The border crossings were fine, just behind a minibus full of French OAP's this time but not a problem. I must be getting good at this as at the Chilean border post they got me to fill in the paperwork myself!
The Ferry check in is at the main hotel (they use one of the conference rooms) and it took about 1 minute to do the formalities. They did however say that the Ferry's arrival was delayed and so I wouldn't be able to load the bike until midnight.
I had some lunch and sat in the sun for a while, amongst the great unwashed backpackers, trying to eek out time. I then saw another Moto arrive - it was Mary, the lady who had given me the contact details of a mechanic in Pt Arenas.
Once she had done her paperwork we found a bar on the waterfront and got a thirst for Pisco sours. I think I have told you about these but just in case - highly recommended ("brandy spirit", lemon juice, egg white and Angostura bitters).
Mary threw her job in at a laboratory in Washington and has been riding her BMW for 8 months. She is heading back to BsAs to ship her & her bike back home. The tattoos and piercings gave a clue to her Punk teenage years.
We grabbed a steak (I haven't eaten this much in one day since I got here) and went back to the bikes. Neither of us were too sure about getting the bikes on board after pisco's, beer & wine. It was fine but it took some time to get the bikes strapped down securely. This a 4 day journey some of it in open ocean so if they were not tied down well, who knows what we would find at the end?
After we were strapped in the whole deck was filled with lorries full of cattle & sheep. They were crammed in and it is hard to believe they will be like that for 4 days - I didn't see any walking the decks or in the Baaaa!
Cabins are cosy to say the least, I have a Scot Mark, ex music industry - got fed up chucked job in. It seems that it doesn't matter what you do, sooner or later people get bored and look for a change or challenge. We also have a Chilean guy with whom it is hard to communicate. I am pretty sure he had medical problems that he is keen to describe to us - my Spanish is suddenly a lot worse than yesterday. He wears his burgundy PJ's which he folds neatly each morning. The Scot obviously just wears a Rab C Nesbitt string vest.
i manage to snap the key off in my locker first time of use. A large shaven headed "stoker" gives me a "tut tut" rolls his eyes into the top of his head and wanders off to get another one. he doesn't have a spare so has to fit a whole new lock - more tut tutting but in a nice natured way..
The smell from the livestock below at 1:00 in the morning was enough to send me to my bunk and straight to sleep.
I slept really well and it was hard to tell if the ship was moving in the morning but it was. We were in the Fjords, tight narrow avenues between the mountains. Fantastic sights as we pass just out of reach of the coast (I am glad the skipper isn't Italian).
I was first up, got through the bathroom before the others were up and was in the queue for breakfast at 8.00. Obviously i was a bit too eager to get to breakfast as this key also snaps off in my hand too! This time it is the plastic bit so I can manage (not wanting to incur the wrath of the stoker).
There was a queue for breakfast because the boat is full of student backpackers who haven't had a square meal in weeks. They fill their trays with enough to make up cheese and ham rolls for mid morning snacks (their lunch is at 12:30 for Gods sake!).
We then have a mandatory safety talk and info. The skipper and the "entertainment officer" are both bloody funny. Albeit some of us have to wait for the English translation.
The skipper explains that he has read the brochure for Cunard and the other cruise companies where they charge $150 to visit the bridge. "this is a roll on roll off ferry - so it is free & all are welcome".
He then says "Their skippers are tall, blond, blue eyed and they charge $150 for a picture with the Captain". Our skipper is typically Patagonian - short, thick set & thinning hair - no George Clooney.
He looks himself up and down and says............"this is free too"!
We continue to sail up narrow channels with mountains on either side, wandering the two decks and the lounge area, bumping in to people chatting about their trips; where they are going and where they have been etc. The stories are, as you would expect, pretty similar.
Every now and again there is a report of whales - blowing spray as they surface. Their puffs of spray cover a wide area so the schools are quite large. They are too far away for my camera but they keep pace with the boat and we can see their dorsal fins & back as they come us for air. We didn't see any "breaching" which is a shame. We also see some Dolphins but each time I was too slow with the camera. Hopefully Wilks will have better luck next week.
We then get a lecture on Glaciers (the "Ent Officer" is a glaciologist and has a passion for his subject). It is amazing that Patagonia has 1/3 of the Worlds glaciers and most of them are growing, some over 500 meters a year (they think due to the volcanoes spewing out ash in the area. He has some time elapse slides (4 per day for 2 years) amazing to see them grow so fast.
This area gets 8 meters of rain a year - but if cold enough 8m of rain becomes 60 meters of snow - hence the growth of the glaciers in this region.
We then turn in to a Fjord and the skipper takes us up to the Skua Glacier (named after the bird i mentioned in Antarctica) We sail slowly thru the icebergs and the does a 360 degree turn (his party piece I think) right next to the glacier!
We then head back to the channel as the sun sets and minds turn to beer and wine (the back packers have brought up the stock of boxed wine from the supermarket in Pt Natales)!
They have films on in the evening but most of us prefer the bar and chatting about travels. The Scott and I chat to some Americans whilst I throw a beaker of red wine over them! A bit embarrassing but their clothes didn't seem to show the stains. A bottle purchased from the bar was sufficient to remain friends (especially as this stuff didn't take the enamel off your teeth).
Day 2 or was it 3, the ship pulled in to a small town of 127 people in the early morning to let some local people off, I couldn't face getting down from my bunk and getting dressed to see what the town looked like. I don't know anyone that did.
The days all passed pretty much the same, beautiful scenery, chatting, eating and dealing with the smell from the poor unfortunate animals. Not to mention bloody Don Quixote, i am determined to finish it but I wouldnt recommend it. I did chat to some really nice, bright (more phd's than you can shake a stick at) people who are travelling rather than succumb to the rat race.
There is a danger that you see so much spectacular scenery that you begin to take if for granted. The one thing that got everyone out of their seats was when someone spotted Whales or Dolphins, there are plenty out there and you see them frequently but not as close as you would wish for.
We had a debrief for docking proceedures, one point of which was to leave our keys in the locks. Ahhhh. Back to my new best friend who can't quite believe it. He gets some super glue and mends the key but also sticks his fingers together in the process! I dont think he will miss me.
We pulled in to Puerto Montt four hours late at about 10:00am. The people who had booked early buses to their next destination were stuffed. If you ever do this trip I would suggest giving yourself a days grace!
We were allowed down on to the deck to get our bikes - which were now behind all the livestock trucks, we would be just about last off. It didn't bother me as I was staying 1 night in town anyway. Poor Mary was hoping to get across the border and well in to Argentina.
The smell was awful and I am sorry to say that you could see sheep laying on the floor in the trucks - not all of them made it!
Then as if we hadn't waited long enough, as one truck is being removed, it smacks the side of the boat and nearly rips the back off. We nearly had 50 cattle running around! That took a fork lift and straps to put that right before being unloaded.
I found my Aparthotel pretty easily - very nice & half the price of an hotel. first things first - shower & laundry!
I walked in to town and it is a nice mix of old & new. I tried to put some credit on my Argentina phone. Nope Argentina phones cant be charged in Chile. so another 4 shops and i had a a new SIM card for Chile! As always, everyone is very helpful and friendly - to the point the guys in the 3rd mobile shop gave me the SIM card for nothing.
There is a big German influence here. In the 1850's the Chilean government encouraged Germans to come and work/ farm here. There are lots of German style buildings, with Germans names on the Streets & restaurants. i sat down to an enormous Sandwich in such a restaurant - steak, cheese, pickles, guacamole, tomato & chips! That was enough for three days!
Went back to my room and watched the 40 year old virgin in Spanish.
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