Day 10 (more) - Beginning the W at Pehoe

Consulting Bill and the map, we`d come up with what we thought was a fairly comprehensive, but doable trip within the park. The plan was to start at Refugio Pehoe, and by doing a handful of day hikes, we´d hit all points of the W, ending with an exit from Hosterìa Las Torres.

After reconfiguring for dayhike lightness and speed, we dropped what was left of our packs on the porch outside Refugio Pehoe. While we may have left them a little bit longer than most, we found that at refugios throughout the park, people routinely leave their packs. Our goal was to buck the wind and to get up to see Glacier Grey, a estimated 2 hours up from Pehoe.

Once among some trees, the wind was much less of an issue, and we found ourselves getting some sun. The lack of ozone (thanks fossil fuels!) makes for some powerful sun, so we were quickly stripping off layers and reapplying sunscreen. Without our full packs, we were making very good time, and before too long we had our first view of glacial icebergs on Lago Grey.

Lago Grey is not nearly so brilliantly blue as Lago Pehoe, but the color was certainly unique, and the winterfresh-blue icebergs were breathtaking in contrast. A few more windy hills, gusts of wind, and mistakes following the main trail (in general, trails will diverge frequently, but *usally* meet up again) and we were treated with a view overlooking the north end of Lago Grey. Wow, I thought, the sun really is playing interestingly with the colors of the lake up there.

Julie, though, having some glacial experience, pointed out that the interesting colors and textures was the glacier. In a few more steps, we could see where the water met the ice. It´s just as jagged, monstrous, and blue as any craggly glacier I´ve seen depicted in any movie. Hopefully the pictures do it some justice...

http://good-times.webshots.com/album/555434358AHAZGR

We`d been hoping for a nice lunch break overlooking the glacier, but the wind was too much. After pausing for a few pictures at the mirador overlooking the glacier (a rocky point to the left of the trail), we started to head down the hill. An aside of possible interest to others: by thirdhand information, the mirador that is roughly halfway up to the Refugio Grey offers the best look at the glacier until the refugio itself.

Salame, swiss cheese, pita bread, peanuts and raisins. A classic trail lunch powered us up for the downhill jet. Again, we surprised ourselves by how quick we covered ground. The downhill views were just as spectacular, looking out over Lago Pehoe. Although we were still being blown around a bit, the sun was shining. We counted ourselves lucky everytime a few raindrops would hit us but amount to nothing more...

We got back to the refugio at Pehoe and geared up for the actual hiking. We´d not done a full-trip since the Trinity Alps in August, and we already had a few kilometers under our belts for the day, so we weren´t too sure how well we´d fare. But our goal for the evening was Campamento Italiano, supposedly 2 1/2 hours away. Sun was shining, wind was blowing, and feet were hurting. Oh, and the INCREDIBLY HUGE and stark peaks of the Cuernos and yes, Las Torres were visible nearly the whole time. The latter was especially exciting, after hearing how Morgan, Becky, and Terri had seen nothing but snow and rain of the Torres after completing a grueling day hike just the day before. As the trail slowly passed beneath our feet, we were again thankful for the great weather we were having.

Being thankful won´t stop you from being tired, though, and we were more than ready for a rest by the time we reached our destination.

In addition to the great views we´d been getting, Italiano was immediately preceded by a couple-friendly bridge (no more than two at a time!). We found a fairly sheltered spot for the tent among the trees. Relative to Pehoe, the campground is very sheltered, with tall (God, I´m blanking on the name right now, but it includes an ñ) trees bending in the wind and dispersing its force. Despite this, we were still very glad to know that the tent we´d borrowed (thanks Ethan and Margie!) was anchored at six major points, and had a fairly low profile. There would be no gusts of wind bringing the tent walls down on us.

Italiano is one of the free campgrounds in the park, so we splurged for dinner. Big time. Chicken flavored ramen.

To give you some idea of the price inflation near the park, we paid nearly $.60 cents per ramen brick in Puerto Natales, still a bargain compared with the $4 (regular-sized) chocolate bar at the refugio store in the park.

Anyway, the ramen was sooooo good. Seriously. We discussed a bit how it had been a few years since either one of us had eaten any ramen, but I doubt it was this long absence from our menus that made it so delicious. Served with some peanuts on the side for protein, accompanied by some delicious pink lemonade crystal light, and followed by a delicious dessert of mostly crushed and partially stale sugar cookies it was a we-deserved feast.

We were drained from a long day of riding, hiking, and packing. So, despite the gusting wind tearing through the trees (more than audible despite using earplugs -- which we recommend packing for a number of reasons), we hit the hay around 10pm. In contrast to our fears about waking up freezing cold, or having to sleep in every layer we´d brought, our thermarests and sleeping bags (one of each again borrowed from Ethan and Margie, but available for rent at refugios also) kept us plenty warm. Too warm, really.

Pics from the Pehoe-Italiano leg:
http://good-times.webshots.com/album/555434068OEWYTW


But one incredible day was over (great places, people, and weather), and we were excited for the next...

Distance hiked: 21 km (13 miles)
Time hiked: 5 hours
Injuries sustained: sore feet