The flight to Punta Arenas, via Santiago, was interesting to say the least. I’d checked my suitcase in at Calama and it was tagged through to Punta Arenas, so the 1 hour and 40 minutes connection time I had available at Santiago should have been plenty. But of course we took off an hour late from Calama, and despite making up a little time in the air, the gods appeared to be against us, as we arrived at what appeared to be the furthest part of the terminal from where we needed to be for the onward flight. It took me 20 minutes at a fast march to navigate the endlessly long corridors that eventually led back to the departure gates. A Canadian couple who had checked in ahead of me at Calama, were also racing to make the connection and I heard her grumbling in frustration as each turning led to yet another seemingly endless corridor – but eventually we ended up back at the main departures hall.

I quickly scanned the boards to see which was my gate, saw “Punta Arenas 13.09 – Gate 16 – Boarding” and dashed in that direction. But as I passed gates 20A, then 20, then 19, and approached 18 (all of this taking far longer than I’d have wished for as the gates appeared to be spaced maddeningly far apart), something made me stop and check the board again. Sure enough, the Punta Arenas flight I’d spotted wasn’t mine – it was the right destination and the right time, but the wrong airline (Sky)! My flight with Latam didn’t appear to be on the board at all – there was a Latam flight listed at 13.09 (boarding at Gate 21 which I’d passed 5 minutes ago) but the destination was showing as Puerto Montt! I knew the flight to Punta Arenas was due to stop in Puerto Montt though, so quickly pulled out my boarding pass to verify the flight number, then dashed back to gate 21 to join the queue for boarding.

As I boarded, I asked the check-in desk assistant if I needed to change planes at Puerto Montt and she said no. So when the captain made his first announcement I expected him to say that we were going to Puerto Montt and then on to Punta Arenas. But he made no mention of Punta Arenas at all, simply giving the flight time to Puerto Montt!

I asked one of the cabin crew to confirm we were definitely going to Punta Arenas and she explained that the aircraft would be doing so, but the captain and crew would be staying in Puerto Montt, with a new captain and crew joining for the next leg!

And this is exactly what happened. It was the most bizarre experience – we landed in Puerto Montt and the vast majority of passengers disembarked, while those of us wanting to go to Punta Arenas were told to stay on. I was one of a handful of passengers who sat and watched while the captain and crew got off, to be replaced by a new captain and crew and eventually, new passengers! And then we finally took off again, this time headed to Punta Arenas.

We landed on time, bags were delivered with usual efficiency, and it was a simple matter to pick up a fixed price taxi to the town centre where I’d booked a room for the night, before getting the bus to Puerto Natales in the morning.

It was freezing in Punta Arenas! The air temperature was probably around 13 degrees but there was a brisk wind with a very strong wind chill making it feel closer to zero. I got very cold when I went for a short walk in just a light cardigan and with no hat and gloves.

Thankfully the hotel was comfortable and warm, and after a very good breakfast (including absolutely delicious freshly baked croissants filled with Dulce de leche) I headed off to catch the bus to Puerto Natales.

Puerto Natales was only marginally warmer than Punta Arenas had been, with the same really strong wind bringing the temperature down significantly. I had seen loads of snow on the hills as we’d approached the town, and it suddenly occurred to me that conditions in Torres del Paine may not be the lovely spring conditions I’d been hoping for when I booked my accommodation for the upcoming O Trek.

Once I’d checked into my hostel I decided to check the forecast for Torres del Paine for the next 10 days – and my heart sank! The forecast was showing nothing but cloud, rain, snow and temperatures between about 5 degrees and minus 7 degrees for the duration!

I had booked a rucksack and sleeping bag to rent for the trek, and thankfully had reserved a minus 15 degree sleeping bag, though had been hoping to be able to downgrade to minus 7 to save on weight. But I gave up on that plan immediately – I would just have to stick with the heavier sleeping bag!

I was cursing myself, though, for not having packed my microspikes. I could easily have brought them, but hadn’t thought there would be enough snow in the park to justify bringing them.

Thankfully after a bit of asking around, I was able to rent a pair very cheaply from a nearby hostel, which was a huge relief! It subsequently transpired I could also have got them cheaply from Rental Natales (the company I’d booked the other items through) but their website had indicated they charged $10 a day for microspikes, which seemed exhorbitant over a 7 day hire period, until the owner told me he only actually charges for one day as most people only use them for one day, to get over the high point of the circuit, the John Gardner Pass.

Puerto Natales, despite the wind, is a lovely town, with an abundance of friendly, cosy and reasonably priced coffee shops and restaurants providing respite from the bracing conditions. I wandered into one such establishment, a cafe / restaurant called Wild, and demolished a bowl of chips covered in beef, onions, cheese and a fried egg – washed down with a hot chocolate with rum, both of which warmed me up nicely.

A few more pictures below from Puerto Natales – it turns out that the beautiful statues on the waterfront of two people, arms outstretched, hanging off curved posts, is titled “Monumento al Viento” (Monument to the wind), so clearly the windy conditions are fairly typical! I also particularly enjoyed spotting dustbins borne by varying colourful characters , including Bart and Homer!

Now packed and ready to go – the initial rucksack I was given proved to be a bit too large and heavy for my liking; by the time I’d walked the 10 minutes back to my hostel with only the sleeping bag stuffed inside, I’d decided the only thing for it was to head back and ask to change it. Thankfully this was no problem at all and I now have a super light rucksack which is the perfect size!

There is no cell phone reception in the park so I won’t be posting updates – or checking messages – until I get back. Fingers crossed for some decent views despite the grim forecast!