Crossing the border

The border between Chile and Argentina is framed by two small towns,  Chile Chico and Los Antiguas, our precedent and destination.

The border is a river and the two towns are both about 4-5 km from the river.

You are not allowed to take a tour of people across the border without bringing them back but you are allowed to cross the border on foot.

So here's what we did. We got a taxi to the border, crossed on foot. Walked the 5km to the river where we had set up a tour operator to pick us up. He was supposed to get us and drive us to the other border which we would then walk across, and then take us to the ferry terminal, where we would buy the ferry tickets across the lake and onward minibus tickets to Cohaique. Then he'd take us on a tour and stuff.

Unexpectedly this whole plan came off without a hitch, and by ten in the morning we were headed off to a national park.

Now I had booked this tour because I had read in a guidebook about a turquoise lake full of flamingos. Spoiler alert, this turned out to be a brown lake with two flamingos. Far away. In a paddock.

However it wasn't that disappointing for two reasons. Firstly, our best day in Los Antiguas happened to drive by two other flamingos in a puddle in a field who were fantastic colors, pink and scarlet, and who we pulled over to look at and then took off, showing the scarlet and black undersides of their wings.  So we did get to see a couple beautiful flamingos in the wild and that's actually what made me remember to go here. The second reason is that we started the day with an excellent 7 km hike so I was already full of awesome when we got there.

So the hike. The Patagonian landscape is hills, still the Andes, covered with deserty bushes that flower at least now in summer, and provide canyon gulfs with rivers between them. Some snow capped peaks depending on the elevation. Few big trees, those are more north and on the Chilean side. They say the Andes are born in Venezuela and go all the way to Antarctica. They run north South, except just above ushuaia where the continental plates bend them and they go east west. We crossed them there but that's another story.

This whole time we've worked our way up the Andes.

So the hike. We started a gentle uphill, a Mongolian kind of slope, straight up but even and not too steep. Straight along through the deserty bluff until we got to the mouth of the canyon. Then it turned greener, the trickling waterway through the canyon feeding brighter plants. We made our way further up the canyon base until we hit these impressive rock formations. Think like the Torres in Torres del Paine. The best one was a total totem pole, 40m high and 4m diameter. And standing all alone so it was tall and stark.

Then we started the most serious climbing, cresting the ridge at a saddle back that was also a view point. This had a great view of the next canyon, and the jagged rocks that led into there. A baby condor flew over.

From there we descended on a bit of a curve to a little cave of the hands. Now this was not an impressive display compared to the one we went to on the best Las Antiguas day, but you could totally make out prehistoric hand prints and you could go right inside the cave so you could get as close as you wanted. I could have touched them though of course I didn't.

Then we descended steeply down, and you had to be careful with your footing because it was treacherous. Jes fell but did not retwist her ankle. I got a bit behind, but when I rounded a corner I saw Jes and the guide on top of a giant white rock in a white stone landscape. A moonscape the sign read and so I called it right away as volcanic. Because when I went hiking in the canary island they called the striking post volcanic rocky desolation a moonscape. 

This one was magic because it was white. So I get there and climb this 3m tall white rock which totally has like a ramp up the back. And all around us are these crazy convoluted rock formations. The guide says it's where the volcano imploded and then a river poured in making all the swirls and pockets.

Then we clambered down the cliff back to the car. A long way but satisfying. And then to the disappointing flamingo Lake and then to Chile Chico, where we spent the night in a palatial hotel room which we got cheap because it was under construction 👷. This tragically meant there was no heat but we got space heaters which worked good and cooked Asian food and slept in a bed with crisp white sheets.

Next afternoon we took the ferry across the lake. The lake of our heart, lake Buenos Aires / Lake general Carrera that we've been at for days now, said goodbye to the lake and minibussed up to Cohaique. The regional capital where we worked out our next step, did laundry, and solved our cash problems.

Booked the ferry from Puerto aysen to Isla grande de chiloe, a 24 hour ferry, booked our first night on the isla,investigated a bunch of options that led to that. Made Mexican food. Did I say that jes lost her debit card that can take out cash? Probably in the atm. Managed to western union ourselves some money after investigating some options. Walked around the square. Played some pokémon.  Also this hostel did not have heat. Also the dogs of chile are adorable.

Then today we got up, had a leisurely morning, then got the minibus to Puerto aysen, and then the other minibus to the ferry port, and now we're on our ferry. A little two bunk cabin with a window, our home for the next day.