Fitz Roy

Mark loves hiking, and when he planned this South American adventure, hiking was sure to be a big part of it. We started to prepare back in the summer while walking along the lake, and added hiking as we headed west across Canada. We worked with a trainer, Eric, a few times a week, who focused on strengthening our legs, ankles and feet. We bought all the gear for hiking; shoes, base layers, buffs and LifeStraw water bottles, so we could drink from streams. Even though I thought we were prepared for hiking and trekking, I was filled with apprehension about the more challenging terrains we would encounter.

Mount Fitz Roy - Here we come!!!

Our driver, Pedro, took us in a private shuttle from El Calafate to El Chaltén with Sharon and (little) Mark. We saw lots of animals like, ostrich, armadillo, wild horses, condors and guanacas that are related to the llama. The views were spectacular, and we could see Mount Fitz Roy in the distance. It was huge, and I was not feeling confident about hiking that monstrosity! Mark had increased the length and elevation of our hiking leading up to El Chaltén to prepare us to tackle it. We knew it was a 10 km hike into the glacier lake with elevation gains at the beginning and a very challenging 1 km scramble that would feel like straight up at the end. Although it was a 20 km hike total, the reality, including the elevation gain, was a lot more. This would be the most challenging hike in both distance and elevation that any of us had done. The four of us agreed we would go at our own pace, stop as often as we needed, and turn back when we had pushed ourselves to our max - no guilt, no shame. 

Enroute to El Chaltén

We had free welcome drinks in a restaurant at the base of the trail upon our arrival, so of course, we had to take advantage of that! Although the beverages were enjoyable, we didn't do ourselves any favours by watching hikers return from Fitz Roy the night before our planned ascent. Some people were limping, some were exhausted, and some, the veteran hikers, looked like they had taken a stroll in the park. But... what we also noticed was that there were all ages, shapes and abilities! We could do this. Sharon started to narrate the conversations happening outside the restaurant, which sent me into a huge giggle fit. There is nothing like a good laugh to ease your nerves. Unfortunately, by the time we made it back to our apartment, all that relief had vanished, at least for three of us. Mark never doubted our abilities and is the most patient, supportive and motivating person I know. 

The restaurant/bar La Birre del Rancho where we had drinks and
watched the hikers coming down from Fitz Roy

We filled our water bottles and laid out our layers of clothing, chapstick, sunscreen, and backpacks. We packed our trail mix, fruit, bars and made sandwiches. There was nothing left to do but get a good night's sleep. Mark said we needed to be prepared for anything, so I added Band-Aids, Tylenol, Advil and Aleve to my pack. Unbeknownst to Mark and me, that conversation sent Sharon and (little) Mark into a tailspin, wondering what they had gotten themselves into. Quietly in their room, they considered everything that could possibly go wrong on this hike and added a knee brace, more Tylenol, Aleve, Benadryl and Immodium to their packs. Little Mark even packed extra underwear! Sharon worried that she might run out of water, and if there wasn't a stream, then she might get dehydrated, and then what would she do? She was also stressed about needing to use the bathroom and figured our relationship would go to a whole new level if she had to $h!t in the woods! Needless to say, when the alarm went off the next morning, Sharon hadn't slept much and was seriously considering backing out. By 7:50 am, not knowing about any of the conversations and apprehensions Sharon and Mark were having the night before, all four of us headed out the door towards the trailhead.

We took photos with the sign indicating the beginning of the trails and more with the Fitz Roy and Laguna Los Tres signs. We all quietly wondered if we would take another photo with this sign on the way back down, celebrating our accomplishments. Sharon and (little) Mark thought no way, I was hopeful, and Mark was feeling pretty confident. 

The BEFORE photos - we all look pretty sleepy!

The sun was shining, and the elevation gain started right away.  Before we knew it, we were winded and peeling off our layers. I got used to using our trekking poles, and about 20 minutes in, started to relax and find my groove. If the elevation continued, it was going to be challenging, but if I pushed myself, I thought I could make it to the 8th or 9th kilometre, and hopefully the really steep part at the end.  It turned out Sharon didn't start to relax until about kilometre 6! 

The trail was so diverse; there were dense forests, rocky outcrops, river crossings, and grassy knolls. Signs marked our progress each kilometre along the way. We checked in with each other often, taking turns setting the pace and navigating the trail. We snacked and kept hydrated, and we all started to feel a little more confident as we went, tired... yet confident. 

