Another very early start for a long hike — 12 miles, and a climb of 3,000 feet to the Loma del Plieuge Tumbado lookout. The trail changed during the course of the 6 miles up — the first section was sort of sandy and narrow, then some rocky morain demanding some scrambling, followed by and open field with grazing Hereford cows. The next section was through some woods, with jutting roots and sandy gravel underfoot. At the end of the forest, a valley, open to the elements, and the wind picked up and the temperature dropped. From that vantage you could see the trail as it continued up, and between the clouds and the wind and some rain just beginning I decided I had had enough! Deciding that my feet and my toes and my knees were finished, and guessing that the shift in the weather would limit the view anyway, I turned back.
I’ve come to the conclusion that if an activity isn’t enjoyable there’s no good reason to continue doing it! And since this trail was an out-and-back, it was easy to just head back early. My total mileage for the day was still about 9 miles, and the best photos of the day are of the double rainbow against a dark gray rain cloud. I ran into Jackie on the way back, who had come to the same conclusion, and had been having some difficulty with a sinus infection, so we walked back together.
We headed to the hotel to wait for the others and it appears I made the right decision — there wasn’t much to see at the top and the wind had picked up and was blowing cold. There was a glacier and a lake, but at some point isn’t seeing glaciers like seeing temples?
Back at the hotel it was a relief to take off my boots and sit and rest as we waited for the rest of the group to appear. It didn’t take too long — just over an hour, and as we gathered we got organized and loaded up in van ride back to El Calafate. Another 3 hours and another stop at La Leona (literally the only place for a comfort break on the entire desolate road), and we were back at Patagonia Rebilde. We had the same room we’d had 4 days ago, so settled in to re-pack for the end of the adventure, but not the journey.
Our end of tour dinner was at the Queen Hotel where they have a BBQ in a separate dining room off the garden. The meat had all been pre-ordered, and the tables were laden with salads and bread and salsas and wine. There was the obligatory toast to the guide and a few separate speeches, and then surprisingly, Jay got on a one knee and proposed to his girlfriend, who had joined us about 5 days prior. Quite the event.
