Date: 20231101
Time: 8:35 – 17:50
Distance: 22,8 km
Overnight stay: Francés Camping, Torres del Paine
Walk
After breakfast I pack backpack and leave for Britanico. It is a bit of a puzzle how I have to start. They changed the paths. But I find my way.
The good news is that I am not completely daft. I found my sun glasses, they were hiding in the upper compartment of Sven’s backpack. This is good because when I start walking I have the sun right in front of me.
With the heavy backpack, walking sticks are definitely a good idea. Yesterday I had them with me, but didn’t need them. Today I do!
After walking for some time I check my TwoNav to see where I am on the route. The answer is simple, I am not. I am off track, a few kilometers back the path split and I followed the sign Italiano, which is the next camp I will reach. I check the map on my TwoNav and I am quite sure this path, a new path?, will also bring me to my destination and I continue.
I see again a lot of dead trees.
When I cross a river, I take a break at the other side of the bridge. I already filled my bottle from a stream earlier on. Just before the bridge the other path, the one I planned, joined my path. I am on track again. It now also gets more crowded. The other path is shorter but less scenic and most hikers apparently take the short route.
Campamento Italiano is only a short distance away and I have a break there as well. My shirt and the inside of my coat are soaking wet.
At Italiano I leave my backpack and continue with only a water bottle and my walking sticks up to mirador Britanico.
I follow the river that I crossed before and I pass a campsite where they warn you not to drink the water from near the campsite…
It goes up and up and I have nice views on the mountains, the river and glacier Frances. It is a touch hike up. I would have never done this with the backpack.
Finally I reach Britanico, a bunch of rocks protruding from the landscape and giving perfect 360° views on the Frances valley and the mountains in all directions.
The way down is slightly easier. I hear a thunder, it is snow breaking free up on the mountain. I can still see the snow cloud where it happened.
I reach Italiano again, pick up my backpack and walk the rest to camp Frances where I booked a tent. It is a tent on poles and I have one whole tent by myself, which is nice. Yesterday I got an email that they upgraded me. No idea what that means, but I do have the tent closest to the reception and not one all the way down or up.
One minor thing is the shower, after some warm water, it soon falls back to only cold water. So a cold shower it is.
The restaurant is also not very much. First of all I have to walk about 1 kilometer down and if you didn’t pre-book a meal, like I did, you cannot sit in the restaurant. You can buy a beer and take it with you or drink it outside, like I did.
So not much to do here, which means I will go to bed early. This is no problem because I am very tired after these two days.
Weather
It was warm and sunny today. Fine walking weather, even a little too warm at times in the sun.
Songtext of the day
Today, with all the dead trees, I walked through the valley of death which reminded me of a song by Coolio, Gangsta’s Paradise that has a songtext that begins with this:
As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
I take a look at my life and realize there’s nothin’ left
‘Cause I’ve been blastin’ and laughin’ so long, that
Even my momma thinks that my mind is gone
But I ain’t never crossed a man that didn’t deserve it
Me be treated like a punk, you know that’s unheard of
You better watch how you talkin’ and where you walkin’
Or you and your homies might be lined in chalk
I really hate to trip, but I gotta loc
As they croak, I see myself in the pistol smoke, fool
I’m the kinda G the little homies wanna be like
On my knees in the night, sayin’ prayers in the streetlight
Been spendin’ most their lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Been spendin’ most their lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Keep spendin’ most our lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Keep spendin’ most our lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Look at the situation they got me facin’
I can’t live a normal life, I was raised by the state
So I gotta be down with the hood team
Too much television watchin’ got me chasin’ dreams
I’m a educated fool with money on my mind
Got my ten in my hand and a gleam in my eye
I’m a loc’d out gangsta, set trippin’ banger
And my homies is down so don’t arouse my anger
Fool, death ain’t nothin’ but a heart beat away
I’m livin’ life do or die, what can I say?
I’m 23 now, but will I live to see 24?
The way things is goin’ I don’t know
Tell me why are we so blind to see
That the ones we hurt are you and me?
Been spendin’ most their lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Been spendin’ most their lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Keep spendin’ most our lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Keep spendin’ most our lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Power and the money, money and the power
Minute after minute, hour after hour
Everybody’s runnin’, but half of them ain’t lookin’
It’s goin’ on in the kitchen, but I don’t know what’s cookin’
They say I gotta learn, but nobody’s here to teach me
If they can’t understand it, how can they reach me?
I guess they can’t, I guess they won’t
I guess they frontin’, that’s why I know my life is out of luck, fool!
Been spendin’ most their lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Been spendin’ most their lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Keep spendin’ most our lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Keep spendin’ most our lives livin’ in the gangsta’s paradise
Tell me why are we so blind to see
That the ones we hurt are you and me?
Tell me why are we so blind to see
That the ones we hurt are you and me?