Pictures taken at various times throughout the hike - such varied terrain!! 

At around kilometre 9, we stopped at a camp that was equipped with an outhouse, alleviating some of Sharon's nightmares, and we fueled up for the most challenging part of the trek. The last kilometre was going to be steep, 400 meters straight up on rocky shelves and ankle rolling stones. In addition to "scrambling" as Mark called it, the temperatures would start to drop and the winds would begin to whip. Although I don't recall us collectively deciding that we would continue, all of us headed up. We read the sign warning us of what to expect ahead and that this part of the trail required good physical condition. Hmmm, what exactly was good physical condition? I get out of breath bending over to tie up my shoes, (little) Mark gets stomache spasms tying his shoes and my Mark can't even reach his shoes. Does that constitute good physical condition? I don't think so!! What was I thinking?!?

Warnings at Kilometre 9

Unfortunately, Fitz Roy was in clouds when we finally made it there :(

Putting one foot in front of the other, we all made it to the summit. At one point, Sharon mentioned that her granddaughter Ellie, who is two and a half years old, had declined help with something, saying, "No thanks, Nana, Ellie can do hard things."  She couldn't wait to return home and tell Ellie that Nana could do hard things, too. We videod a message for Ellie, and we had a little emotional moment together on the climb together. I let her know that Ellie would be so proud of her and that I was very proud of her, too. It is really special to share these moments with friends we love dearly and feel incredibly grateful.

Look Ellie, Nana can do hard things! This photo gives you an indication of
just how steep this section of the trail was. 

At the summit, the weather had certainly changed, and we needed to layer up to cut the wind. The view of the lake and glacier was spectacular, and Mark wanted to head down to the "tarn" lake. Off we went without even getting a picture of all four of us at the top! We took lots of photos at lake level and scrambled another hill to see another lake and a beautiful waterfall. The wind was so strong it knocked us off balance, and then the rain started. It was so windy that the rain felt like hail on our faces and hands. We had done it, we had made it to Mount Fitz Roy! Now all we had to do was turn around and get back down. We were not done at all; we were only halfway there. 

One of my favourite photos of Mark!

Fighting the wind as the rain was starting.

We started back down, and the first kilometre was more challenging than it was going up. My legs were on fire. We were so thankful for our trekking poles as they saved us from near falls several times. The fellow hiking behind me was not so lucky, and down he went, sliding closer and closer to me. I could see the rocks rolling past me, and I braced myself for his impact. Like a slow-motion video, I imagined my feet being knocked out from under me and landing hard; thankfully, he stopped right at my heels. As the day progressed, we had a little more bounce in our steps, knowing the hardest part was behind us. Sharon said she was never so happy to see the mile marker indicating we had 8 kilometres left. We chuckled, as up until that point, the longest hike Sharon and (little) Mark had done was about 8 km, and here we were approaching kilometre 17! 

Not only was the descent challenging, but we also had to navigate around climbers on their way up!

Only 8 more kilometres until the base!

The last 2 kilometres of the 25.69-kilometre total were the hardest; we were tired, and it was a steep descent. Our legs were feeling wobbly, and we couldn't wait to be done! We celebrated at the original sign we had posed at 10 and a half hours earlier. We would have loved to have captured a photo of us all jumping, but that was definately NOT in the cards. It was time to return to the bar for my celebratory Coke! We held our heads high, shoulders back and walked strongly forward. We were not going to provide any anxious hikers with commentary or entertainment - only awe and hope! Mark and (little) Mark returned our trekking poles, and Sharon and I didn't wait for their return before we raised a glass... and a can!

Celebrations at the bottom after 10 1/2 hours of hiking!

Fitz Roy, on the day we left El Chaltén. Unfortunately, it wasn't quite as clear when we were hiking.

From Top to Bottom of the Americas!

I'm sure you all can recall the adventures we had driving to Tuktoyaktuk and swimming in the Arctic Ocean at the northernmost point in North America. If not, the highlights were 800 km dirt roads, lots of dust, flat tires and NO moose! You can read more in our previous post titled "The Dempster Highway to Tuktoyaktuk NWT - We did it!!" One of the reasons that we opted to take that chilly dip at the northern tip of North America was that we would be travelling to Ushuaia, known as the end of the world in Argentina. They call it the end of the world because it is the furthest city south you can drive in South America. Mark, being the retired geography teacher that he is, thought it would be fun to swim at both ends of the Americas, the VERY cold ends. Yeah... totally fun! Well, I can report that we did just that today!

