Tag Archive: Hiking

  1. We Are Going to Chile, For Real This Time

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    I have always dreamed of going to Chile and we had a trip planned in 2010, but the country was hit with a magnitude 8.8 earthquake that devastated much of Santiago and Valparaiso–our main destinations. We cancelled.

    Now we have crafted an even more elaborate trip that includes our orignal goals of visiting Santiago and Valparaiso, with the benfit of hiking in Torres del Paine and white water rafting on Rio Petrohué! We haven’t had a trip with this many movements since we went to Türkiye, Georgia, and Armenia in 2023. I am really looking forward to spending time with my sweetie while exploring a new part of the globe! We have traveled to South America five times–Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. It will be so much fun to see a sixth South American country. Chile will be my 55th country and John’s 49th.

    A good friend recently asked me how we divide the planning. In general, John loves to research and I love to correspond and organize. So John does research like the pro he is–he reads blog posts, watches trip reports, reads reviews, and gathers ideas. Then I organize them and I make the bookings because I like to email with the locals.

    We will be in Santiago for four nights at the front of the trip. We each prioritized the places we want to see. I tend to be more museum forward while John loves the markets. We both like each, so we will have an amazing time visiting. And of course we love to eat! So we have reservations at several restaurants.

    Santiago Activities Trish
    Sky Costanero https://www.skycostanera.cl/en Avenida Andres Bello 2425 Entrada por Nivel Planta Baja, Santiago 7510689
    National Museum of History https://www.mnhn.gob.cl Plaza de Armas 951, Santiago
    Museo Chileno de Art Precolombino https://museo.precolombino.cl Bandera 361 Esquina Compañía, Santiago 8320298
    National Museum of Fine Arts https://www.patrimoniocultural.gob.cl/en/santiago-museums/national-fine-arts-museum Jose Miguel de la Barra 650 Parque Forestal, Santiago 8320356 Chile
    MAC Museum of Contemporary Art https://mac.uchile.cl Ismael Valdés Vergara 506, Santiago
    Santiago Activites John
    Cerro San Cristobal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Cristóbal_Hill Pio Nono 445, Recoleta Parque Metropolitano de Santiago, Santiago 8320000 Chile
    La Chascona https://fundacionneruda.org/en/la-chascona-museum-house/ Fernando Márquez de La Plata 0192, 7520284 Santiago
    Mercado Vega la Centro https://vegacentral.cl Dávila Baeza 700, Recoleta, Región Metropolitana
    Factoría Franklin https://factoria-franklin.cl Franklin 741, 8361167 Santiago
    Persa Victor Manuel flea market https://persavictormanuel.cl/en/ Víctor Manuel 2220, 8361353 Santiago 
    Museo de la Memoria https://mmdh.cl Matucana 501, Santiago
    Persea Bio Bio  https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g294305-d318142-Reviews-Bio_Bio_Market-Santiago_Santiago_Metropolitan_Region.html San Isidro 2201-2225, 8361249
    Santiago Restaurants
    Fuente Alemana https://fuentealemana.cl Av. Pedro de Valdivia 210, 7510248 Providencia, Chile
    Peumayén Ancestral Food https://www.peumayenchile.cl Constitución 136, 7520367 Providencia, Chile
    Bocanariz https://bocanariz.cl José Victorino Lastarria 276, Santiago Chile
    La Calma http://lacalma.squarespace.com Nueva Costanera 3832 local 2, Vitacura, Santiago de Chile.
    Bar Liguria https://www.liguria.cl Av. Providencia 1353, Providencia
    Ambrosia Bistro https://linktr.ee/ambrosiabistro.cl Apoquindo 2730, Torre 1, piso 4 , Las Condes. Mut 4º Piso, Santiago 751012 Chile
    CORA Bistro https://www.instagram.com/cora.bistro/?hl=en Monseñor Félix Cabrera 14, Providencia, Región Metropolitana, Chile
    Antigua Fuente https://www.antiguafuente.cl Av Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins 58
    Valparaiso Restaurants
    La Caperucita y el Lobo Valparaiso https://www.lacaperucitayellobo.cl/nuestra-carta Ferrari #75, Cerro Florida
    LA Concepcion https://www.restaurantlaconcepcion.cl/en/ Papudo 541 Cerro Concepción

    For our first leg in Santiago we chose Hotel Le Reve which has a cozy boutique feel and is close to a lot of the places we wish to visit. We also are going to do a day trip to Valparaiso, Vina del Mar, and Casablanca for some wine tasting.

