We decided to go the easy way only once on our trip across Patagonia. That is, taking a flight to save about 30 hours of riding on a bus between Pucón and Puerto Natales in the very far South of Chile. And we didn’t regret it.
We took a pretty cheap Sky flight from Puerto Montt to Punta Arenas, Chile’s southernmost airport. We booked the flight through the agency ContactChile, because the cheapest rates on the flight were only available to people with a Chilean bank account or credit card, while non-locals (who didn’t use the agency) were charged three times the price.
From Punta Arenas, we took the bus to the town of Puerto Natales, the basis for excursions to the Torres del Paine National Park. The moment we stepped into our hostel Yagan House, we fell in love with it. (Thanks for the tip, Along Dusty Roads!) Not only was there a wonderful scent in the air, it was also very cosy, had a large kitchen, an almost infinite number of super-clean bathrooms, two dogs and a no-shoes policy in the bedroom area—great idea.
On Easter Sunday, we did the strenuous hike to the emblematic Torres del Paine, the Chilean doppelgängers of Italy’s Drei Zinnen. It was four hours up, the last stretch on a very steep rocky slope with brutal wind. For most of the hike, the Torres del Paine towers were out of sight, so it was a great reward to suddenly see them appear majestically in front of us in the end.
Bam bam ba di bam.Keeping up traditions, we brought hard-boiled eggs to celebrate the battle of Ostereierpecken at the foot of the Torres. In case you wonder, Jan won. Of course.
Easter bunny didn’t forget us in Patagonia, by the way. He got not one, but two chocolate eggs for each of us!
