PPS Destinations Report 

Chile; Santiago, Torres del Paine and Tierra del Fuego

Date:         March 5 - 19, 2005

Speakers and Topics:   

Dr. Mariano Rocabado; TMJ Pain Map; Santiago, Chile

Drs. Rodney Wentworth and Ernst Schmidt; Ethics and Risk Management; Rios de la Patagonia Lodge, Tierra del Fuego, Chile

 Reported by Ernst 'Ernie' Schmidt

This trip will certainly be remembered as one of our best PPS trips.  In addition to having a great group of keen adventurers, we were blessed with some great weather.  It might also be said that this was a trip of "to do's", or rather, of crossing them off our 'to-do' lists.  Please read on for an account of some of the best scenery as well as the fishing report.  Forgive the wordiness, however, there is just so much to report on.  If you get impatient and want to see the photos, please scroll to the bottom of this page for some thumbnails and go to More Chile Photos

Our adventure started on, or about, May 5 when the group assembled in Santiago's Eurotel.  Although I spent the first two days in bed recovering from the flu I inherited from my kids, the group spent the days sightseeing in and around Santiago.  One day was spent with part of the group going to Vina del Mar while the other part joined up with our old friend, Rodrigo Sandoval, for a hike up one of the local Andean mountains.  That evening, the group met at Rodrigo's new house for a Chilean barbeque and re-kindling of some old friendships.  The next day, was spent at the IntegraMedica clinic with Professor Rocabado where we reviewed and learned about TMJ Pain Mapping.  Great program, especially when one hears it right from the 'source'.  We wound up with a great dinner and wine-tasting at a popular restaurant (Catador) in Santiago,s Providencia district.  

After getting  up early, we all moved on to the adventure part of our journey.  After arriving at the Punta Arenas airport, we were met by our host, Rodrigo Saelzer, and boarded a bus for the famed Torres del Paine Park.  After a scenic seven hour drive through pampas, the coastal town of Puerto Natales, the frontier border town of Cerro Castillo and the Milodon Caves, we finally made it to our destination at Hosteria Lago Pehoe.  Before I get to the park, I should mention that for most of us, it was our first glimpse of the wildlife of southern Chile.  We saw numerous Nandus (also known as Lesser Rheas), Guanacos (a cousin of the llama), foxes and Chilean flamingos.  The quaint border town of Cerro Castillo was equally interesting.  Placed in the middle of nowhere, it served as a rest stop as well as a border outpost into Argentina.  In our minds, it will certainly 'stick' as one of the windiest places ever visited as well as the 100km border zone.  Presently, Argentina and Chile are both still in a border standstill, therefore, the 'grey zone' in the border situation and the need to drive nearly 100km before reaching the Argentina border post.  Upon arriving at Puerto Natales, we began to view the spectacular mountains of the Paine Range in the distance.  Naturally, the day was rainy and overcast, after all, what could be more fitting; mountains and rain.  We arrived at our lodgings during darkness but it was easy to 'sense' in the near distance the towering cloud-shrouded structures in the distance.  After a wind-rattling sleep, we woke up to one of the most memorable days of my travel life.  Winds in excess of 100km/hour (>60mph) had driven the clouds away and we were met with stunning views like many of us had never seen before.  Our lodge was placed on an island linked to the mainland by a foot bridge and was in clear sight of the famous mountians of the Paine mountain range.  I won't even try to describe the view but will only hope the following picture can do it justice (trust me it doesn't).

After breakfast, we split into two groups and both groups went exploring.   On the way to our respective trailheads, we saw stunning mountain and lake scenery with lots of Guanacos grazing on the pampas/grasslands.  Both groups essentially went to the same area with the intention of seeing the 'towers of Paine'.  After a pleasant 3-4 hour hike and just when you thought it couldn't get any better, we crested the last portion of our hike, a steep rock-strewn trail, only to view the 'towers of Paine' on a totally cloudless day.  These structures are said to be the tallest vertical structures on earth and represent granite 'towers' pushed up by tectonic shifting.  On the way back to base-camp, we descended the steep, rocky section, hiked through the pleasant Southern-Beech forest in the mid-section and then through the final open hillside down to the waiting bus.  On the last section, we were buffeted by winds in excess of 60-70 mph while hiking along an exposed steep slope and, for the first time in my life, I had to crouch/cling to the slope waiting for an opportunity to get around the exposed slope.  I don't think I have ever before been in a situation where I was concerned that I might be blown over the edge into the ravine.  It seems that there are only two options in this park.  Cloudy/rainy where views are impossible and sunny/windy where the Antarctic winds are amazingly strong.  Our next day was spent  traveling back to Punta Arenas via Lago Grey and the Grey Glacier.  As luck would have it, we had rainy/windy weather which appears to be best for viewing of the ice bergs on the lake.  During cloudy days, the bergs in the lake appear a very surreal azure blue.  After Lago Grey, we had one final stop, before arriving in Punta Arenas, in order to see the Otway Sound Penguin Colony.  This is a very interesting place and would be a must-see if ever you find yourself in the vicinity.

