Kayaking with whales

The day starts at 3:10 as the van is picking us up at 03:30, direction “the Base” to put the special gear on and eat breakfast.
The outfits consist of our own clothes: Odlo base layer, fleece and down jackets under a dry suit plus our GorTex over and one more water repellent jacket over. We are preparing for about 10 hours navigation on the sea (mostly on a little motor boat) in the Patagonian fjords so we need to be dressed accordingly.
On the way to the Marine park San Fransisco Clochane we already spot dolphins. We pass the San Isidoro lighthouse, the southernmost point of the American continent and we stop on a shore for a very complicated pee (all these layers are hard to take off, especially the dry suit). We cross the channel and spot the Humpback whale for the first time. It usually breathes out 4-5 times before diving and doing so we have the chance to see its tail.
We get down to the kayaks and after some confusion when I “loose” the pedals in the middle of a current we get into it and we make our way towards the whale. Spotting it from the kayak is an incredible feeling and I cannot stop saying “oh my god!” every time we see it.
After kayaking we go back on the boat to go to the Island Santa Ines where we navigate through little icebergs to get close to the glaciers Hellados
The atmosphere is magical, going through these little ice blocks on the smooth turquoise ocean. We can disembark for a quick pictures, another complicated pee and for our guides to retrieve some material a Chilean explorator let after an unsuccessful attempt at staying alone for a month on this deserted island.
We go back to the “bottleneck” where 3 currents meet bringing a lot of food for the whales and find our whale again. Unfortunately the current is too strong for us to go back on the kayak but we can go close to the whale again.
The return is rougher as the wind picked up and we get properly shaken up.
Back to the Base we are welcomed by a traditional dinner (seefood, potatoes and a kind of dough in plastic film) traditionally cooked in a hole in the ground. We drink pisco sour with ice cubes made from a chunk of ice taken from the fjord.
It is then time to take the bus to Punta Arenas and then directly to Puerto Natales. A long (more than 21 hours) but exceptional day.Read more