From El Calafate, Argentina to Torres del Paine National Park, Chile. Time for a rest.

Tuesday 2^nd December 2014. Stage 98. El Calafate to Bush camp. 30 kms short of Tapi Aike. 132 kms for the day. Paved 55%, climbing 1403 metres, summit, 1140 metres. A nice day to start the 3 ride stretch to Torres del Paine.

After a long day yesterday, it was time to get back on the bike and start the 3 day stretch to the National Park Torres del Paine. We arrived back at the campsite to meet up with all the other riders around 8.15am. Some were still having breakfast and others were talking about the glacier they visited yesterday. If you're ever in this part of the world you must go and visit the Perito Merino Glacier, you will not be disappointed.

 I took the above photo as we started the 10 km climb and slowly watched the valley disappear.

Next time I do a tour it will be on a motorcycle like above. As I've got further south I'm seeing more and more motorcyclists touring Argentina and Chile.

Now we all like to watch or participate in a bit of dancing, but the South American people love to 'Tango'. The Tango arose in the brothels, bars and port areas of Buenos Aires, where waves of Europeans poured into the country mixing various forms of music. The result, tango, came about as a fusion of disparate influences including;

• Old Milonga-songs of the rural gauchos
• Habanera-Cuban music.
• Polka an Mazurka-Slavic music.
• Contradanse-Spanish music.
• Flamenco-from Andalucia.
• Italian folk music.
  Now you have all the information you need to know about how the 'Tango' came into existence.

We rolled out of camp at 9am on the dot. Our route would take us back 32 kms along the road we had to battle to get to El Calafate 2 days ago. Now we would head east and have the benefit of a roaring westerly wind. I rode with Barry from start to finish and we had a great day.

As soon as we got to the outskirts of El Calafate the wind seemed to hit us hard in the back forcing us along at speeds around 40-45 kph. We didn't have to do much other than steer the handlebars in the right direction, the pedaling was pretty easy.

When we start riding each day it's always a good feeling to see all the cyclists scattered all over the road in front of us and behind. Today we would have the majority of riders in front of us. We both decided that today was going to be an easy day. After 45 kms we hit the first climb for the day. Just as we were about to climb the 10 km mountain we got to see a Guanaco standing on a small mound of dirt all on his lonesome. I did read that the male is known to be a loner and only comes in contact with the other guanacos during the mating season. How cool is that?

  

We started the climb and watched the valley slowly fade into the distance. We did see some very nice homesteads during the climb which obviously meant that someone in this area is rather wealthy indeed. We tapped away for just under an hour stopping often to look in amazement at this beautiful land we were riding through. Once at the top we were on the flat plains for the rest of the day.

Lunch was at 70 kms and we were sitting down eating away before midday. With sun shining down and the lunch stop well protected from the wind, we took ½ an hour to devour our rolls, fruit, biscuits and drink. This is the time of day I really enjoy, sitting down and relaxing and not busting my ass out on the road into the headwind.

Barry and I got rolling again and the wind was still favourable. We continued on and soon we were at the 94 km junction which meant it was time to hit the dirt for the rest of the day. The road wasn't that bad, but still we had to work hard on finding the best track to take. Now the wind had changed and we were riding into the face of a stiff southerly breeze. You have to ask the question, ' how the hell can the wind changed from westerly to southerly in the space of 10 minutes'?

We kept pedaling along the rocky road for the next 40 kms till we found the fire engines parked down on a nice grass area in a small valley. The last 40 kms was a landscape of lunar appearance, small thick clumps of grass and nothing else. At times it looked like the rolling hills had been hit by a lawn mower they looked so smooth and green. I'm sure my grass will look like that when I get home in 2 weeks. NOT.

Once in camp it back to the usual stuff of building a home, a quick wipe over and off for soup and bread. I went for a walk on my own up along the road to see what I could find. I ended up finding a piece of 'Andesite', a rock for Ashley, some sheep in the distance, some Rheas, and about 5 dead cows, 4 of which were floating in the creek close to the camp. Not a bad afternoon of sightseeing.

 The photo above is of Julia, one of the nice people on tour. Julia comes from Brisbane Australia.

 The above photo was taken today with the Torres del Paine 3 peaks in the distance. This is one spectacular place to ride in.

