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The Americas

October 2022 - April 2024
Starting in Ushuaia and heading north! Read more
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  • TravelerThe Americas
    Day 1

    Bucharest

    October 9, 2022 in Romania ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    The first stop of our trip was Bucharest. We chose it after searching around online for the cheapest possible flight combinations to Ushaia. We arrived in Bucharest after a bit of a delay and made our way to the hostel.

    As with many Eastern European cities in my experience, Bucharest was a positive surprise. I did not anticipate how culturally rich and down right fascinating it would be. The buildings were intriguing and each facade clearly had a history. Walking around the old town was a real experience and I would recommend it to anyone traveling in Europe. Above all, the people were kind and genuine. 10/10 for Bucharest!    Read more

  • TravelerThe Americas
    Day 4

    São Paulo

    October 12, 2022 in Brazil ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    São Paulo was the second stopover destination on our trip. We chose to spend some extra time here as Brazil seemed like an interesting country and a few days of room for potential canceled flights wasn't bad.

    We arrived in the morning and took the metro to the beautiful neighborhood of Vila Madalena where our hostel was located. During the walk from the metro station to the hostel, I could already tell that this city would completely subvert my predefined ideas of what Brazil is. The neighborhood was far more cosmopolitan than I could have imagined. Along every street were restaurants serving all kinds of cuisines, bars with interesting craft beers and walls and sidewalks covered in street art. The hostel we stayed at fit in well with the neighborhood, and the cozy bar offered a complementary welcome Caipirinha (the national cocktail of Brazil, made with sugar, lime and a sugar cane liquor called cachaça). We stayed in a six person dormitory with bunk beds and small lockers for valuables, however during the days and evenings we spent most of our time outside on the roof, at the communal tables or under the shade of the vines alongside our dorm. We met some amazing people at the hostel and in the evenings played cards and drank terrible Brazilian wine.

    On our last day at the hostel we tagged along with Patrick and Julia to a flee market. The market had a few interesting things but the film cameras on offer were incredible. There were a lot of mixed emotions seeing so many rare and unique cameras but also not having space to bring any home. After the flee market we headed down town to join a free walking tour. The old city of São Paulo was definitely the flip side of the luxurious Vila Madalena and was much more what you would expect from the biggest city in the America's. São Paulo has a rich history of immigration and industry which have left thier marks on the city and it was fascinating to see and hear about the history.

    After the free walking tour and walking around the Japanese neighborhood, we headed back to the hostel and prepared for our next flight.    Read more

  • TravelerThe Americas
    Day 8

    Ushuaia

    October 16, 2022 in Argentina ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    Well worn out from a long day of walking around São Paulo, we packed our bags and gathered our documents for the next flight. Leaving the hostel we had to cross the bar, providing the strange experience of walking across a Brazilian dance floor in full hiking gear with a 15kg backpack. That was our farewell to Brazil.

    Our 4 hour flight to Buenos Aires with Aerolineas Argentinas departed at 1:10am from São Paulo. We landed without having slept much and both beginning to feel the strains of such a long day. We now had to deal with a short stopover in Buenos Aires, however unlike most stopovers we were required to change airports from the one we had landed at (Jorge Newberry International) to one on the other side of the city (Ezeiza International).

    Because we had landed at an airport normally reserved for domestic flights, finding the bus and buying tickets was no easy task... We walked to several different kiosks to find the SUBE transportation card (a card that would later prove itself invaluable for breaking into our AirBnB, but that's a different story). When we finally found one, we were told we could only upload credit using cash. After searching for various different ATMs that all refused our cards, we finally exchanged some dollars we had for Pesos. Triumphantly, we returned to the machine only to be informed that in our absence the machine had given up the ghost. Somewhat defeated, we headed to the kiosks we had tried earlier, where luckily it turned out they could charge our cards.

    With the help of some friendly airport staff, we found the (unmarked) temporary bus stop and caught the first bus of our 2.5 hour bus journey across Buenos Aires. Driving through the empty streets at sunrise, our fellow passengers finishing off thier last beers of the night, we soaked up the city.

    The flight to Ushuaia was breath-taking. As we descended, the red and black mountains suddenly cut through the white clouds and beautiful rivers, marshes and lichen covered forests appeared. It was immediately clear to me that this was one of the most wild, untamed and rugged places I have ever seen.

    We hoped in a taxi with two fellow travels we had met at the airport and headed into town. Ushuaia is a beautiful, charming little city, but it's definitely strange. The Southern most city in the world, it feels extremely remote, but it also has all the comforts of modern life you would expect from a big city. Our AirBnB was a room in a cozy house with a fireplaces and view of the Beagle Channel. We had a good dinner, a drink with the people from the plane and got some much needed sleep.

