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Best wishes for this new year 2017 !!!!
It is around a cosy campfire and near the sea, 20 km from Puerto Williams, that The 2016 chapter has been closed. The Argentinean Tierra del Fuego is on the other side of the water, Ushuaia is not far. Around, people from all other the world who, more or less randomly, ended up in the Refugio El Padrino, are gathering.
We arrived on the Navarino Island on the 24th, beginning almost two months of vacations in Patagonia. Getting off the Ferry from Punta Arenas (30 hours, pretty nice and relaxing) the Refugio El Padrino is right on the other side of the street. Right away the atmosphere is warm and friendly between travelers of all kind, pushed by some curiosity and the desire to discover this little town (2800 people including army). When Cecilia, the owner, comes in to bring fresh goods, a warm wave of kindness and generosity is literally entering as well. Everybody is invited to the Christmas Eve party which is, of course, great despite the cold wind freezing some water on the roadside.
On the 25th, it is time to get on the trail for a 7 days trek. During those last few years, the trek of the Dientes de Navarino has constantly gained popularity: austral landscapes, alpine summits, faint trail and constantly changing weather are ingredients for a perfect small adventure. The loop is actually quite short, around 30 km and could be done relatively quickly. However we are stuck on the island until January 2nd therefor we don’t have to hurry. Why not add a few stretches to the traditional trek with a trip to lake Windhond ? Trouts are supposed to be great there and a small shack offers a good shelter against the wind.
The first steps on the trail are made in the middle of some wonderful woods where dense and twisted trees are drawing a path that leads higher and higher. It is muddy and humid and suddenly the forest stops. It is wide open but the trail is still steep until it reaches a flag at the summit of Cerro Bandera which is an incredible belvedere on the whole island. The tundra slowly merges into a huge boulder field. The path wonders through the mountains weaknesses in order to reach the southern part of the island, going through several passes, the last one offering a stunning view of the Wollaston archipelago that ends in South at Cape Horn. The South side of the island is less covered with woods but the primitive forests are often chaotic and the trail through it is steep and complex. At a lower altitude, beavers dams are numerous as well as the damages they caused. Beavers are not native here. They have been introduced in Tierra del Fuego for their fur, but quickly they spread out on the other side of the Beagle Canal,and, without any predator there, settled pretty well on the island. Their dams are locally increasing the water level and the surrounding trees are dying.
Further and lower, peatland are offering a complex maze of green mossy pods and deep holes of water. It is mandatory to hop from one of this pod to the other during a good hour in order to reach the large Lake Windhond and the Cabana Charles. Trouts are quite big in the river or in the small lake around this little refuge : specimen under 13 inches are actually rare…
Weather is never consistent. The morning sun could quickly disappear and in minutes a snow shower could come. Anyway, once on the trek it is mandatory to keep going… a good strategy is to push harder when the weather is nice to go further and set the tent on a dry and sheltered spot.
Day after day the story is similar: a little bit of water, wind, a tiny bit of sun, amazing lakes, windy passes, complex itinerary, mud… we are finally really lucky, almost dry, head full of images and with a hard to describe feeling to have stepped somewhere special. Landscape is not as amazing as some other places like the Huayhuash trek in Peru, but it is the gathering of all those little things that makes this trek a truly special one.
However this experience is not only about trekking: the global atmosphere, the warm welcome, the kindness of the people we met… are part of this rich adventure. Coming back to Punta Arenas puts an end to this first Patagonian chapter.