Slowly but surely we made our way around the lake and onto our campsite in the Torres del Paine National Park.

We ended up riding 30kms shorter than expected and should have reached bush camp Tapi Aike, but because we all went trekking yesterday, Rob the Boss decided that we could start at 9am instead of that terrible time of 8am and would therefore cut the day to 132 kms. The only bad thing about that is that we have to do those 30 kms first thing tomorrow. Who cares?

I'll be in 'Tent Hilton' nice and early tonight and reading another good book, 'My name is Malali'. The book is the true story of the young Afghani women who was shot in the face in 2012 on her way home from school. She was 15 years of age at the time and came from the SWAT valley. The other 2 books I've read lately which are both brilliant are; The Lone Survivor, and The Man Who Broke into Auschwitz.

Tomorrow is going to be a long day on the dirt roads of Argentina as we cross back into Chile. Not sure what tomorrow will bring other than tiredness by the time it's over.

Until tomorrow, safe riding.

Wednesday 3^rd December 2014. Stage 99. Bush camp to Cerro Castillo, 92 kms. Paved 43%, climbing 618 metres, summit 645 metres. Back to Chile and freezing cold weather.

Sleeping in the small valley 30 kms away from Tapi Aike was pretty cool, actually it so was cool that inside my tent at 4am the temperature was 5.8 degrees C. Thankfully I was nice and warm in my duck down sleeping bag listening to the frogs in the river, the sheep in the meadow and the birds putting their 2 bobs worth of calls out to the world, otherwise I woke refreshed and ready for another day of riding.

With an 8 am departure it was back up to the road and start heading south for 35 kms of rocky roads. The scenery of vast valleys and rolling green hills, and one lonesome Condor flying overhead was just like a 'National Geographic' moment. I had seen a couple of Condors flying overhead when we were walking on the ice in Perito Merino the other day, but today was the first time I got to see one so close. The wing span on these birds is close to 3 metres and they have these fingers at the end of their wings which make them stand out from the rest of the bird life in this part of South America.

When we got to the town of Tapi Aike all we found was a closed service station, a closed shop and 2 sheep eating grass at the front of the school. I think this place must open up when summer gets a little closer. What we did notice this morning was the temperature. Although it was cold in the tent last night, whilst eating breakfast the temperature rose to 7 degrees and we hit the road at 8 degrees. For the majority of the day the temperature sat between 8 and 14 degrees C.

Everywhere you looked, all you could see were those beautiful green pastures and once again snow capped mountains far away in the distance. The Patagonian winds were still quiet early in the day and only started to awake around 11 am. Once at the deserted petrol station it was back onto the pavement for the run into the lunch truck at the 65 km mark. I rode with Barry and JR (who I've given the title of my own photographer for the rest of trip), stopping to take photos and just enjoying the limited time I have remaining on this holiday.

Now people say to me, 'how can you call what you do each day a holiday'? Simple, I love cycling, I love an extreme challenge, I don't have to carry my bags, someone cooks for me and cleans up after I make a mess, I'm told where I can put 'Tent Hilton' up, shown where I can go to the toilet, I can wear the same dirty smelly clothes each day, and I can go as fast or as slow as I like all day everyday, and I don't have to work, so I must be on holidays. Yes, it's tough both physically and mentally, but anyone can do this if they want to, it's just how bad do you want to experience one of the greatest cycle journeys on earth? If you're answer is 'Yes', then this tour is for you. Remember it's one of the toughest holiday's you will ever endure over 4 ½ months of your life.

The above photo was taken from the campsite inside the National Park today.

We rolled down to the lunch truck which was set up near a nice wind break. Walter had the fire going and was toasting bread and some food left over from last evening's meal. I had my bread roll with salad and that was enough for me. I found that lately I've been eating less for lunch and dinner. I think my body doesn't require as much food now as it's use to the enormous load I'm putting on it each day.

It wasn't until we stopped for lunch that we realised how cold it really was. I had every bit of cold weather gear on and still I was freezing. All the other riders also complained on how cold it was. Although we've ridden in colder weather I think the westerly winds coming off the snow capped mountains were causing all the damage. We didn't hang around too lunch at lunch as we had to cross into Chile today and sometimes these border crossings can be a pain in the ass.

