The start of our fourth month on the road.
Christi and I begin it in easy fashion with a rest day, barely making the last call for breakfast before undertaking a brief exploration of Puerto Natales. The waterfront overlooks Ultima Esperanza Sound (Last Hope Sound) snow-capped Andean peaks, and features a dilapidated pier where pied cormorants sunbathe. It’s quiet and relaxing. There’s hardly a soul about. The cloud formations today are remarkable – it’s as if a fleet of UFOs were hovering over the town.
As usual our rest days are really chores days and since everything is so expensive in Southern Chile and those prices only escalate further as you enter the remote reaches of Torres del Paine National Park we stock up on supplies from the local supermarket before we enter the park. Coke at Erratic Rock also advises us to rent waterproof clothing and warm sleeping bags. We don’t argue.
Christi has got into the seriously bad habit of sharing her meals with the local wild dog population and there are plenty roaming the streets of this tiny town. I ask why the dogs aren’t neutered and the surprising answer I receive is because of ‘machismo’. I’d heard this was a trait popular among Latino men – but their dogs? Apparently no-one feels inclined to castrate these canine Adonises, preferring instead to let nature take its course. And it’s a tough climate down here so many dogs don’t make it through the winter. (Note: ‘machismo’ is defined as an exaggerated sense of masculinity as relates to physical courage, virility, domination of women, and aggressiveness). Just like me, Christi says. I’m not sure if she’s trying to flatter me, but it’s all so true!
Blog Post by Roderick Phillips, author of Weary Heart – a gut-wrenching, heart-wrenching, laugh-wrenching tale
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