    Hotel Le Reve

     

    Next we will fly down to Patagonia. I have always really wanted to hike the W there, a route with five days of trekking and stays at camps and refuges. But I have a bad meniscus tear of my right knee and will not be able to complete the journey. Instead we booked a room at Hotel Rio Serrano and rented a car so we can drive into the park for exploring. John is prepared to do some trail running, and I will hike as much as my knee allows.

    Hotel Rio Serrano

    Next we fly to Lake Country, where we are staying in Puerto Varas on Chile’s second largest lake, Lake Llanquihue. We will also have a car here, so we can drive around for adventuring. We are doing a white water rafting trip on the beautiful tourquoise River Petrohué. We will be staying at Hotel Cabana del Largo.

     

    Hotel Cabana del Largo

    Then we return to Santiago for one more night before we fly home, and as we like to do, we chose a fabulous splurge hotel for that last evening. We will stay at The Singular Santiago before catching a flight back to Miami.

    The Singular Santiago

    I am really looking forward to two meals especially that we have reserved: CORA Bistro and La Calma. I’m sure we will have many, many wonderful meals.

    Rellenas con jaiba marmola, jengibre, tomate, ajo, zeste de limón, menta, tomillo, eneldo y vino blanco.

     

    La recolección de productos de mar en su mejor estado, moluscos a veces crustáceos, mariscos, cortes de pescados, algas.

     

    Have you been to Chile? We would love any recommendations and tips!

  2. 3 Weeks to Go

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    Three weeks from now we will be on a plane to Atlanta, where we’ll board our flight for Europe. The thought evokes sheer panic in me, perhaps because when I imagine leaving, I know I’ll be second guessing all of my packing choices. I think I need to have everything perfect. I’m still missing an item here and there. We ordered prescription sunglasses that will be here in a week or two. I need to decide what to read on the trek and how to read it. Will I carry any books or will I read from my iPhone? Every time I think all the decisions have been made, here come 20 more.

    One thing I know I’ve done right is the training. I have logged many miles and climbed many vertical feet. I have really enjoyed my time with Larry and Cindy on the mountain. We have put boots on just about every trail the park has to offer. John hasn’t joined us because he prefers to cover more ground. He likes to knock out 12-16 milers at a brisk pace. His hardest job in Africa will be slowing down to acclimatize as we climb.

  3. Day 3 Racer’s Meeting in Porto Moniz

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    Whatever you do, don’t do what we nearly did. Don’t run out of gas in the middle of a volcanic island where you don’t speak the language and you can’t call AAA. More on that soon.

    Our day started with a gorgeous breakfast buffet overlooking the pools and ocean.

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    After breakfast we had a job to do. That was to accept our rental car in the hotel lobby, then hit the road for a 1 hour drive across the island to the town of Porto Moniz for the Runners’ Check-In for our 25K trail race the following day. You might remember Samantha, our faithful guide on our France and Spain trip–the voice of our Garmin Nuvi 275T who tells us where to go. She did her job well, even through the bajillion tunnels that bore through the massive peaks all over the island. Let’s all take a moment to applaud the civil engineers who somehow made this island inhabitable. Even the airstrip had to be built from scratch on pilings into the ocean, since there’s not a flat spot in all of Madeira. Besides the hills and curves, the hardest part about the drive was the pouring rain. I can’t wait to see it tomorrow in the sunshine.

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    After our check-in, which involved proving we had all of the required items such as a whistle, a light, batteries, food, and water, we drove all the way back across the island where the rain had stopped and we did a gorgeous hike out on cliffs that looked like the Isle of Skye in Scotland. It was a muddy trek, which will serve us well since I think our 25K trail run is destined to be a Muddy Buddy tomorrow. BTW, John already told me I look like a total tool, so you don’t have to.

