Refugio Otto Meiling
Wow! What a 2-days this has been. Pictures will need to be posted later because this internet connection does not recognize my USB key!
We knew it was going to be a challenge, to walk the 18km in an estimated 5 hours with a climb of 1100m - and it was.
We drove the half hour from the peaceful Hotel Tronador to Pampa Linda where we registered for the walk with the National Park, parked the car in the shade and set off with our 7kg or so packs.
The track for the first 4 km or so is on a stony dirt 4wd track through fairly open forest, so we were glad when we arrived at the Puente Rio Castano Overa log crossing. This fast flowing grey-green river is from one of the glaciers of Mt Tronador, and later we´d have a spectacular view from above it, with its ice falls and waterfalls. But for now we were happy to go into the thicker forest and less dusty track.
We deviated for a bit to go down another river (because it was there) and this is when Eva has the first of a few blister stops. She is a real trouper, as she struggled on despite the developing very large blisters, and eventually found ways to ease the pain and discomfort.
The main track from here has two alternatives, a more direct uphill, steeper, shorter path - or a more windy better graded longer path. We chose the latter in deference to Eva´s blisters.
We walked for 3 hours getting wonderful glimpses of the valley far below us as well as the sheer cliffs on the other side of the valley, that started out towering over us, and were now below us. The glacier was SO impressive, with the white heavily fissured ice contracting with the black glistening cliffs stripped with a number of waterfalls. It was almost dreamlike.
We stopped for lunch in a lovely wooded area, sitting on a log in the shade as the day was now getting quite hot (around 28 degrees). We has the sandwiches prepared by Hotel Tronador, some fruit and chocolates. Yum. Food tastes better on a bushwalk!
Our next 2 hours were the best part really, but also quite hard. We ascended first up a steep dirt track through the last part of the forest. Along here we could see the huge top of Mt Tronador as well as the speck that was the refugio. Very soon, we left the protection of the forest as we rose above the treeline and crossed just rocky ground. We were walking on the very edge of the 800 plus meter drop on the valley carved by the Castano Overa Glacier. It was hard to keep balance, look for the white paint track markers, the view and keep going. It was so amazing, and all the while the Refugio was getting bigger.
Eva perked up towards the end as my knees were protesting, and it was a welcome sit outside the Refugio, looking at the tops of what looked like hundreds of surrounding mountains, shining like stiff egg white peaks around us. There were a number of glaciers there too.
We quickly got a bottle of Mendoza red and settled down to look a the view, read and explore.
At sunset we were treated to a lightshow from the surrounding electrical storms, a full and strong rainbow and reds and yellows glowing off the clouds. It just doesn´t get any better.
We slept in a single large room with about 25 people complete with each one´s own body function symphony, but it was OK.
It took us 5 hours and 20 mins to get up, but only 4 hours to get down. We took the shorter, steeper way and I used walking sticks for the first part over the rocks.
We were quite tired when we got down, but decided to drive 3 hours to Villa La Angostura to stay the night there, but that´s another story!
Hopefully, photos will follow soon.
We knew it was going to be a challenge, to walk the 18km in an estimated 5 hours with a climb of 1100m - and it was.
We drove the half hour from the peaceful Hotel Tronador to Pampa Linda where we registered for the walk with the National Park, parked the car in the shade and set off with our 7kg or so packs.
The track for the first 4 km or so is on a stony dirt 4wd track through fairly open forest, so we were glad when we arrived at the Puente Rio Castano Overa log crossing. This fast flowing grey-green river is from one of the glaciers of Mt Tronador, and later we´d have a spectacular view from above it, with its ice falls and waterfalls. But for now we were happy to go into the thicker forest and less dusty track.
We deviated for a bit to go down another river (because it was there) and this is when Eva has the first of a few blister stops. She is a real trouper, as she struggled on despite the developing very large blisters, and eventually found ways to ease the pain and discomfort.
The main track from here has two alternatives, a more direct uphill, steeper, shorter path - or a more windy better graded longer path. We chose the latter in deference to Eva´s blisters.
We walked for 3 hours getting wonderful glimpses of the valley far below us as well as the sheer cliffs on the other side of the valley, that started out towering over us, and were now below us. The glacier was SO impressive, with the white heavily fissured ice contracting with the black glistening cliffs stripped with a number of waterfalls. It was almost dreamlike.
We stopped for lunch in a lovely wooded area, sitting on a log in the shade as the day was now getting quite hot (around 28 degrees). We has the sandwiches prepared by Hotel Tronador, some fruit and chocolates. Yum. Food tastes better on a bushwalk!
Our next 2 hours were the best part really, but also quite hard. We ascended first up a steep dirt track through the last part of the forest. Along here we could see the huge top of Mt Tronador as well as the speck that was the refugio. Very soon, we left the protection of the forest as we rose above the treeline and crossed just rocky ground. We were walking on the very edge of the 800 plus meter drop on the valley carved by the Castano Overa Glacier. It was hard to keep balance, look for the white paint track markers, the view and keep going. It was so amazing, and all the while the Refugio was getting bigger.
Eva perked up towards the end as my knees were protesting, and it was a welcome sit outside the Refugio, looking at the tops of what looked like hundreds of surrounding mountains, shining like stiff egg white peaks around us. There were a number of glaciers there too.
We quickly got a bottle of Mendoza red and settled down to look a the view, read and explore.
At sunset we were treated to a lightshow from the surrounding electrical storms, a full and strong rainbow and reds and yellows glowing off the clouds. It just doesn´t get any better.
We slept in a single large room with about 25 people complete with each one´s own body function symphony, but it was OK.
It took us 5 hours and 20 mins to get up, but only 4 hours to get down. We took the shorter, steeper way and I used walking sticks for the first part over the rocks.
We were quite tired when we got down, but decided to drive 3 hours to Villa La Angostura to stay the night there, but that´s another story!
Hopefully, photos will follow soon.
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