Wind and Torres del Paine (Now with full photos) - (Friday, December 21 - Punta Arenas to Serrano River))
Before I begin today's update, I have a couple of updates
from previous posts.
The other update is regarding the flat tire on the
truck. It was repaired this morning
before we left the hotel. A mobile
repair unit came to the hotel and fixed the tire right there. There was a small stone, about ¼ inch in
length and it had one very sharp end that pierced the tire. Oh well, everything is back on
track.
Today we headed north from Punta Arenas. The first part of the route today was the
same as Day 1 when we had all the wind.
The wind is still blowing just as hard as it was on Day 1. We had strong winds all day today.
The views changed dramatically as we headed north towards Torres del Paine. Until we got closer, these roadside flowers were the only thing worth photographing.
Once we reached Torres del Paine the
views were amazing. My words won’t do
justice to the views so I will post a few photos here and let you judge
for yourself. These peaks are the most
famous in this region.
Tonight we are camping again and we are at the
entrance to Torres del Paine National Park. We have a river running near our tents
and the famous mountains nearby. The
campsite even includes a small shelter with tables and benches for eating at
and protection from the weather if needed.
It is very nice. Wilfredo has
already set up our tents and is now busy cooking us dinner over a wood
fire. I believe pork chops, sausages,
potatoes, vegetables, and a bottle of wine are all on the menu this
evening. We are really roughing it!
As we have now been riding for 5 days, I thought I would
provide an update on how well the motorcycles are working and
how we are navigating.
The motorcycles we have are working
well. If we had to carry our luggage, I
would want a larger motorcycle, especially in the windy areas. The bikes are very basic without all the electronics
and in this situation, I am OK with that.
Having a lighter bike makes it much easier to maneuver because we make frequent stops for photos etc. Wilfredo has done
the required maintenance along the way including tightening and lubing chains.
From a navigation standpoint, things are also working well. Neither Pradeep or I have maps or GPS with us; we are relying on Wilfredo for navigation. When we are in a town, Wilfredo will take the
lead and Pradeep and I will follow. Once
we get out of town, Wilfredo will signal us to go ahead of him. When we need to turn off our current route,
either Wilfredo will pass us and take the lead or we can see him signal so we
know which direction to go. If we are
unsure about a corner, we can pull over and let Wilfredo lead or direct. We have only missed a few corners where we
had to go backtrack – not bad. When we are
out ion the road with Wilfredo behind, it doesn’t feel like “follow the
leader”; it feels like we are out on our
own but we have a bit of "insurance" right behind us! Pradeep and I are also rotating who is leading and who is following at various times. Pradeep and I have bluetooth communication systems in
our helmets that allow us to communicate which is very helpful. We use the systems primarily to alert each other to
traffic concerns, road hazards, and general navigation. Pleased to report that things are working out very well!










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