    IMG 0892

    From there we stopped in a small restaurant in a small town where we ordered the “Plato do Dia” again. I could only eat about half of it. My goodness it was delicious. The freshest fish you can imagine, in a light flour and egg batter–almost chile relleno meets the ocean.

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    From there we drove to the far north point of the island to Santana to see the A-framed houses.

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    This is where it got sketchy. We stopped at a Petrol station only to have the British owner come out and say, “We have no Petrol.” Our plan was to climb up and over the high hill that is near the peak of the island. But we got to about here when our gas gauge started beeping.

    DSC 0108

    Luckily we could coast back down to a town that had some gas. Still, promise me you won’t do what we did. Just gas it up sooner. Why wait? What is that? Fun? No it’s not.

    Now we’re back at the hotel. After a lovely dinner, and plenty of hydration, we’re all ready for tomorrow. We’ll be getting up at 5 am to head back out for the race.

    DSC 0109

  4. Day 9 Aguas Calientes to Cusco

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    We woke up to the sound of the roaring Urubamba passing our hotel room. We were both pretty tired, so we decided to rest for a moment before going downstairs for breakfast. After breakfast, we did a tour of Aguas Calientes, which doesn’t take long since it’s not very big. We decided to have a “snack” before catching the train at 1:40 pm. We did that at Indio Feliz, a cozy restaurant run by a French woman. It was fun to hear everyone speaking French as we ate a heaping plate of pasta served with toppings on the side.

    Finally it was time to take the train back to Ollantaytambo, where we would catch a cab back to Cusco. The train ride was beautiful, though a bit bizarre, as the crew went to great lengths to “Disney” up the experience, with costume changes, traditional dances, and then a fashion show set to blaring techno music. Um, how about the view, folks? John and I were happy to look out the window, where we saw some of the sights from our first day of the Inca Trail hike.

    The taxi ride to Cusco was one of my least favorite experiences in Peru (ranking right up there with projectile vomiting for 24 hours). First, the driver tried to convince us we needed to see Moray and Moras and Salinas, though we insisted we had already been there. Then he proceeded to speed up the mountain to Cusco, passing any car or bus he saw, swerving all over the road then slamming on his brakes. By the time we got back to the Aranwa Hotel in Cusco I thought I would throw up again.

    We settled into the hotel and had a spot of rest, then wandered out into town for drinks then dinner at ChiCha de Gaston, which was on the same block as our hotel. This meal was one of the highlights of the trip for me, with grilled octopus and chimichurri sauce, scallops in a beef reduction, and a sampling platter with chicken, pork and beef. Peruvian chef Gaston Acurio was recognized as one of the nine most influential chefs in the world, and I can see why. His combination of flavors is inventive and the execution of each dish is perfect. This was a great meal.

    Touring Aguas Calientes

    Lunch at Indio Feliz

    View from Train

    Dinner at Gaston's Chicha

  5. Last Minute Preparations

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    Decisions are exhausting. That might be one reason some people choose not to travel: there are endless decisions. We have made most of ours, including when to go, where to stay and what to do. But with 1 day and 18 hours left before we leave, there are still several important decisions to be made.

    Perhaps the most important decision to be made is in a category I will call Trip Electronics. This category has become more complex over the years, but it is especially complex on this trip since we will be hiking for 4 days and will be separated from the majority of our luggage (not to mention electricity) and will have with us only what we decide to carry.

    All day today I had to resist the urge to purchase a third camera to take on the Trek. And while I am usually dependent on a laptop for photos, GPS, blogging, email, etc., this time we are trying out the minimalist approach and determining if we can use the iPad for all of the above.

    This blog post is coming to you from the iPad. Today I bought a camera conversion kit and loaded photos straight from my camera to the iPad so I can test that combination to see if it is adequate for the trip.

    Here are three pictures from a recent training hike on South Mountain with my friends Cindy and Lesley, and one picture featuring some last minute bonding between John and Penny.

    What do you think? Adequate?

    Cindy and Lesley

    Trish and Cindy at the Top.

    Blue Sky Cactus.

    Who Spoiled the Vizsla?