    The next day, after gathering the necessary supplies, we hopped into a taxi and headed to a free campground that happened to be at the start of a trail we wanted to hike the next day. We enjoyed the sunset over the mountains while we cooked sausages over the campfire.    Read more

  • TravelerThe Americas
    1
    Day 10

    Hiking Ushuaia

    October 18, 2022 in Argentina ⋅ ☁️ 8 °C

    At sunrise we woke up, ate a quick breakfast of oats and dulce de leche, packed the tent and hit the trail. The first 5kms of the hike was on a path close to the road, but eventually we turned off and headed into the patagonian forest. We spent a few hours hiking through the lush spring forest, enjoying the shelter from the constant wind and rain. Eventually the path opened up and we reached the first peat wetland of the trail. The wetlands lie in the old glacier basins and have a fascinating range of multicolored mosses and plants. Unfortunately for me, having left my waterproof socks at home, this was the last time I would have dry feet for days.

    We hiked up to a public access cabin where we had planned to sleep the first night. Unfortunately it was closed for some reason, so we decided to push on forward. Our trail crossed a river, however by the time we arrived after a long day of rain and melting snow, the river was much to high and the current much too strong for us to cross it. Exhausted and quickly running out of daylight, we pushed forward along the side of the river in search of a decent spot. After climbing over endless beaver dams and navigating difficult terrain along the riverbank, we came across a spot that looked solid enough to ensure we could sleep without being swallowed by the wetland. It was a little closer to the river than we would have liked, but it was elevated enough to be out of the flood plain. To be extra cautious, we also requested the weather via the inreach satellite communicator (no rain was forecast) and set alarms to check the river every few hours through the night.

    When we awoke, the mountains were frosted in snow, but thankfully the river had subsided substantially. We could therefore make the river crossing and continue the hike. We trudged through more wetlands, which mysteriously continued up the mountain, traversing the odd snow drift, until we began to reach the ridge line. As we crested it, we were greeted by stunning views of the next valley and winds that seemed fixed on blowing us right back down the slope we had just climbed. After finding a sheltered spot, we ate some lunch and looked at the map. The route we had to follow went directly up the mountain pass at the end of the valley, but unfortunately it was still covered in meters of snow. After two long days of incredibly arduous hiking, striving to push forward, we had to make the difficult decision to turn back. It was certainly difficult to deal with, as after coming so far and overcoming so many challenges, the last thing I wanted to do was turn back. But saftey took the priority, and we made the right call.

    Naturally, the way back down was much quicker, and we made it to another campsite just as night was setting in. We slept a cold night, and struggled with mysterious rain that seemed to be falling inside the tent, even when it clearly wasn't raining outside. When I popped my head out of the tent the next morning, the cause of our problems become frustratingly clear. It had snowed the whole night, and the weight of the snow on the tent had caused the fly sheet to press against the inner tent, whose warmth had melted the snow and caused the rain. Making coffee that morning everything was cold and stiff. After forcing ourselves to eat a quick breakfast, we hiked out to the main road, hitched a lift back to Ushuaia and ate a second, much more satisfying, breakfast.    Read more

  • TravelerThe Americas
    Day 14

    Heading to Chile

    October 22, 2022 in Chile ⋅ 🌧 9 °C

    As we moved north from Ushuaia, temporarily leaving the Andes behind, the landscape began to flatten and dry out. Our bus followed the winding Atlantic coastline before turning inland once again and heading towards the Chilean border. The flat windswept patagonian plains were scattered with clusters of guanacos, occasionally interrupted by the odd field of sheep. After a few hours of this, we reached a small border post. The small red roof brought scale to the plains for the first time, and the vast openness of the plains felt almost intimidating. We crossed out of Argentina and continued on to the Chilean border post a few kilometers further up the road, where we were all taken out of the bus and instructed to stand in line. They placed the whole bus shoulder to shoulder, with out bags positioned in front of our feet. A military police officer brought a very cute dog around who picked a few bags, including mine, out of the line. The boarder agents searched our bags and questioned us about any fruit we might be trying to smuggle. Once they were satisfied that thier search had been fruitless, we were allowed into Chile!

