I never knew that Parque Nacional Torres del Paine existed at the very tip of South America. I never knew of the magnificent glaciers and soaring blue mountain peaks that grace this landscape. I never knew that there was such an animal as a guanaco. I never knew that flamingos not only existed, but thrived in this barren, harsh, and marvelous environment.
What an experience I had. I hiked 11 miles to the base of a massive glacier that was actively carving the crags and crevices into the mountain peak towering above it. I watched as huge blocks of ice calved and tumbled off the glacier and rumbled and crashed to the rocks below. I stood on a rickety bridge over the crystal clear mountain stream that drained from the base of that glacier that thousands of people from all walks of life had crossed before me. I rode a horse up and down glacial moraines in gale-force winds of 60mph behind an authentic gaucho dressed in his country ‘s authentic apparel. I got chased by a guanaco and was told later they bite the testicles off their enemies – I’m so glad I don’t have testicles and I’m so glad he didn’t catch me – who knows what he would have found to bite off! I rode a boat to the base of an electric blue glacier that mounded out over the lake between carved peaks and watched in awe as the captain navigated skillfully amongst great and fearful icebergs. I traded funny faces and smiles with a three-year old native Patagonian who only cared that I was friendly and welcoming and couldn’t care less about any of the issues society focuses on these days. I ate guanaco and other mystery meats in a stifling hut at a native bar-b-que under the towering Cuernos del Paine. I traded funny stories, heartbreaking narratives, jokes, and laughter with my traveling companions, some of whom I now consider life-long friends.
I came here expecting to take some really great photos. I left this magical land with a once-in-a-lifetime experience which opened my eyes to a new and glorious country. I will never forget you, Patagonia!
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Photography has been a tool through which I create space to develop positive emotions in my life. There is joy in creation of an image that envelops those who view it in a sense of awe. There is happiness in my heart when I ponder those images and consider all I learned and how much I grew in knowledge in order to produce those photographs.