Until next time....

As a final post I want to thank all the people who sustained and inspired me over this past year. From the women in Terra Prometida, Brazil, to the kilombo of Buenos Aires, my dear friend Linnea, to the Gerrity´s in Vina del Mar and all the people I came across along the way- thank you for your friendship and generosity, for sharing your culture and opinions with me. Also to all the good people back home who sent their well wishes and prayers along the way. The beauty of not only the places I´ve been, but the people I´ve met during these travels have granted me new ways of thinking, understanding and appreciating the world. I feel incredibly blessed and grateful for this experience and all it has taught me. My only hope is that I can continue to give as others have given to me. Hasta la proxima aventura.....

"In the end, though, maybe we must all give up trying to pay back the people in this world who sustain our lives. In the end, maybe it's wiser to surrender before the miraculous scope of human generosity and to just keep saying thank you, forever and sincerely for as long as we have voices." - Eat, Pray, Love

Zapallar

Machas... only in Chile. Rico!









Had yet to be in the sea on this side of South America.


On Saturday, Rob´s birthday, we spent the day in Zapallar- an exquisite beach community an hour or so up the coast. It is impressive- a pristine stretch of beach, grand old homes and precioso stone paths that wind along the ocean´s edge. The place has wonderful summer feel and much of the high season crowds had yet to arrive. Sure going to miss Rob and Jude's company!

Bariloche & San Martin De Los Andes

This hike, Cerro Campamiento in Bariloche has a great view. It's short and steep. I hiked up there late afternoon and got lost on the way down. I came down on the wrong side of the mountain into a maze of fields, small paths and no sense of where I was. I kind of panicked and even blew the whistle I had in my bag, which is pretty funny now that I think back on it. It really wasn't that bad, I just had to hike back up and find the right path- which I ended up managing to do before nightfall.

I only spent one night in Bariloche. After the tranquility of El Bolson the placed just seemed too much abuzz for me. It's quite touristy and rightly so- the landscape is really breathtaking.


I hiked out to this beach, La Islita, in San Martin de Los Andes the second day I was there. It was bliss.

The diving board was a long stick that jutted out over the lake. I spent a long time standing at the end- all ten toes on the nose.


I went to Quila Quina for the day with the owner of the hostel, Gonzalo and his family. This is his nine year old daughter, Paloma. She's very sweet, pre-cocious girl and I enjoyed spending the day making rock pictures and exploring the river with her.

Mi guia del rio.

Benito and his dad.

San Martin de Los Andes is a quaint, beautiful fishing town north of Bariloche. The lakes and scenery of the place are really spectacular. I was wishing my brother Paul was there to show me how to cast a line because I'm pretty sure I stepped into any fisherman's paradise. Many of the hikes in the area end at small pebble beaches and a wide open lake. Most of the surrounding area is protected by a national park so there is few if any houses on the lake and not many boats. I was tempted to join Paula from La Pampa, who I met at the hostel and look for a summer job.

Cajon De Azul

Lots of rickety bridges on the way up to Cajon.

The water is turqoise.

Decided to dive in without feeling the water. It's glacier water. I got a brain freeze.


That's Claire and Jitka- the crazy girl from Czech I met.

I wanted to eat my way through that garden.

Arriving here after half a day's hike is really something. This place is way up in the mountains, in the middle of nowhere. That's Artilio- the owner and creator.

I couldn't get over the garden.



sheep on the run.


I thought they were fleas in my bed, but thankfully didn't get any bites. I think I was just imagining it because those mattresses look like prime candidates for bed bugs.

The next day one Czech, four Israelis, one German and one N. American braved the cold river. Vale la pena!

Christa and Jitka.


From El Bolson, I decided to hike up to Cajon de Azul- a refugio in the mountains and stay the night. The place was afuera de este mundo. The river you hike alongside on the way up is so turqoise and clear that you can hardly believe it. When you reach the Cajon- it´s as if you've stepped into a dream world. The garden is like nothing I've ever seen. I had a tarta de acelga (chard) that night for dinner, all fresh from the front yard- me mata. Artilio- the master of the whole place has done an incredible job. At the refugio I met this crazy girl, Jitka, from the Czech Republic. We spent the next couple days hiking, biking and hanging out together- she was a lot of fun.

El Bolson

Tom and Ollie- Two Aussies enjoying a hearty asado.


Tom really took to his surroundings- straw hat, overalls, long hair... well done. Funny guy.

The day Tom left he said to me, "Man, I'm surprised I ever got out of that place." I knew exactly what he meant, tough place to leave.

Casa Del Viajero. Best hostel of the trip. Nay had been there weeks before and recommended it to me.

First day we hiked to Cabeza de Indio and found this waterfall on the way.

I saw this lake from the hike the previous day and decided to figure out how to take the bus there the following day.


I met some local teenagers who showed me where you can j ump off the cliffs.

The water wasn't that cold.

El Bolson is a beautiful laid-back town in Northern Patagonia just south of Bariloche. Many of the hippies in Buenos Aires relocated there in the 1960s and 70s. It is home to a famous craft market where many of the locals sell their hand-spun wares. I stayed at a great place called Casa de Viajero. The owner, Augustin and his wife, have created an idyllic oasis in the forest. Hand-crafted stone, wood houses and huts, fish ponds, hammocks, gardens, chickens. A lot of the travelers there had ended up staying much longer than planned, myself included. There's a lake in the next town, a great river and endless hiking. The people there are very easy-going and you get the sense they really enjoy living there. Being there made me realize how much I truly love the country.

El Chalten

Caught in the wind at Lago Torre.





the general store in Chalten.

view of El Chalten.

The water in Patagonia is stunningly clear and you can drink straight from any running river- taste's better than Poland Springs.

This is for my brother-in-law Tim who once took me hunting for wild bonsai trees. Tim- is this one?

View of good ol' Fitz Roy from the trail. This is the mountain range that is on the Patagonia logo.

I liked this mountain a lot.



On the way to El Chalten, the bus stops at this house which serves food and has lots of animals roaming around. I really bonded with this colt.

Lots of blue from the bus.

The trail is the thing,
not the end
of the trail.
Travel too fast
and you miss
all you are
traveling for.

My friend Matias in Buenos Aires grew up and worked as a mountain guide in El Chalten. While I was living in BA he told me some incredible stories about El Chalten and since then it was the place I always wanted to visit in Patagonia. I rented some hiking boots upon my arrival so I could really hit the trails and also not be bothered by the annoying whistle made by the air bubble that had popped in the back of my sneaker in Torres Del Paine. I spent my 24th birthday hiking up to the infamous Fitz Roy on a surprisingly clear day. The weather the days before I arrived had been awful which made me re contenta I had made the last minute decision to hike in TDP. I stayed at a cozy hostel and on the night of my birthday was sung to in five languages and gifted a bottle of Malbec with a big, white candle melted on top. I'd like to go back there someday, those mountains are really something.