    We stayed the night at a very cozy hostel in the town of Punta Arenas. There was not much to do in the town, so in the evening everyone from our six person dormitory was in the hostel cooking dinner. After we ate, we played some cards and drank wine. The next morning we caught the bus further north to Puerto Natales where we stayed at a small campground that had a place for our tent and access to a small kitchen. We headed to Los Glaciares National Park and did the day hike to the base of the famous Torres Del Paine. The hike was steep, but the view was well worth the effort!    Read more

  • TravelerThe Americas
    Day 20

    Perito Moreno Glacier

    October 28, 2022 in Argentina ⋅ 🌬 7 °C

    Being the third largest fresh water reserve in the world, the Perito Moreno glacier is pretty big. It stretches thirty kilometers into the Andes and, to the delight tourists like us, it stretches all the way to the main road! This means it is very easy to view the massive five kilometer face of the glacier from one of the many viewing decks.

    The glacier was definitely one of the more impressive natural phenomena that I have seen. Standing on the decks, you can hear it move. Every now and then, massive chunks of ice crash into the lake below, like someone just hit the jackpot in the largest game of coin pusher. We stood for hours staring at the glacier, waiting and watching it calve. When the clouds would periodically break and the sun would come out, the glacier changed from a bright blue to a solid white and the surrounding mountains loomed above the glacier. Standing on that deck, we experienced every weather type, but even the bitter cold was worth the views. Definitely one to recommend.    Read more

  • TravelerThe Americas
    Day 23

    Fitz Roy Expedition

    October 31, 2022 in Argentina ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    The most famous hike in Patagonia is the W-trek. It is a four day trek that follows the shape of a W in the Torres del Paine National Park. Unfortunately, due to its popularity it was a bit out of our budget so we decided to skip it and hopefully make the money go further somewhere else. In the search for an alternative, we gravitated towards the Los Glaciers National Park in Argentina. The north section of the park is home to the famous Mt Fitz Roy (the mountain also makes up the logo of the clothing brand Patagonia) and a few other stunning attractions. Access to the park is also free and there are a few campgrounds without facilities that are also open access. We therefore decided to plan a trek in the north section of the park, starting from the town of El Chalten.

    Puzzling over the map, one route jumped out at us. It was three days of trekking connecting two different campgrounds. The first campground, Camp Poincenot, was close to the base of Mount Fitz Roy. The second camp, Camp Augustini, was situated just below the Laguna Torre. It was incredibly achievable in terms of kilometers, with each of the three days being around 10km.

    We arrived in El Chalten, a small hiking town near the trails that exists solely for hiking and has only been around for the last 30 years. Our accommodation was a big hostel attached to a 24 hour restaurant. It was definitely a strange setup for a hostel. Showering and brushing your teeth next to a confused restaurant patron takes a bit of getting used to. It was, however, a good base camp and we had plenty time to gather supplies and prep our gear. We also found out that another traveler we had met a few days earlier would also be in the area, so we decided to all hike together.

    We set out with the most beautiful weather. The sky was blue, the sun was shining and there was not a single cloud. Unlike most of our other adventures in Patagonia up to date, which have been horrifically windy, the air was stagnant except for the heat shimmering off the rocks. The trail began about 80 meters from our hostel and looped back around so that we ascended alongside the town. We spent the first few kilometers peacefully meandering through the lush forests on the mountain until we crested the Ridge and were greeted by the surreal view of the luscious green valley and snow capped peaks. The views looked almost fake, like some kind if lowbrow screensaver from the 90s.

    The views continued to improve with each break in the trees. Eventually we reached a fork in the road where we absentmindedly chose the route via the Fitz Roy viewpoint. This turned out to be one of our luckier decisions to date, and we were rewarded with the best view of Mt Fitz Roy we would see the whole trip. The peak of Fitz Roy seemed to touch the panoramic blue sky with only a few white clouds scattered around.

    The hike continued relatively easily through the valley, and every now and then we were rewarded with views of the odd glacier or peak. The glacier Piedras Blancas was especially fascinating, as from the valley it looked like it was about to fall off the mountain. Later, while setting up camp, we were stopped in our tracks by a massive rumbling sound, which we were told was the glacier calving, dropping house-sized chunks of ice into the valley.
    We couldn’t resist the allure of Fitz Roy. So even though it wasn’t what we had planned, we decided to ascend to the lagoon at the base of the tower that evening. As we got higher, we began to notice that we were walking in deeper and deeper snow. All of us had seen photos of the bright blue lagoon and were completely surprised to see that it was completely frozen and covered in snow. While not what we expected, the white lagoon and slopes leading up to the tower felt like another world. Hard to believe that it was only an hour or two from where we were camping. We enjoyed the sun dipping below the mountain and headed back.