About 20 kms after lunch we made a right hand turn and got back onto the dirt again. A short 8 km ride got us to the Argentinian border control. Just as Barry and I pulled up, a bus load of German tourists walked into immigration before us. About 30 tourists had to be processed whilst we were waiting outside in the cold. Eventually we got to the counter to be told to fill out a form. So out we went again and completed the form and returned for the stamp that allowed us to continue on.

The dirt road was pretty good all the way to the 90 km mark and the Chilean border post. There is absolutely nothing between these borders posts that resemble civilisation. A couple of cows, the odd Guanaco running around and that's it. We were told we had to get rid of any fruit we may be carrying before entering Chile, so whilst completing the forms I devoured my banana and ate the 1 remaining fruit bar. The Chilean border control was straight forward and within 5 minutes we were back on the pavement and heading the 2 kms down to the campsite. Our campsite is situated in the backyard of a family home. They have kindly allowed us to set up home and use some of their facilities for the evening.

After cleaning up I went for a walk with Carmen, Julia, Brian and Deb up to the cafe near the border post. They had a lot of souvenir shirts, mugs, caps and maps for sale but so expensive. They wanted $25 AUS for a T-Shirt. There was no way I was going to pay that much for a T-shirt. We all had a drink at the cafe and spent the rest of the afternoon doing very little.

By the time we got back to our campsite it was time for dinner. After dinner I heard some men calling out from behind our property. It was a group of men training their horses how to work with cattle. Since Julia is a keen horse rider we went over and watched for while. It was quite amazing to see how one horse would put it's chest into the side of the cow and steer it around whilst the other horse would push the cow along. It's the first time I've ever seen a horse go so fast sideways.

Today has been a really good day, even considering how cold it was.

Tomorrow we head to Torres Del Paine National Park, and the following day is a rest day. I've decided to change my mind and go on the 5 hour walk to see what has been described by Rob the Boss as the best National Park in Chile. As if I need anymore exercise on a rest day.

Once again, it's time to go to sleep and get ready for more riding on the dirt.

Until tomorrow, safe riding.

Thursday 4^th December 2014. Stage 100. Cerro Castillo to National Park Torres del Paine. 64 kms, paved 27%, climbing 857 metres, summit 391 metres. A great ride to our next rest day.

Today was a great day, I got to sleep in till 8am for the 9am departure. I stayed up really late last night to watch episode 1, season 5, 'the walking dead'. Now that's a top show. I ended up crashing at 10 pm, and still managed to be woken by all the noise around the campsite at 7.15am. Plenty of time to pull down 'Tent Hilton' and get my act together.

We rolled out of camp at 9 am for the 20 km ride on nice pavement over rolling green valleys till we came to the junction where the dirt began. At this junction we made a left hand turn and headed to the famous Torres del Paine National Park. But first we had to stop and watch the local Gauchos rounding up the cattle in the nearby field. I always love to watch these guys working their horses around the cattle. It was onto the dirt road for a jaw jarring 40 kms till lunch and the entrance to the National Park.

Today the scenery is just as magnificent as every other day on the tour. The morning started with very little breeze and nice clear blue sky. I did get to see another Condor close by, and watched as it appeared to hover overhead waiting for it's next victim.

We rode around the famous Lake Nordenskjold, which gave a great shadow of the '3 Torres' peaks towering before us. This was one of those moments where you get off your bike and take some photos and try and take in the grandeur of this region.

We pulled into lunch and this time we were the attraction. There were heaps of tourist buses coming and going at the entrance point to the park and many of the tourists wanted to get their photos taken with us. I thought they must have known me. Obviously not.

With the clouds now setting in, the top of the 3 peaks disappeared. It was time to get back on the bike for the final 8 km push to our campsite beneath the peaks. It was a comfortable ride today and we only got a couple of drops of rain. Our campsite is perfect and we have all the amenities we need.

Tonight Gurdy our chef will prepare dinner and tomorrow we have to look after ourselves. I've booked breakfast for 9.30am which seems more realistic and sensible. It's then off for a 5 hour walk to see the '3 Torres' up close and personal. That is what I'm doing on my rest day.

The time is now racing away and I have 3 more days of riding left. My last day of riding will be the ride into Punta Arenas, but first I'm going for a long walk.

Until tomorrow, safe riding.