Glaciar Grey

 

The next day, December 2nd, I decided to walk to the Glaciar Grey and come back to the campamento Paine Grande in the evening, so I would complete the circuit of the "W" on that same day. Then I started to walk loaded with a lighter backpack, my soul lit by energy and optimism, even though the landscape around me was completely devastated by that fire. A while after, when I was climbing up a rocky and little valley, Gaia rewarded me with a scene that I never expected to see: About 20 meters a couple of huemules crossed the path, slowly ascending the bare hillside. The individual who was behind was a male, and stood for a moment in silence to watch me while I photographed him. The huemul (Hippocamelus bisulcus) is an endangered deer (and therefore difficult to observe) that appears on the shield of Chile holding the national emblem besides a cóndor.

Shortly after this curious vision I reached the shore of the Laguna de los Patos, and then began to speed up my pace, overtaking all hikers found my way for the next two hours, helped by my light backpack. Near Lago Grey I could see the pieces of floating ice that had broken away from the glacier tongue and also a distant ferry carrying tourists. With relief I saw that on the opposite shore of the lake an extensive sheet of green forest which had not been affected by the fire. Then, after a good time to walk and enjoy the solemn views of the lake and glacier tongue in the distance, I arrived at the Refugio Grey, where I was glad to see S & N again. They invited me to have lunch: a warm pasta dish with melt cheese, and the truth is that my stomach appreciated it so much. N & S had just arrived to the refugio after enjoying a viewpoint overlooking the Glaciar Grey and were explaining to the people there about their future plans in Chile. In addition, both would walk that same afternoon to the refugio de Paine Grande, where successfully they would finalize the circuit of the "W", and would take the ferry of the 18.30 towards the limits of the park. I said goodbye to them again, and this time would be the last farewell.

So I resumed my solitary journey toward that viewpoint, and that's when I realized I had spent too much energy during my quick and energetic approach to the refugio Grey. After a energy consuming climb, that at certain point saved a waterfall, I finally reached a wooden balcony from where you could see quite close the tongue of Glaciar Grey. This balcony had also wooden benches to sit quietly and breath the magic and greatness of the place.

Unfortunately I had to abandon that comfortable seat, and begin my return to el Campamento Paine Grande. I walked now slowly and taking it easy, knowing that the way was long and thus I needed to save my energies until the end. To enhance the drama even more, in half an hour it began to rain, and then it did not stop. I remember that once I got to the laguna de los Patos I was pretty tired, and my body was a little numb under the continuous curtain of rain and the cold. I felt like blaming someone for this frustrating and uncomfortable situation, but there was no one to blame (except myself): the forces of nature acted as they pleased and you only could accept it without complaining.

Already approaching the campamento, when I was walking down the little valley where hours earlier I had seen the huemuls, a fast climber covered with a waterproof poncho overtook me while talking to himself in a rather strange voice. A few meters down, he sat on a rock beside the trail, as if he was waiting for someone left behind, he was resting or perhaps he was "on the loo". But soon I realized that he was alone, and this puzzled me, and a couple of minutes later he reached me again with the apparent intention of talking: He asked if I was all right, told me that he was Brazilian and had traveled a lot in Latin America. In such moment, and almost in an apology, I just kept in silence and didn´t talk, so this boy accelerate his pace and left me behind again. Then he started screaming in a gutural voice, while he seemed to enjoy the rain and the barren landscape. For a moment I remembered (I don´t know why) one of the final scenes of the film Blade Runner, when the Nexus-6 replicant saves Rick Deckard from falling from the ledge of a building before his own life of android is consumed.

When I was just arriving at the campamento, I saw in the distance how the ferry departed from the little pier and moved away across Lago Pehoe. Then I knew that it was already 18.30. After 8 hours of walking my hands were completely numb from the cold rain, and I ordered a generous and well deserved dinner in the cozy dining room of the refugio. After that I got inside the sleeping bag and fell asleep quickly.