Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Third day and third day of sunshine. I guess the condors were our lucky charm. Kate and I skipped breakfast for a chance to sleep since there were no scheduled activities for today. I was hurried out of the tent by my sudden need to use the facilities and rushed there with lightening speed. I would have done the Francis Valley walk which is 15km return but the only option for the boat back to camp was at 6:30pm (or 12:30pm, but seeing as you don’t get there until 10, its basically useless).
So instead of taking the catamaran, I slept until 9 and spent time near the campsite. At 10:30 in the warm sunshine, I took off for the Mirador Condor walk, a short walk to the top of a hill nearby. Most of it was uphill, which my muscles didn’t appreciate, but I took it slow and rocked out with my iPod while taking in the scenery: stopping to enjoy the wildflowers, tiny butterflies and amazing views. Lake Pehoe reflected an incredible shade of turquoise blue. The color was stunning.
I was lucky with the wind as the huge gusts seemed to be pushing me from behind helping me up the hill. About 40 minutes later I arrived at the top, struggling against the howling wind to stay on my feet. It was ridiculously windy but the views were spectacular – quite an effort taking self photos and trying to keep the camera steady. The entire mountain range above Lake Pehoe presented itself in the sunlight along with five other lakes in the surrounding area; I couldn’t help but keep snapping photos. A condor flew by while I was at the top, but it was too windy to stay for long.
On the way down, the wind (still blowing in my favor) kept me from slipping down the mountain. I was peacefully reflecting on the amazing gift of travel and thinking about the next five months. I ran into Monica and Keith who were on their way up and stopped for a brief chat. They are such a sweet couple that’s it is funny to hear them complain about the new addition to our group (Michelle, of course). I haven’t spoken to her much, but she reminds me of Ros, constantly talking about herself.
When I got back to the campsite, I politely asked Mark to take out some lunch items and I put together a salami, cheese and salad sandwich to eat with my Doritos. Sadly the guacamole had been polished off at breakfast. Mark and I chatted while savoring the beautiful sunshine and heat of the day. He told me that they’ve never had such good weather three days running. I really feel lucky.
From lunch I walked to the Hotel Explora, a fancy 5-star hotel 15 minutes down the road from our campsite. As I strolled down the boardwalk, a condor flew in from the other side of the mountain, with a second following. They were directly above my head before moving on. Steven and Sameena were watching from the window and waved in my direction. I joined them at the window and ordered a hot chocolate. When they left, I spent some time on the internet, posting a blog and doing more research for my trip. I managed to sit there for a while, despite the heat of the building, facing Lake Pehoe and the mountain range. Gorgeous hotel. Sarah eventually stopped in and chatted for a bit before stating that it was “too bloody hot”. How I love the English!
At 6pm I headed back to camp; the cool air felt refreshing. Everyone who hadn’t taken the catamaran was hanging out near the cooking tent. I chanced a shower again, and finally got warm water after letting the tap run for about ten minutes. Such a waste of water, but the temperature was much more pleasant than my first shower. I’m looking forward to a normal shower (and washing my hair) tomorrow.
After cleaning up, I felt quite peckish and Mark generously gave me a helping of chicken soup (which was to be used for the curry), before making popcorn for the rest of the group. Sameena was already in the kitchen helping Mark cook up her curry and the smell of garlic wafted in the air.
I joined Kate and Sarah who were relaxing on the grass and recounted the story of my quick morning departure from the tent. Louise, Monica and Robyn eventually joined our conversation. Steven joined in our little powwow as well, holding his right arm from his horse accident. Such a peaceful day. Even though it would have been perfect for the Francis Valley walk, I felt content taking it easy. One more day in Torres and I would have done the walk. (Allison, I’m sure you are disappointed to hear that I didn’t make the hike.)
At 7:30pm, the rest of the group returned in Peggy looking exhausted. Only Vince, Kath and Aldiey made it to the end of the hike; apparently Brad turned around 10 minutes before the lookout. Kath fell on a branch though (she was wearing shorts) and had a huge gash on her left thigh – Nurse Louise removed the remaining splinters while Nurse Robyn supervised. It looked extremely painful.
We were supposed to have dinner at 8:30, so Kate, Sarah, Ted and I shared a bottle of wine while waiting for our food. Sameena and Mark were busy finishing the curry, rice and broccoli while Terry made flat bread (with Robyn’s help) rolling out the dough using a wine bottle. Unfortunately it took longer than expected and we didn’t eat until 9:15; so late. I sat next to Keith having a wonderful conversation and hearing about his world travels. He crossed overland from England to Australia like Nick. Guess that was the thing to do 30 years ago.
Our fabulous meal was topped off by bananas and chocolate – just like we used to do on camp overnights. After sitting around chatting with Kath and Brad, I came back to the tent around 11pm and went to sleep the natural way, sin Ambien.
