area
is famous for handmade chocolates, steak, wild boar and Patagonian lamb. Here we summit Cerro Campanario, tandem
kayaking and again mountain biking and horse riding.
22nd Oct – Arrive in Rio Pinturas and visit
“Cave of the Hands” and we wild camp here.
23rd Oct – We head for Patagonia on Ruta 40 to
Rio Mayo where we wild camp.
24th Oct – We enter the heart of Patagonia and
reach the town of El Chalten, situated in Los Glaciares National Park. Here we are in the shadow of the Iconic Mt.
Fitz Roy. Here it is ice climbing on the
Videma Glacier, a rock climbing course and a kayaking trip down the Rio de las
Vueltas.
27th Oct – Heading for Tierra del Fuego and we wild camp at a stunning ancient
crater.
28th Oct – We exit Argentina and enter Chile
again at Integraction Austral to cross the Magellan Straights over to the
Island of Tierra del Fuego. Here we are
to visit a small King Penquin colony.
29th Oct – We cross over to the Argentine side
of Tierra del Fuego and stay in the port town of Ushuala, the southernmost town
in the world and known as “the city at the end of the world”. We do a boat trip into the Beagle Channel. We visit the Martial mountain range and trek.
1st Nov – We exit Argentina at San Sebastian
and enter Chile to head back north and wild camp close to the Magellan Strait.
2nd Nov – We drive to the famous Torres del
Paine National Park, one of the most outstanding areas of natural beauty in the
world. Here I am to trek the full W-Walk,
affording great views of the iconic towers, with a local guide from east to
west. This is 3 nights camping on the
W-Walk trail. We cross Lago Pehoe by
catamaran and set up camp at Paine Grande.
7th Nov – We exit Chile at Cerro Castillo and
enter Argentina and drive to El Calafate, the gateway to the Pevito Moreno
Glacier, some 30kms long and one of the most spectacular sights in
Patagonia. Here we have a full day on
the glacier and also a boat trip by the glacier.
9th Nov – We head for the tiny town of
Jaramillo on the desolate cold plains of Patagonia.
10th Nov – We continue our drive up the
Atlantic coast to the small town of Camarones.
Here we visit large colonies of Magellanic Penquins.
11th Nov – It is onto Puerto Madryn settled by
Welsh Settlers in 1865. This is the
gateway to the Valdes Peninsula, famous for its incredible wildlife: guanacos,
armadillos, penquins, dolphins, elephant seals, and saelions and perhaps spot
orcas or a southern right whale. Here
activities include afternoon tea in a Welsh Tea House in the towns of Gaiman or
Trelew, a boat trip in search of wildlife,
a scuba dive in the Golfo Nuevo and a museum visit to see ancient
remains of dinosaurs and prehistoric creatures found in the area.
13th Nov – We exit Patagonia and head for the
pampas of Buenos Aires and stop in the
coastal village of Monte Hermoso.
14th Nov – We arrive in the cosmopolitan
Argentine capital of Buenos Aires (the coolest city in South America at the
mouth of the River Pate estuary, referred to as “the Paris of the South” and
stay in a centrally located hotel. On 16th
Nov the trek ends and I go to stay at Milhouse Avenue Hostel.
Seen as a fantastic city to explore on foot and using the
extensive metro system. Recommended
areas are San Telmo, Palermo, La Boca and Recoleta. The city is home of the “Tango” so a viabrant
night life which I do hope to discover over my stay in the city. I also want to soak up the atmosphere of the
city’s streets, and discover its amazing culture, art and music.
I will use one day
to visit Montevideo, Uruguay’s capital and I leave on 19th Nov.
19th Nov – I leave BA at 22.30pm and arrive in
Madrid at 14.35pm on 20th Nov (12.05hrs). I leave Madrid on 20th Nov at
15.45pm and arrive in London, Heathrow at 17.10pm (2.25hrs).
This massive adventure ends.
Fraser Mackay
