Things got a little chilly tonight at Refugio Dickson.
By the time I woke up this morning last nights rain had more or less stopped, however one glance at the leaden sky suggested that it could rain again at any minute, so after enjoying our breakfast we set off under brooding skies. To start the day we had to ascend steeply to a windy saddle high above Lago Paine and it soon became obvious that today would be a day for wet feet, almost immediately after leaving Seron we had to cross a wet area which had us jumping from one grassy tussock to the next. The good news was that once the track started its zig zagging climb to the saddle it was pretty dry. As we crested the pass the green glacially coloured water of Lago Paine came into view below us while up close the Firebush added a splash of bright red colour to the scene.
Leaving Serón we continued to follow the Rio Paine up stream.
There was a little bit of wildlife around as we left Serón this morning.
We crossed below this nice waterfall as we shuffled our way towards Lago Paine.
Contouring high above Rio Paine.
Rio Paine
Rio Paine
From the pass we contoured along the slopes high above Lago Paine, at one stage crossing a style over a fence which I'm guessing was stopping the cattle getting into this section of the national park. The weather was still grey and overcast along this section which was a slight disappointment as we were into the wild remote area of Torres del Paine National Park now and the views are reputedly spectacular along here, ah well, such is life I suppose. Stopping for lunch just past Lago Paine we could see the deteriorating weather coming down the valley towards us at a fairly rapid rate, so after finishing my sandwich it was time to put on my waterproof gear.
Conditions were a little damp underfoot today.
Lago Paine from the pass.
Lago Paine. The splashes of red are a native called Firebush.
Crossing this stile high above Lago Paine - I'm guessing this is where we passed out of cattle country.
The signposting was rustic.
Contouring high above Lago Paine.
Firebush
The track continued to slowly ascend the valley of the Rio Paine west towards Lago Dickson, mostly it tended to stay to the side of the valley just above the swampy flats that border the river. By now the light rain was starting to turn to sleet and with sections of the track that we were following under water, I was having a great adventure! One section of track along here led across a swamp on a board walk, however funding most have run out as halfway across the duck boards deposited me into the middle of the swamp and I was left to once again jump from tussock to tussock to make it through with mostly dry boots.
There was still a few patches of blue sky around this morning.
After one last look back towards Lago Paine it was time to continue up the valley towards Refugio Dickson.
Rio Paine
Looking up the valley in the direction that we were heading the weather was starting to look a little more ominous.
We were starting to pass through sleet showers now.
Conditions might of been a little damp and cold however this was still beautiful walking.
Heading towards Refugio Dickson.
Looking towards the Torres del Paine complex from the north - I'm thinking that with some decent visibility the views along here would be incredible.
Heading towards Refugio Dickson in Torres del Paine National Park.
With the sleet getting heavier we crested a ridge which gave us a great view down towards Refugio Dickson. After taking a couple of photos of both the refuge and also Lago Dickson in the background it was time for the final steep descent down to the flats around Refugio Dickson.
Unfortunately the duck boards ran out halfway across the swamp.
Conditions slowly deteriorated over the afternoon.
The sleet was tending to snow now...
... although I still looked pretty happy with life!
We were teased with glimpses of towering snow covered mountains.
Lago Dickson has just come into view. Glacier Dickson calves into the lake at the far end.
After arriving at Refugio Dickson I was straight into my tent to get out of my damp gear. Crawling into the tent I couldn't help noticing that my tent for the night had mesh walls under the fly and that the fly itself had a coke can size gap between the ground and the start of the fly, it looked like it may be a cold night if the weather continued to get worse. After sorting out the tent it was into the refugio for a hot shower and then a few drinks before dinner. Sitting in the refuge chatting I'd glance out the window every so often and could see that the sleet had turned to snow and was starting to settle.
There was still a few splashes of colour about on what was a grey afternoon.
Refugio Dickson is on the promontory jutting out into Lago Dickson.
Lago Dickson
My friend Rita.... about to drop steeply down to Refugio Dickson.
By the time dinner had finished it was a full blown snow storm outside and some of our group were trying to negotiate to sleep in the refuge. I decided that I'd better get to my tent as I only had thongs on (flip flops for all non Australians). Arriving at the tent the good news was I no longer had a gap between the fly and the ground, the bad news was that the gap had been filled with snow! I quickly brushed the snow of the door of the tent and dived in. Despite the cold I couldn't help laughing, I could clearly see the snow on the fly through the mesh and for some reason I found the idea of sleeping in the snow in a tropical tent hilarious, although maybe that had something to do with the beer consumed with dinner. As I lay in my tent getting organised I could hear others in the group returning to their tents and it seemed that I wasn't the only one to find it funny, Fred was giggling like a school girl at the thought of sleeping in the snow, but then again he had been drinking with me! Once settled I was surprisingly warm in my sleeping bag only really noticing how cold it was when I made a toilet stop during the night (serves me right for drinking so much beer).
This was a semi supported trek - these guys are our porters and guide inside Refugio Dickson.
Looking across to our tents (just visible in the distance) things were looking a little grim.
Not only did the fly get nowhere near the ground but the inner was completely made of mesh - perfect for the tropics.
The Dirt.
I walked 18.5 kilometres today and climbed around 450 metres on what I'd call a medium grade days walking. Over the 2 days of my Torres del Paine walk so far I've walked around 27.5 kilometres and climbed 1000 metres. The walking today was all on walking tracks of varying degrees of quality and while there was nothing too rough to negotiate things were pretty damp underfoot in spots - although we were there pretty early in the season. Refugio Dickson had a small shop, a hot shower and flushing toilets.
I used the notes and basic map out of Cicerones Torres Del Paine - Trekking In Chile's Premier National Park.
Relevant Posts.
The advantage of the mesh inner was that I was easily able to see the snow accumulating on the outside of the tent...
... the disadvantage was that it was bloody cold!
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