To PN Torres del Paine

Wow, there is so much to say about what has happened in the past two weeks. The Patagonia winds have been as strong as expected, on the road and off.

Just 2 days out of Calafate, home to the Moreno glacier, while cruising at 30kmph I heard a pop from my rear wheel followed by severe noises from the rim rubbing against the brake pad. After a quick check, I saw the rim had in fact cracked. That was it for me, I couldn't believe my luck. It was on pavement too!!! After the 1000+km of ripio, and the pavement is what gets me. Unbelievable...

Markus and I finally caught up with Joe, and we decided to split up. I would hitch a ride either to Puerto Natales, or back to Calafate and bus into Puerto Natales. Joe and Markus in the meantime would ride on toward somewhere with an internet connection and thus a channel of communication between where we were at the time and either Puerto Natales or Torres del Paine. So I sat my ass down in the wind, and started to catch up with my diary sticking my thumb out for the random and uncommon occurance of a passing car.

I waited no more than an hour when Lady Luck showed up, rather I should say two ladies of luck. Maren and Kara from Arizona were driving to Calafate after having completed a trek in Torres del Paine. I didn't even have to stick out my thumb that time, they stopped for me and offered a ride into Calafate. After debating for a moment, I would have been stupid not to take their offer since I could try to fix the rim and then bus into Natales the next morning.

On the way cooped up in the car backseat with the bike, though quite the plush and comfortable ride I must say, we chatted about the Torres and Calafate among other things on the way into town. I really couldn't be more grateful to Maren and Kara, but at the same time I was wondering where the hell Markus and Joe would finally meet up with me or when for that matter. However, fixing the rim was my first priority and first mistake as well.

I found a bike shop literally one block away from my dropoff point in Calafate and purchased the only rim that would work with my bike from the shop. I then spent the next 4 hours or so at the bus station trying to transfer the spokes over to the new rim and then subsequently tune the bike. In short, I got the new rim on, but I was working with the wrong spokes and the wheel ended up not only lopsided, but also very much wobbly side to side. I didn't feel like doing much more when it got dark, I already had booked a ticket to Puerto Natales for 8am the next morning, I just needed to find a place to stay for the night. I luckily chose to stay inside the first hostel I came across as opposed to camping outside because it rained that night. I chatted with two neophyte French cyclists and gave them information about the roads ahead of them to the north where I just came from. I think I cooked dinner around 1130pm, it was just late and I was tired. The shower was quite nice I must say, having been the first for me in a couple days. (notice trends developing here?)

As expected, I slept most of the way on the bus to Puerto Natales, a 5 to 6 hour ride into Chile for the third time for me. Did I mention the cattle call while boarding the bus? That is the best part about biking around. You wake up when you want. Ride when you feel like riding. Take a break at any time. Eat on your own schedule. Stop and pitch tent on the side of the road, whenever, wherever. It's a freedom that is not possible otherwise, but I digress. That day, I was one of the sheeple sitting next to Niv, one of the many Israelis around. He had just started his trek in South America, so I was giving him the scoop on the places that I've been to which he will later travel. In the meantime, I'm looking out for Joe and Markus on the road who we should have been passing sooner or later. I never saw them on the way and wondered where the hell they were. It was raining at the time, so perhaps that had something to do with it...

Must continue later because I'm heading out to Punta Arenas. Ushuaia, here we come!!!