Travels of a Lifetime VBlog Series: Southern Patagonia, Chile

-

Series #5: Torres Del Paine National Park, Southern Patagonia


I caught my first glimpse of the distinct peaks (Torres) from Lake Sarmiento, an interesting lake that looked as if it had a ring around it. Leading up to Lake Sarmiento, we passed the Deciduous Magellan Forest with poplar and conifer trees but mostly dominated by Lenga trees. Then on to Patagonian plains and plateau covered in pampas and walled by rocky hills: a landscape said to be lower than sea level and created by glacial movement. And of course, the famous symbol of anything Patagonia, the horn-shaped towers (the jagged mountain peaks) dominated the horizon and could be seen from all directions. With the changeable weather, the snow-capped mountains suddenly appeared with glorious blue light or buried under a shroud of dense, gray clouds. The sky was vast and dominating. Milky aqua waters of Rio Paine and lakes were part of the surreal landscape. While I expected to see glaciers near the mountain, I was surprised to see some vegetation, flora (yellow lupines, Calafate/blueberry) and fauna (wild turkey, geese, and neandus). Guanacos dominated the animal landscape.

Torres Del Paine National Park is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. It is a massif, a mountain system independent of the Andes mountain range in Patagonia. It centers on an alpine massif of three imposing granite towers (Torres) reaching more than 10,000 feet, together with several lesser horns, or cuernos, formed of black shale, and a variety of glaciers, lakes, and wild rivers.

Here's a video of my Patagonian adventure (long version).  Click  HERE to watch it on YouTube or click the thumbnail below.



 Press play to watch a short preview of Torres Del Paine.




NOTE:  All photos and videos by the author

Comments

Post a Comment

NEW POSTS

The Beauty of the Philippines Part 1: Taal Lake

-
Image
Taal Lake is described in Patricia Schultz' book as, “…one of Asia's most beautiful panoramas. Among the world's lowest and smallest volcanoes, Taal is filled with water, creating a lake, yet the volcano itself is located within a larger lake (as the tour guides are wont to chant, "A lake within a volcano, within a lake, within the island of Luzon.")The blues and greens of the vista from forested Tagaytay Ridge have for generations made this a favorite getaway from the heat and chaos of downtown Manila."
To see this amazing wonder, we hired an air-conditioned SUV for P3700.00 pesos for a return trip from Quezon City (Metro Manila) to Tagaytay. The car rental included gas and a driver. We drove south-west for almost two hours until we came to Tagaytay City lookout - a vista point on the side of the road. The view was already spectacular but we wanted to go to the volcano island up-close.


At the Tagaytay City lookout, we were approached by a few would-be-guid…
Read more

Scenic Musandam, Oman

-
Image
Musandam is the Northernmost part of Oman that borders the straits of Hormuz, which is the entrance to the Arabian Gulf and one of the most important waterways in the world. At their narrowest, the straits are approximately 30 kilometers separating Oman and Iran. Most visitors arrive in Khasab, Musandam's capital city, by ferry from Muscat or by cruise ship.

The Musandam Peninsula is a great place for nature lovers. You can take the traditional Omani Dhow boat and sail towards Masandam longest fjord with calm turquoise water that contrasts with the creamy white limestone cliffs and enjoy the breathtaking view of mountains rising from a distance or you can enjoy the same breathtaking scenery from the beach.



Take a short trip from Khasab to Bhuka and experience one of the most dramatic coastal roads in Oman. It's pretty amazing. You will skirt through the narrow road between the mountains and the sea. Massive rock formations seemingly growing out of the waters with all sorts of g…
Read more

Colorful Colombo, Sri Lanka

-
Image
Pretty in PinkYou may have gleaned from reading my blog or following me on Instagram that I like photographing nature. On a recent visit to Sri Lanka, I had the chance to spend time at the elephant sanctuary but I made a conscious effort to make my trip to Sri Lanka cultural. I spent my time in Colombo, the commercial capital and the largest city of Sri Lanka. I thought visiting the Sri Landa National Museum first would be a good way to know the country. Approaching the museum, I could not escape nature and not focus my camera on the sea of pink in front of me - flower petals that had fallen from a huge tree. I did not know the name of the tree/flower so I showed the photo I took to the museum staff to find out what it was called, but they did not know it either. I found out through the 'image search' app that it was called the "pink powder puff".


Sri Lanka National Museum The National Museum of Colombo also known as the Sri Lanka National Museum is the largest m…
Read more