Ushuaia’s climate is a stark contrast to Rio’s. We had to dig out pants, socks, puffer jackets, hats, mittens, and our hiking boots. Many of you likely know the Patagonia clothing brand...well, we are now in the mountainous region that inspired its name. It’s stunning here: beautiful, windy, and undeniably chilly! Although when I say chilly, I mean about 9 degrees, still not as cold as it’s been at home! But I bet none of you are polar dipping in Lake Erie just so you can say you have done it, are you!!!

Us before our Polar Plunge!

We bundled up for a sailing trip through the Beagle Channel to H Island for our first adventure in Ushuaia. We saw lots of wildlife en route, including King cormorants, Skuas, a whale, and two different types of sea lions. I was thrilled to see Magellenic penguins swimming alongside the sailboat, but we only managed to capture a photo of one. The cormorants here look almost like penguins in their markings, and we visited a South American tern rookery, which was similar to the Arctic tern we see at home.

The locals say they have not had much of a summer this year, but thankfully, we have been blessed with a few days of milder and sunnier weather. We headed to the Tierra Del Fuego National Park for some hiking, and that is where we took our second chilly dip - in the Southern Ocean this time. Actually, it was the Beagle Channel that leads to the Southern Ocean, but close enough! Our friends Mark and Sharon have joined us travelling and (little) Mark was also keen to take a polar plunge with us. We couldn't talk Sharon into it. I have very smart and sensible friends... so she was our videographer! I would like you to take note of how we were dressed immediately prior to our swimming adventure. It had been raining, and we were already chilled to the bone. The wind was whistling, and there were white caps on the water. I suggested maybe we wait for a warmer day to take a polar plunge. Nope, Mark wasn't buying that stall tactic at all. He thought we should complete the challenge today, who knows what the weather holds for the next few days? (Might I add that as I edit this post two days after our polar plunge, it is warm and sunny and a balmy 15 degrees!😏 Of course!) 

Little Mark was stoked and ran headlong into the icy cold water. He stayed there far longer than I thought he should have without turning blue. A few spectators were watching our shenanigans from shore, wondering what on earth we were up to. My Mark was next in, then, very reluctantly, in I went. It was COLD... the waves were crashing, and I am sure that I did turn blue. I ask myself why... why am I doing this? My very smart and sensible friend Sharon is warm and dry on shore, yet here I am forming the biggest goose bumps possible in places I didn't even know you could have goose bumps! But... I can say I have swum at both ends of the Americas, now. Thank goodness for that; you never know when that accomplishment will come in handy. We told Mark and Sharon that their next trip had to be up the Dempster so they could also claim the same accolades as us. They were not too keen on driving the 800 km gravel road, I have no idea why! Oh yes I do... I have SMART and SENSIBLE friends!

Our dip in the Beagle Channel, Ushuaia, Argentina!

The top two photos are of us in Tuktoyaktuk, NWT, and the bottom two are of us in Ushuai, Argentina. 

We still have a few more days in the Patagonia region, which we will fill with some more hiking and exploring before we start heading north to El Calafate. I'm fairly confident there will be no more icy plunges, though. 

New Wonder of the World - Iguazu Falls.

We visited one of the New 7 Wonders of the World this week, and it did not disappoint. When my students were researching South America, to give us suggestions for our trip, Arabella and Maverick chose to learn about Iguazu Falls. We visited both the Brazilian and Argentine sides and had two spectacular perspectives of the multitude of falls. 

We headed out early by Uber to catch the bus inside the park that took us to the Devil's Throat. It was beautiful, hot, and sunny, and when we reached the falls, it was 37 degrees. We were hiking mainly in the shade, so the heat wasn't too unbearable. When we reached Devil's Throat, we walked out on a platform into the mist. The Brazilian side gave us a perspective from below the falls, and as we walked along the river, we got spectacular views. We took so many photos, and every corner provided more stunning scenery. 

So sunny and beautiful with loads of rainbows!

We counted more than 20 different waterfalls in one view we had!