    Because once wasn’t enough, we decided to climb up again in the morning with headlamps and try to catch the sunrise. Unfortunately, on the way up I began to notice the effects of the cold I’d been harboring for the last couple of days, and with a racing heart and struggling lungs, I slowed down to a crawl. This, combined with a very icy trail, meant that we missed the sunrise. The morning sun hitting the mountains was still definitely worth the climb, and after enjoying the place to ourselves, we descended for breakfast.

    Day two was another day of perfect weather and easy walking. Once camp was made, we walked up to the Laguna Torres, not sure what to expect. The lagoon was scattered with icebergs, some of them easily the size of a truck. We really wanted to take a dip with the icebergs, but we decided the weather was just too nippy. The third day simply consisted of walking back to El Chalten. Each kilometer got slower and hotter. We could really feel we were running out of energy, and the last kilometer was a real push. Eventually we made it back to town, and ended our expedition slumped over a cold coke and a hot plate of chips.    Read more

  • TravelerThe Americas
    Day 27

    Border Crossings

    November 4, 2022 in Chile ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    After the constant battering rain, snow or hail of Patagonia, my relationship with camping had taken a bit of a toll. Honestly, I would have been happy to chuck the tent, move on and enjoy hostel travel for the rest of the trip. Some long awaited sun was needed, meaning it was time to head north. We discussed several methods of heading north but our favourite plan was to cross the border north of El Chalten, as it seemed like the most adventures option. This route entailed crossing the Argentinian border, camping in no mans land and then hiking for a day or two to the Chilean border where we would get our passports stamped and catch a ferry to Ville O’Higgens, the start of the Carretera Austral. We managed to receive conformation from the Argentinian border authorities that the border would open on the 1st of November, however when we tried to organize the ferry, every ferryman we Whatsapped was doubtful that the Chilean border would actually open, and therefore refused to sail. This was the end of our plan, as we weren’t willing to hike the two days without assurance that their would actually be a boat waiting for us. When the 1st of November rolled around, the Argentinian border opened diligently, however, as predicted by the ferrymen, the Chilean border remained shut. Thankfully we had made alternative plans, however we heard that another couple biking the route were not as lucky. They crossed the boarder and after a long section of trail and dirt road were met by a closed Chilean border and the realisation that they had to return the way they had come. I can only hope they had enough food and water supplies. How this is possible completely escapes me. The incompetence and lack of coordination required to open one side of a border but not the other is almost comical.

    Our alternative plan was to head to another strange border. We found buses to a town called Los Antiguos on the border. At this crossing, the border posts of Chile and Argentina were less than a kilometre apart. Now before we assume too much competence, it is important to point out one of the major idiosyncrasies of this border crossing. While the two border posts are a stones throw apart, they are separated by a river. One might assume that the logical course of action would be to build a bridge over the river between the two posts right? Incorrect! The decision seems to have been to build the fucking thing 3kms down the road. So we found ourselves walking in no mans land. Thankfully, we had company. After rolling out the overnight bus, we sat down on a bench next to an Australian couple who also looked rather worse for wear. After overhearing each others conversations, we discovered we both wanted to cross the border so we decided to join forces. A shared taxi dropped us at the border where we got given a piece of paper that had several boxes we apparently needed to get stamped at different booths in order to complete the crossing. The walk actually landed up being rather pleasant, and we enjoyed some good chats as we ticked off the kilometres on our 6km out and back route. It turned out Megan was a doctor back home and Lachlan was a musical theatre performer turned economist. Too date they remain some of the most easy going badass adventurers I have met. Once across the border in Chile Chico we all had to wait for the ferry, which would only be going the next afternoon, so we grabbed a room in a hostel downtown.

    To say the ferry was very windy would be a major insult to Patagonian winds. Too be fair, it started out very relaxed. The four of us spent the first hour sprawled out on the roof of the ferry shooting the breeze and enjoying the sun. Then things got really windy. Our cooling breeze turned into gale force winds that felt like they were going to blow us off the roof. Our boat began smashing into waves, sending metallic crashes through the vessel. All the passengers took refuge in the cabin of the boat or one of the busses parked in the ferry. We, on the other hand… We were not going to let the opportunity for some fun pass. We spent a solid hour messing around in the wind with big smiles and flapping cheeks. The captain, seeing us outside, must have assumed the wind wasn’t actually that bad. He decided to come out and smoke a cigarette with us. As soon as he opened the door his cigarette went out and the wind caught his mug, sending coffee flying everywhere. He beat a rather hasty retreat back into the cabin, fighting the wind-caught door all the way.

    One beautiful minibus ride later, and we were in Coyhaique where we ate dinner at the fire station. Too this day I am still a bit confused as to why the fire station had a restaurant, but the food was pretty good so we didn’t ask too many questions.    Read more

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