Third day and third day of sunshine. I guess the condors were our lucky charm. Kate and I skipped breakfast for a chance to sleep since there were no scheduled activities for today. I was hurried out of the tent by my sudden need to use the facilities and rushed there with lightening speed. I would have done the Francis Valley walk which is 15km return but the only option for the boat back to camp was at 6:30pm (or 12:30pm, but seeing as you don’t get there until 10, its basically useless).
So instead of taking the catamaran, I slept until 9 and spent time near the campsite. At 10:30 in the warm sunshine, I took off for the Mirador Condor walk, a short walk to the top of a hill nearby. Most of it was uphill, which my muscles didn’t appreciate, but I took it slow and rocked out with my iPod while taking in the scenery: stopping to enjoy the wildflowers, tiny butterflies and amazing views. Lake Pehoe reflected an incredible shade of turquoise blue. The color was stunning.
I was lucky with the wind as the huge gusts seemed to be pushing me from behind helping me up the hill. About 40 minutes later I arrived at the top, struggling against the howling wind to stay on my feet. It was ridiculously windy but the views were spectacular – quite an effort taking self photos and trying to keep the camera steady. The entire mountain range above Lake Pehoe presented itself in the sunlight along with five other lakes in the surrounding area; I couldn’t help but keep snapping photos. A condor flew by while I was at the top, but it was too windy to stay for long.
On the way down, the wind (still blowing in my favor) kept me from slipping down the mountain. I was peacefully reflecting on the amazing gift of travel and thinking about the next five months. I ran into Monica and Keith who were on their way up and stopped for a brief chat. They are such a sweet couple that’s it is funny to hear them complain about the new addition to our group (Michelle, of course). I haven’t spoken to her much, but she reminds me of Ros, constantly talking about herself.
When I got back to the campsite, I politely asked Mark to take out some lunch items and I put together a salami, cheese and salad sandwich to eat with my Doritos. Sadly the guacamole had been polished off at breakfast. Mark and I chatted while savoring the beautiful sunshine and heat of the day. He told me that they’ve never had such good weather three days running. I really feel lucky.
From lunch I walked to the Hotel Explora, a fancy 5-star hotel 15 minutes down the road from our campsite. As I strolled down the boardwalk, a condor flew in from the other side of the mountain, with a second following. They were directly above my head before moving on. Steven and Sameena were watching from the window and waved in my direction. I joined them at the window and ordered a hot chocolate. When they left, I spent some time on the internet, posting a blog and doing more research for my trip. I managed to sit there for a while, despite the heat of the building, facing Lake Pehoe and the mountain range. Gorgeous hotel. Sarah eventually stopped in and chatted for a bit before stating that it was “too bloody hot”. How I love the English!
At 6pm I headed back to camp; the cool air felt refreshing. Everyone who hadn’t taken the catamaran was hanging out near the cooking tent. I chanced a shower again, and finally got warm water after letting the tap run for about ten minutes. Such a waste of water, but the temperature was much more pleasant than my first shower. I’m looking forward to a normal shower (and washing my hair) tomorrow.
After cleaning up, I felt quite peckish and Mark generously gave me a helping of chicken soup (which was to be used for the curry), before making popcorn for the rest of the group. Sameena was already in the kitchen helping Mark cook up her curry and the smell of garlic wafted in the air.
I joined Kate and Sarah who were relaxing on the grass and recounted the story of my quick morning departure from the tent. Louise, Monica and Robyn eventually joined our conversation. Steven joined in our little powwow as well, holding his right arm from his horse accident. Such a peaceful day. Even though it would have been perfect for the Francis Valley walk, I felt content taking it easy. One more day in Torres and I would have done the walk. (Allison, I’m sure you are disappointed to hear that I didn’t make the hike.)
At 7:30pm, the rest of the group returned in Peggy looking exhausted. Only Vince, Kath and Aldiey made it to the end of the hike; apparently Brad turned around 10 minutes before the lookout. Kath fell on a branch though (she was wearing shorts) and had a huge gash on her left thigh – Nurse Louise removed the remaining splinters while Nurse Robyn supervised. It looked extremely painful.
We were supposed to have dinner at 8:30, so Kate, Sarah, Ted and I shared a bottle of wine while waiting for our food. Sameena and Mark were busy finishing the curry, rice and broccoli while Terry made flat bread (with Robyn’s help) rolling out the dough using a wine bottle. Unfortunately it took longer than expected and we didn’t eat until 9:15; so late. I sat next to Keith having a wonderful conversation and hearing about his world travels. He crossed overland from England to Australia like Nick. Guess that was the thing to do 30 years ago.
Our fabulous meal was topped off by bananas and chocolate – just like we used to do on camp overnights. After sitting around chatting with Kath and Brad, I came back to the tent around 11pm and went to sleep the natural way, sin Ambien.
It's okay - you did the Torres, so that's all that really counts - and I never made it to the glacier so you're ahead of me there! From your pictures, it's as beautiful as I remember.
ReplyDeleteThanks for understanding grandma. It was amazing! All my pics are on shutterfly if you want to check them out.
ReplyDelete