Australian Gourmet Traveller - (01)January 2020 (1)

B

ruceChatwinwasthemostfamousvisitor

toPatagoniaafterMagellan, thePortuguese

explorer. “HavegonetoPatagonia,”hecabled

hiscolleaguesbackatTheSundayTimesin

London,havingsimplyvanished.Thebookhe

publishedaboutthetripin 1977 paintedthedefiningpicture

ofPatagoniaintheWesternmind.InPatagoniawasalsocalled

thebookthatrevolutionisedtravelwriting,“aredeemer,” as

TheParisReviewwouldhaveit,“ofliterarynonfiction.”

ThoughChatwincovereda lotofground,there’ssurprisingly

littleactualtravelinthebook.Whatcapturedhisimagination

wasthepeople.HetookteawiththeancestorsofWelshsheep

farmers(“TheychosePatagoniaforitsabsoluteremoteness

andfoulclimate;theydidnotwanttogetrich”),anddelved

intoAndeanvalleystosiftfortracesofButchCassidy(whom

hepicturedseducedbylandresemblinghishomestateof

Utah,“acountryofcleanairandopenspaces;ofblackmesas

andbluemountains;a countryofbonespickedcleanbyhawks,

strippedbythewind,strippingmentotheraw”).Heinvestigated

witchcraft,moochedonestancias,andeventuallymeandered

allthewaydowntoUshuaia,thesouthernmosttownonthe

continent,inTierradelFuego.

Mytripwasfarshorter,takinginjusta smallcornerof

PatagoniaontheChileanside.Butit wasthepartofPatagonia

thathadfirstcalledtoChatwinacrossthewatersandacrossthe

years.HecametoPatagonialookingfora brontosaurus.A scrap

ofskin(“asmallpieceonly,butthickandleathery,withstrands

ofcoarse,reddishhair”)keptina glass-frontedcabinetinhis

grandmother’sdiningroominBirminghamhadobsessedhim

asa child.Whenhegrewolderhelearntthatit had,infact,

beena pieceofa mylodon,a giantgroundsloththatbecame

extinct10,000yearsago.It hadcomeintoNannaChatwin’s

possessionviahercousinCharleyMilward,whohadbeen

theBritishconsulinPuntaArenaswhena well-preserved

cacheofskinandboneshadbeenfoundina caveonLast

HopeSoundinChileanPatagonia.

I foundmanyofthethingsChatwinsawremainunchanged.

ThegardensofPuertoNatalesarestillchokedwithdockand

cowparsley;theenginethatusedtorunthemenofthetown

tothemeatworksstillsitsintheplaza,nowpaintedredand

scrawledwithgraffiti.ThefamiliesoftheislandersofChiloé

whomigratedherenearlya centuryagotoworkonthekilling

floorprovideboththetalentandthecustomerbasefora

handfulofChiloterestaurants.

ThemylodonloomslargeinPuertoNatales,too.There’s

thelife-sizedstatuesthatstand 10 metreshighat thegateway

to the small fishing town. There’s another one in Cueva del

MilodónNaturalMonument,thelarge,onlymildlyspooky

cavehalfanhournorth-westwheretheremainswerefoundin

1895.Thecavehasalsoyieldedevidenceofprehistorichuman

occupationshere,alongwiththeexistenceofa speciesofdwarf

horse,anda sabre-toothedcatcalleda smilodon.Ina caseby

thetowering,bear-likeconcretemylodon,areclaws(réplica),

bonesandfur(originales).Themylodonalsolivesoninthe

province’sgiftshops(incarvedtimber),streetsigns(inComic

Sans),andthelocalcabcompany(RadioTaxiel Milodón).

TheyoungBruceChatwinhadfixatedonPatagoniaas

thesafestplaceonEarth,a placefarfromColdWarworries.

“I pictureda lowtimberhousewitha shingledroof,caulked

againststorms,withblazinglogfiresinsideandthewalls

linedwiththebestbooks,”hewrote,“somewheretolive

whentherestoftheworldblewup.”

Thebesttravelwritinghasthatsamepowertocalltous

acrosstheseasandtheyearsandtheplanesofourimagination.

Wechanceupona pieceofbrontosaurusskinina dining

roominBirminghamandit leadsustotheendsoftheEarth.

■Pat Nourse is the formerGT managing editor and restaurant critic.

InPatagoniabyBruceChatwin

PAT NOURSE

Beach

reading

special

78 GOURMET TRAVELLER