The Unexpected Sheep of Patagonia
Most people do not bop over to Caleta Gonzalo for a day or two and then ferry back to Hornopirén. They continue south on the Carretera Astral, a famous road that swivels through all of the national parks in the Patagonia Circuit. If I had a car or maybe even a bike, this is the route I would go, and the one I would recommend for anyone planning a trip out there. I had made it almost to Chaiten and then had to turn back to catch a flight out of Puerto Montt down to Puerto Natales, the gateway city to the world-renowned Torres Del Paine National Park.
When I boarded the ferry back to Hornopirén I was thinking about how maybe I had wasted money because I was set on getting somewhere without much time. The man working at the front of the ferry recognized me from a few days prior. He smiled and said, “Returning already?”
The ferry ride from Caleta Gonzalo to Hornopirén is split into three parts, one 45-minute ride across the Fiordo Comau, a 10-minute drive from Leptepú to Caleta Porcelana, and then a 3-hour ride across Fiordo Chamanchaca. Shaking these “was it worth it” thoughts from my head, I committed myself to enjoy the ride. I let my shoulders relax down my back as I leaned over the railing and watched the waves crash gently against the moss-covered rocks of the shore, the crystalline water was blue and green and white all at once.
A man walked up to the right of me and began snapping a photo of the picturesque lodge resting at the edge of the shore. I took a few steps backward to get out of his way.
“No no, don’t worry! You aren’t in the way.” His voice was friendly and calm.
“Oh okay.” I chuckled awkwardly and turned my gaze toward the tops of the trees lining the dense forest.
“This forest could potentially produce more carbon than the amazon. It is one of the most complex in the world. Did you know that?” I looked over to see the man’s gaze following the outline of the forest as the boat backed away slowly from the port.
Carlos is a professor of forestry. He researches forests in Patagonia and studies how they function, what they create, and how to preserve them. He can tell you what every tree is, what type of forest exists in each region of Chile, how the green movement in Chile is flawed, and a plethora of other random facts both related and completely unrelated to trees and forests. We turned out to be a perfect match in conversation because these are subjects I could listen to people talk about forever and Carlos loves to talk. We got to talking and suddenly, we had arrived at the end of the first ride.
“I’ll see you soon!” He said as I shuffled to get my backpack and he pranced to his car.
As I stood waiting for the line of cars to disembark from the ferry platform before I walked off to catch the bus I noticed a little white car in the front of the line had stopped. The window rolled down and a woman around my age popped her head out and smiled.
“Would you like a ride to the next ferry?” She said in perfect English.
“SURE!” I ran to the car and dove in with my full backpack still on. “Thank you so much.” I de-pretzeled myself and sat up straight.
Valentin, a bear-like Frenchman from a tiny farming town, smiled at me from the driver’s seat. He wore a leather necklace and a striped shirt and his smile was jovial. He didn’t know much English, but he got by with the help of Merlin, his Dutch partner. Merlin is from The Netherlands. She moved to France four years ago after meeting Valentin. She is kind, practical, and opinionated. The two of them were finishing their month-long trip down the Carretera Astral in a rental car. I could see the yin and yang nature of their relationship immediately.
Upon the next ferry, the three of us found a shady spot on the deck of the ship, hiding from the harsh southern sun. When Carlos strode up the stairs he smiled brightly at me and I waved him over. We had been friends in another life, without a doubt. I introduced him to Merlin and Valentin and the conversation flowed without pause or effort.
Twenty minutes into the ride, a young man in round glasses and a backward hat approached us to ask for some sunscreen. As he lathered his face with the sunscreen I handed him, Carlos and Merlin continued talking about the national park system in Chile. Paolo chimed in, then he sat down, rolled a cigarette, and remained there, the final piece of our eclectic community representing Chile, France, Holland, America, and Italy. Paulo speaks four languages, he knows a lot about everything, yet he is not in the least bit arrogant. The five of us talked about everything from politics to food systems to fish farms to forests to music. Three hours became a sliver of time.
When we reached Hornopirén we went our separate ways to find places to stay and then reconvened an hour later in the town’s Plaza De Armas. We had planned to drink wine and continue the conversation when we were on the ferry. This turned out to be dinner at the local market, pisco sours, wine, and staying up til three in the morning at the cabaña Carlos and Paulo had rented for the evening. When I fell asleep on the couch, I opened my eyes to find my “familia de la ferria” putting blankets over me and telling me to stay.
The most wonderful part of this day is that it was unexpected and that, for each of us, as we later learned, it came at a time when we craved it most. As I wrote in my journal after that day, “Sometimes when our heart yearns for something, we receive it subtly and unexpectedly.”
Merlin and Valentin had set out to meet fellow travelers on their journey but had found it harder to do so while traveling by car, Carlos had been in the forest researching solo for a few days, Paolo was at the end of a few months of solo travel, and I had found myself drifting back into the isolation once more. In a matter of a few swift moments and acts of kindness, we had found each other in that tiny corner of the world and shared a night of friendship that seemed like it had begun eons before that day.
Valentin and Merlin were headed in the direction of Puerto Montt the next day and offered me a ride to save me a bus ticket. I spent the day with them on the road and exploring Alerce National Forrest, a reserve filled with gigantic Alerce trees all between 1000 and 4000 years old. I said goodbye reluctantly, it was nice to travel with other people for a change.
I am learning to cherish the present through travel because, truly, there is no other choice. I meet people and share sacred moments with them and then I must accept the fact that I may never see them again. I love them just the same.
