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* <span style="background-color:aqua;">'''Feb. 2-8 / Zach + Veronica / 36H-Regular Packrafting Route / 7 days'''</span>
I did the hiking parts of 36H with Veronica. After hitching the Carratera I had a windless late morning paddle from the Lago Esmeralda picnic site where a group of military were training in rafts. Veronica described the hike to Lago Alegre. To start Lago Christie, Option X would put you better in line with the wind which was strong, blowing straight through the narrow all the way to the cozy refugio at the otherwise blustery southern end of Christie. Just past Salto Pérez there are two rapids visible from the road. Putting in after those, Rio Perez was a scenic and swift ride with avoidable submerged trees all the way to Rio Mayer, which is stronger than it looks. I put in again past the first mortal rapid and rode straight to the take out before the second mortal rapid. The waypointed rapids in between were very challenging, almost flipping me twice. After taking out of Rio Mayer, I hopped the black fence for option 27. The minor roads in this area are undulating and steep but well maintained with painted guardrails, bridges, and directional signage at intersections. I had a pleasant conversation with one worker on ATV. I tried to do Option 27E but the wind was too strong on the lake in the evening and also the next morning. Backtracking, I paddled the pleasant Rio Briceño between the impressive falls near the lake down to another set of falls near the lower bridge (between[-48.2710, -72.492] and [-48.2726, -72.4772]). The wind on Lago Briceño seemed calm in the cove of the sheltered picnic refuge/dock (km 251.6), but around the corner a strong headwind turned me around. The walk to Lago El Salto had commanding views. Lagos El Salto and Cisnes both provided tail winds. The short trail between these lakes was overgrown and difficult to follow, but it was worthwhile to follow the trail as bushwhacking often led to spiky plant jail. Tailwind continued all the way to the O’Higgins bridge. I highly recommend El Mosco Hostal/camping.
* '''2 to 8 of February 2023 / Véronica & Zach / GPT36H RR SOBO / 7 days'''
Route: Cochrane - Mirador Glaciar Colluqueo - Río Pedregoso - Paso La Picota - Río Bravo - Lago Christie - Río Mayer - Villa O'Higgins
We stayed at Camping Calafate while we were in Cochrane. Great camping area with a kitchen, laundry service, hot showers, and wifi for 6,000 clp per person. The owner is very kind too.
We were quite fortunate this section to enjoy good weather almost the whole way. We were able to hitch the first few km on the Carretera Austral. Then Zach packrafted across Laguna Esmeralda while I took the primary road on the RR to the east of it. Very little traffic on the primary road, and we walked most of it, only ended up being able to hitch a ride for the last 10 km or so, to the junction at 39.9 km where the RR becomes a minor road.
At that point it was getting late, and we wanted to camp at the waypoint Lake, Camp {36H} [109.8/334] along the minor road. We set up our tents, but after it was dark, around 10:30 p.m., we were surprised by the arrival of a man with a dog and a horse. Talking with him, we realized he was the owner of the land we were on, and his house was right nearby (we hadn't seen it when we initially set up camp). He said it was ok and that we could camp here though, that we didn't have to move.
The next morning, around 8 a.m., we packed our things and walked to the house, with the intention of thanking the man for letting us camp on his property. There were no signs of life around his house, so we assumed he might be still sleeping or was already out and about. So we left along the dirt road again. His dog followed us. We figured it would eventually return home. Afted ~6km, we were surprised by the settler coming at us down the road on his horse with his whip raised in a threatening way. He was very angry and upset at us about his missing dog, and initially thought we had taken his dog with us on purpose. We did our best to explain that the dog had simply followed us, we did not coax it or feed it, and that we were very sorry it followed us and had no bad intentions. After a bit of discussion, the settler calmed down and we were able to chat about where we were hiking and such. We seemed to part on good terms, but it wasn't a pleasant experience, and we wished we'd known that the land on the south shore of the lake where we camped belonged to a settler, and is not really a viable wild camping place. The GPS tracks only indicate "buildings" nearby, but that waypoint should say "settler" instead, and perhaps the camping waypoint by the lake should be removed. S 47° 30.166', W 072° 31.809' is where the settler house is.
The rest of the trail went well. The views of the various glaciers were wonderful, and we had mostly good weather the whole way. Zach took Option 36H-B that necessitates fording La Picota. It was early in the morning and he was able to ford it with the water reaching his waist. I took the regular route further west, which was a bit steep on shale rocks at first, but easy to follow.
The ford at km 77.4 was the most difficult ford in this section for me, the current was strong and cold and went up to my hips. Fording Río Bravo was easier, and we only did it once, next to the laguna. Option 36H-D had virtually no bushwhacking — there was a clear path to follow in the forest.
There were regular water sources between Puesto La Pampa (km 83.9) and Puesto Tablas (km 98.4), as well as occasional good spots to camp.
Once we got to Lago Alegre, I walked the regular hiking route east of the lake while Zach packrafted across with a good tailwind. Very beautiful trail, loads of crowberries and Calafate berries to eat too. I took Option 36H-G, where there is a large tree trunk you can walk across over the river. Zach packrafted Lago Christie as well, although the wind was much stronger in the afternoon. The refuge at the south end of Lago Christie is a good place to sleep out of the wind.
The roadwalk to town was quite scenic, with a few refuges along the way. Zach took the packrafting route while I stayed on the minor road. I ended up walking all of it except for the final 8 km. There was very little traffic, and I didn't mind walking through the gorgeous landscapes.
