The beginning of Season 2, Bariloche to Puerto Fuy OR how to kick your own butt in about 9 days

At Marcela's Art Show in Futa

I flew into Bariloche with my nerves tingling from both the excitement and the boredom of sitting on a plane/in airports for 2 days. A friend of Fidgit's and mine, Cheri, was kind enough to pick me up, feed me, and bring me into town. After a night in Bariloche, I headed south to meet up with Fidgit in Esquel, and we took a bus across the border to Futaleufu to meet some friends from last season for Marcela’s Art Show (remember the painter from Villa O’Higgins?). It was so lovely to see so many familiar faces in one place, and we quickly caught up. Unfortunately Fidgit and I had to leave after a mere 24 hours in town to come back to Bariloche and continue our trek. We bussed back into Bariloche and ended up having to wait a week for the weather to clear so we could kayak across Lago Nahuel Huapi as planned. During that week, we were able to continue catching up with friends from last season and even made a couple new friends along the way. It was a slow transition for me to get used to eating late and the norm to be at someone’s house until late into the night. I adapted though, and we were able to pass the time, even while being ready to get on our way.

Taking a lunch break along Nahuel Huapi

Neon and Fidgit kayaking towards Brazo Rincon

Finally the day had come- the weather had cleared, the lake was glassy, and we had procured enough boats for the three of us- Cheri was to be our first short-term addition to Her Odyssey, and we couldn’t have been more excited! With the help of Dylan, Cheri’s husband, we got all of our stuff packed into the boats and were off, paddling and talking across the water. Paddling is very different from hiking and my arms felt it. We made it across the open water and stopped along the beaches of Isla Victoria a couple of times throughout to stretch our legs and snack before finding a campsite along the water. I awoke the next morning to stiff arm muscles and sore abs, but we persevered and made it to our short portage near Villa La Angostura. From there, we again paddled across open water to a small island for a break and then into Brazo Rincon, where we were to meet Dylan and begin our foot travel. We made it to the campsite late afternoon and had time for a yerba mate break before Dylan arrived. Many hugs and caring words were exchanged before we parted, Dylan, Cheri, and the kids back to Bariloche, Fidgit and I headed across the frontera into Chile and back onto the Greater Patagonia Trail (GPT).

Neon, Cheri, and Fidgit saying farewell for now

We made it into Chile after the border patroller decided to ask if I did any drugs, including cocaine, and went through my med bag asking what my Flagyl was for. It turned out they were training some new recruits, and the one going through my bag was timid. It seemed as though he was teaching them how to play bad cop/good cop, or whatever they call it down here.

Crossing the Volcano towards the lava flows

The next morning, Fidgit and I began our steep walk up the side of Volcan Puyehue. I was grateful for all of the biking I had been doing in the off-season and not so grateful for the excessive amount of food I was carrying. We stopped at the refugio at treeline and met a couple from Europe hiking/packrafting south on the GPT - our first other thru-hikers! They were excited to see us as well, saying they’d been out for 3 weeks, and we were the first other long-distance hikers they had seen, AND they remember us from our website - how neat is that?! Our sprits soaring from that interaction, Fidgit and I made our way up and around the volcano, following the European couple’s footprints through the snow and the GPT tracks on our GPS. We made it around the volcano but not quite between the lava flows so we tucked in for the night on a dry spot and melted some snow for water. I fell asleep quickly, only to be woken up near daybreak by roaring winds coming through where we had thought we had tucked away the night before. Fidgit and I couldn’t sleep, so we groggily prepared for the day and headed out into the strong winds. Thankfully, the wind was almost blowing the direction we were going, so I only had to lean a little to my right as we made our way up and over the mounds of talus toward where we would be going between 2 lava fields - one being from when the volcano most recently erupted in 2011. The views were amazing - I don’t know that I had ever been that close to a steaming lava field before.

Neon and the 2011 Lava flow on a windy morning

As we exited the area between the two flows, I looked up and saw an owl perched about 20 feet above me on the 2011 flow watching Fidgit go past. I breathed out and it noticed me. As we stared at each other, there was a small song bird flitting around the owl, seemingly upset, but the owl was more focused on us humans, not to be bothered by another bird, as it watched us traverse across the snow below it. Such an experience I doubt I would have had, had I not chosen to join my friend on this adventure she dreamed up.

As we continued across the snowfield, I was enjoying the view and also concerned as to whether we would make it to flowing water and/or treeline that night. About mid-afternoon, my concerns abated because we found both, and even a trail through the woods that took us down, down, down to a warmer climate and a soft campsite where I was able to rest my weary legs.

Water source/awesome break spot

A fence line in the campo

We set off the next morning through the trees, and I got to experience the joy of going downhill on sore down-hill-going muscles. Oh, the joys of readjusting to trail life. The GPT mostly followed cow trails and two-track up and around a couple mountains as it neared Lago Maihue. At one point, we were reminded how new this trail is, as we nearly went off a dirt/bamboo covered cliff attempting to follow an investigatory route. The climate had gone from cold and windy on the volcano to hot and humid in the valley, and I was soaking through my shirt before 10 a.m. most days. We were able to do a small resupply near the town of Maihue; I didn’t need much because I had overpacked food in Bariloche.

Looking out at Lago Maihue

Standing among giants

Dinner time on the trail

We were concerned as we came up to the southern end of Reserva Huilo-Huilo, as we had been told there may be guards to turn us back at the entrance. Thankfully, we didn’t run into anyone, but we did see some curious cows along the way. The horse path we followed into the Reserva turned into two-track, then turned into path, and turned back into two-track dirt road for the walk into Puerto Fuy. We ran into Park Guards at the northern end of the Reserva who took photos of our IDs and told us we weren’t allowed to be there and to not come back. They also told us the Reserva was a wild place for the Huemul and Guanaco, not open to people. We walked out of the reserve, promising to not come back and made our way into Puerto Fuy on a small dirt road.

I was tired, and so was Fidgit. We found ourselves a Hospedaje, showered, and resupplied. As we tucked ourselves in for the night, the rain began. We listened to it pounding the roof above us through the night and into the next day. After checking the weather, we decided to stay in town and catch up on some things, which would hopefully allow the rain to pass through before we headed out on the next leg of our journey.