The Argentine side provided a perspective from above, and two other hiking trails. It had a small train that took us to the Devil's Throat, which was a thrilling experience. Again, we got up early to catch the first train in and were among the first people to reach the falls. It quickly got busier as the day went on, and we were ready to head out around noon. It is hard to find words to express the beauty of the falls, so I will share lots of pictures to give you an idea of what you can add to your bucket list when visiting Brazil and Argentina. It is truly a natural wonder. Thanks, Mav and Arabella, for the recommendation. 

We planned to take this boat tour, but Mark's tummy wasn't feeling well so we thought it better
to skip this time. 🤮

Another stunning day with beautiful views!

The Devil's Throat - we were soaked!

Some of the wildlife we saw. Iguanas, Vultures, Coatis and Cormorants

It's a nice day in Rio, even when it rains!

As our friends at home are experiencing record low temperatures and loads of snow, and the iguanas are falling out of the trees in Florida, we are sweating buckets in Rio. It's super hot here! We have tried to walk earlier each day, but it is 27 degrees at 7:00 am. The sunshine is out until mid-late afternoon, then the clouds roll in, and the showers start. It has suited us quite well as we are usually ready to get out of the sun when the bad weather hits. This is very typical of a tropical rainy season. We've been caught out in the rain a few times, but since it is so warm, it hasn't bothered us at all. Today the sun was shining, and it started to rain. Everybody just stayed put on the beach, some under umbrellas, some swimming, and some just sitting out enjoying the rain. What a far cry from Canada, where beach showers send the crowds running.

Our morning walks and coconuts. Today we saw an ice sculpture counting down until the start of the Olympics! Lots of people are out playing beach soccer in the mornings.

It is incredible all of the setup for Carnaval. One of the areas on the beach in Copacabana
stretches about 4 city blocks at least.

We figured it was best to head out to see the world-famous Christ the Redeemer statue first thing in the morning to try and avoid the heat, but I'm not sure it made that much of a difference to get up at the crack of dawn. We did want to see it in the sunshine, and we were in luck! The morning was clear and beautiful. We took one of the first cog trains up the steep 700 metre hill and found lots of people already at the top. Although it is tough to get a picture of the statue without the crowds, we managed to get some great, nearly solo, shots of one of the new 7 Wonders of the World and incredible views of Rio and the islands beyond. We were lucky to be at the front of the train on the way back down and captured a time-lapse video of the entire trip. There is a huge Catholic population where we are staying, and Leblon essentially shuts down on Sundays. The 3 lane road along the beach is closed, and everyone is out walking, running and biking. The vendors set up along the roadway offering drinks and snacks, and the beach is exceptionally busy on Sundays.

A beautiful panorama of the view!

Shocking to get this shot without many people in it!

Us with the Christ the Redeemer statue.

Leblon road closed on Sundays, and the beautiful patterns on the boardwalks along the beach. There are always fellows fixing them. 

Since it was cloudy out, we took a "free walking food tour" in upscale Barra da Tijuca and Isla da Gigoia and learned loads of historical facts about Brazil, Barra da Tijuca, Rio, slavery, the favelas, and, of course, food. We even saw the hotel owned by the now jailed ex-president Jair Bolsonaro. One of the things we learned is that many of the Brazilian foods need to be mixed together to enjoy their full flavour, rather than being eaten separately. Eduardo, our guide, mentioned that visitors have asked him, "Why do people like eating sand in Brazilian meals"? He explained that although farofa does look like sand, it is intended to be mixed with the rice, beans, sauces and maybe eggs to add to the texture of the dish. Mixing the side dishes really did make a difference in the flavours. If you are someone who doesn't like their different foods touching, such as Mark's dad, Brazilian food may not be the right choice for you! The first dish we had was a very old dish consisting of dehydrated meat and cassava cooked in a buttery sauce. It was my favourite and was the Brazilian version of slow-roasted beef and mashed potatoes with butter. Years ago, cattle ranchers would salt the meat and dry it in the sun to preserve it. It was then boiled before it was to be eaten. We have tried some of the famous brazilian barbecued meats since being here, and we were waiting to eat fajoida, which is Brazil's national dish. It is a rich, slow-cooked Brazilian stew made primarily of black beans and a variety of pork and beef, such as smoked sausage, bacon and dried beef. The stew is served with rice, farofa, collard greens and orange slices. This is a very hearty meal and is usually enjoyed on the weekends. All the restaurants claim to have the best fajoida. Lastly, we tried a variation of risotto made with rice and cream cheese, served with meat in a red wine sauce. This risotto-like dish was Mark's favourite.  We learned about Carlota Joaquina  (Queen consort of Portugal and Brazil) and her affinity for Brazilian sugarcane liquor used to make Brazil's signature drink, caipirinha. Mark can't get enough of the potent lime forward drinks, but when I asked for mine without alcohol, the waiter smirked and said, well that is basically lime juice. 

