Driven by high wind, the river was a torrent and boatmen found it impossible to
hook the boat onto the overhead cable, a permanent installation across the river.
By then, both ranger and horse were waiting on the opposite side. Eventually, all
gave up and returned to the refugio. Following a hearty lunch, the men returned to
the river to check the conditions.
Eventually, the boat got hooked onto the cable, and with my backpack on the boat,
we made it across by pulling the boat along the wire. Getting out of the boat,
across rocks, and onto the opposite bank was a slow and painful task, and I
surmised quite a spectacle but I had no ego left by then.
Eventually, I met the very patient ranger and horse - I later discovered he was the
most experienced and longest-serving ranger in the park. Once heaved onto the
horse by strong hands, we galloped off following a horse trail, through an
exceptionally isolated part of the park. Nearly two hours later, we reached a dirt
track where an off-road vehicle awaited us. I had no idea it would be such a
mission.
With a skilful driver, we continued a fascinating ride through the park. A jeep track
went up over mountains, through rivers and marshlands and past some of the most
stunning vistas the park could offer. What an adventure, albeit a tad uncalled for.
An ambulance waited at the park’s main gate and, embarrassingly, I was loaded in
and taken to Puerto Natales Hospital. The fact that I’d been hiking and sleeping in
the same clothes the past five days and that each person wanted to look closer at
my feet, which had been in the same shoes and socks for the same amount of
days, was part of my embarrassment.