We docked at Puerto Natales, Chile for the evening and set out to explore the port town for a bit. We visited local shops, saw the Halloween celebration in the town square, and. enjoyed the livelihood of the town. Puerto Natales even has a statue that is a monument to the wind, something that felt very fitting after the wild wind we experienced all expedition.
The next morning we disembarked from the National Geographic Explorer and set out to explore an estancia, which is the name for a Patagonian ranch. The ranch we visited raised horses and even had Gauchos, the name for cowboys in this region.
Our exploration took us on a trek to the top of a mountain while enjoying stunning views of the Prat Mountain Range and Laguna Sofia. I’m telling you the Andes are stunning 😍
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| With one of my Grosvenor Teacher Fellow partner Mr. Smith |
We hiked to a cave that was a Patagonian panther den during the Pleistocene era. There have also been remains of a saber-toothed tiger along with other animals found in this cave. It was a stunning hike to enjoy some of our last views of Patagonia.
We sadly had to say a final farewell to Patagonia. We loaded the bus and headed to the airport to begin our long trek home. It would take me over 24 hours to make it back to Boston. I can't yet put into words this experience. Patagonia was a truly magical place ✨ I'm heading back to my classroom as a changed educator with a million stories to share, a million questions to answer, and a million ideas to bring to life.
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| Sad to say goodbye to our naturalist mentor Alex and my Grosvenor Teacher Fellow partners |
There is a local saying “el que se apura en la Patagonia, pierde el tiempo”, which sums up everything you need to know about Patagonia: “he who rushes in Patagonia, loses time” 💛
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