The vendors cook this cheese in little grills on the beach, like the top right photo. We really wanted to try it, but thought it a little questionable on the beach, so we bought it at the grocery store and grilled it ourselves. It was delicious! It reminded us of halloumi cheese. 

We will see what tomorrow's weather brings. Cloudy means a trip into Centro, Brazil's downtown area and sunny means we will have to tough it out another day on the beach. Either way, we are definately not dealing with any snow or falling iguanas!

Eu não falo português.

We have been in Rio for a week now and are absolutely loving it, except maybe for the language barrier! Mark loves trying to converse with everyone, from the Uber driver to the doorman and our beach friends who get us our umbrellas and chairs every day.  He gets out his phone and uses Google Translate to ask them questions and gets them to dictate their answers back. It is not foolproof... according to Google, Mark had turkey-fish for dinner tonight! You have to hit the button back and forth to switch between the different languages. I don't have the patience for it at all, and since I lost my glasses, I can barely read the itty bitty type on it anyway!! I'm great at smiling and nodding, and I've mastered please and thank you, so I'm good! I do have a whole new appreciation for people who don't understand English, when I just repeat myself slower and louder, hoping they will understand. I have gotten quite creative with my sign language here for sure! 😄 

Our doorman, Andre.

We haven't gotten ourselves into too much trouble yet; however, the subway security guy escorted Mark off the 'women's only' subway car yesterday... who knew that the subway had gendered cars? We hopped on, and a lady tried to tell us that we had to move to the next car, of course, in Portuguese. Mark thought she was trying to tell us that the train wasn't going where we wanted to go. We tried to get off, and she said, "No," and pointed down the subway line. We didn't get it. How did she even know where we were going? Everyone on the train was looking at us; we hadn't noticed that they were all women. Then the security guy showed up, and he started speaking to us in Portuguese; we had no idea what was going on. He pointed to the pink wall with a picture of a woman, and thankfully, Mark put it together. I was too busy panicking about how I was going to bail Mark out of subway jail to think straight. We made our way, a little embarrassed, to the next train car. We later saw this sign between the two cars!

Just to be clear, the sign by the door that the security guy motioned to didn't have any ENGLISH on it like this one!!

We have become friends with the two waiter fellows on the beach, Marcus and Rafael. Rafael speaks a little English, but Marcus doesn't speak any at all. Marcus and Mark have become quite the buddies, chatting away all the time. Marcus hasn't quite figured out that Mark doesn't understand a word that he is saying. It took a couple of days, but now when Marcus comes to chat, he gestures to Mark to get out his phone. It is interesting that even when you say that you don't speak Portuguese here, people just keep talking. I think it is kind of funny that the way you say that you don't speak Portuguese sounds kind of like I NO FOLLOW PORTUGUESE. A lady on the beach today wasn't very happy with vendors getting too close to her towel, at least that is what I 'followed' from her hand gestures. I told her I didn't understand, and she continued anyway... I smiled and nodded. Who knows what I was agreeing to! 

This gives you an idea of just how busy the beach gets!

Tonight at dinner, when the waiter showed us to our table, I went to say thank you (obrigada) and randomly said (asada) the Spanish word for BBQ, (well tecnically ROAST) instead! I'm not even mixing up words in the same language! I suppose I don't have please and thank you mastered after all... smiling and nodding it is from now on!! Thank goodness ketchup is the same in English as Portuguese, because I have no idea what I would have ordered to go with my fries. At least I am not quite as bad as the English-speaking guy who was sitting on the patio. He ended up with 2 huge hamburgers! His eyes were as big as saucers when his order arrived.  He must have smiled and nodded when the waiter tried to explain that he was ordering from the dinner for 2 menu. I was surprised that Mark didn't whip out his phone to show him how to use Google Translate!