Next morning we left Punta Arenas for our final destination, Tierra del Fuego.  We flew 45 minutes across the Strait of Magellan and landed at an airstrip at Pampas Guancos.  We finally arrived at our lodge after a 1 hour drive.  Our home for the week was a group of red-roofed log cabins on a knoll overlooking a wide pampas in the Rasmussen River valley.  Since the island has neither Pumas (mountain lions) nor any other natural predators for the Guanacos, these llama-like animals were simply everywhere.  In addition to the lamas, we saw several condors, geese, foxes and other wildfowl.  The FISHING!  I think it would be safe to say that this could very well be the home of some of the best still-water fishing in the world.  Although one associates the island with sea-run browns in the Rio Grande, what is not well known is the quality of the small still-water fishing.  On the very first evening or our arrival, we drove 20 minutes and then hiked 20 minutes to a pond just off the Rasmussen River.  What can you expect from a shallow pond (most of it a foot or less) only 200 feet across?  After two hours, I caught about 12 browns ranging from 17 to 22 inches, all of the them in prime, thick condition.  Anywhere else in the world and you would not have expected anything more than a half-dozen six to eight inch brookies.  During our stay, we fished five such ponds/small lakes as well as three larger natural lakes.  We did, on one day, encounter some competition from spinner/bait fishermen from the Argentine side of the island and there must be some concern as to the fragility of the fishery as resource development and population growth occurs on the island.  In any event, what makes the small pond fishery so amazing is that there is a Canadian connection to all of this.  It appears that beavers were introduced early last century in order to capitalize on the fur market.  The  fur quality never materialize and the rodents then lived up to their reputation by damming up the small spring creeks.  Since Tierra del Fuego does not have such a harsh winter, they rarely seem to winter kill and some of the shallowest, smallest ponds can produce fish in excess of six pounds.  

The other half of our fishing trip was clearly intended to fish the famous Rio Grande for the elusive sea-run brown.  After a few disastrous seasons of first too much water and then unseasonable drought, this turned out to be another low water year but with some promise.  We fished, this tortuous river for 3-4 days of our stay (some of us less since the pond fishing was so good) but it became quickly apparent that it would not be easy to catch these elusive fish.  Many of us only caught one or two, if any, of these prized fish as the fish seemed to be few and far between in the slow moving pools and riffles.  Occasionally, one would catch a small resident fish to keep spirits up.  Of the two sea-runs I caught, my first was a trophy 18 pound buck which gave me a few heart-stopping jumps and runs before I finally got him to the beach.  Although it was tough, this will still be a trophy memory in my mind.   After the morning session, we all met at the tent for lunch.  This tent was staffed by a half-dozen and was big enough to seat a dozen fishermen as well as provide cots for them to lie down for an afternoon nap.  We were served delicious lunch, augmented by fresh barbequed lamb roasted over an open pit fire and Chilean wines.  Now that's civilized!!

The week went by too quickly.  After numerous meals, Pisco sours, Chilean beers and wines, hearty home cooked meals, we finally left the Rios Patagonia Lodge in order to drive back to Punta Arenas.  Miles of endless pampas, Guanacos and estancias with an eventful ferry crossing of the Magellan Strait landed us back in Punta Arenas for our final night.  After a fun dinner at a quaint restaurant in this funky town, we all ended our trip on a great note as we headed back for home.

Dear reader, if you have any questions on these venues, please feel free to email me, Ernie, at pps@shaw.ca.  Also, you can get more lodge information by going to the home page of the  Rios Patagonia Lodge which is booked by Grizzly Hackle of Montana.

Following are some thumbnails of trip photos.  Please click on them and then return to this page by hitting the ' back ' button on your browser.

To see more member photos - especially the fishing shots, please visit More Chile Photos