Los Perros to Grey via Gardner Pass

What a day! We are worn out, but in that great way where you’ve worked so hard to see so much.

The morning started with our earliest wake up, with Karen and I meeting in the refugio at 6:30am to make some coffee and do final prep. Everyone is required to leave Los Perros by 7am to allow enough time to make it across the pass and on to Camp Grey before dark. This meant starting the hike in the dark with headlamps. Karen and I were two of the last ones to leave, possibly signaling a bit of cockiness about our ability to make it on schedule.

Starting the climb to the pass

The climb was steady and tough, with the usual mud puddles transitioning to rocky scrambling. We gained about 2,000 feet to reach the pass, which is a lot but not extreme. All along the climb we could look back into the Los Perros valley and accompanying lake and glacier.

Glacier view

The payoff for reaching the summit was spectacular. Right away we were looking down into the varied Grey Glacier, which climbs up to the Southern Patagonian Ice Field and down to Grey Lake. It was jaw dropping, especially as the light improved and we could see the myriad detailed and texture on the glacier.

Seedsnipe

Karen intentionally led us off trail for a bit to avoid some icy patches, and I heard what were clearly birds cooing below me. What I found were the nearly invisible white-bellied seedsnipe, grouse-like birds that blend into the rocky terrain and were feeding on the grasses.

Break at the way station

We eventually made our way to the Paso camp, a checkpoint and rest station where we had our lunch and made some hot water for coffee and soup. We rested for 90 minutes, allowing time for our four companions to catch up and hang out together.

By now we’ve been hanging with the same crowd for four days and are getting to know quite a few of our fellow hikers.

The ranger at this station was very nice and informed us that the hard part was over and that the hike to Grey was very straightforward. But it was still about 5 miles away and we were tired. But some fun stuff was still ahead.

Swinging bridge

We crossed three swinging suspension bridges built over deep creek gorges draining for the mountains to the left down to the lake on the right.

Icebergs in Lake Grey

Then, as we reached the end of the glacier, we found a multitude of icebergs floating in the lake.

The camp is full of activity as we’ve now intersected with those doing short overnight trips and those doing the W trek. Starting to feel a bit more commercial and I suspect we’ll miss the tight quarters and company of our O companions.

Karen and I are still moving fast. We pass about 20 hikers each day, usually only being passed by 1 or 2. Our pace is steady, though today we stopped a lot for photos and viewpoint looking.

Here’s a distance report for each day so far:

• Serón - 17 km in 6 hours, 135m climb
• Dickson - 18 km in 5.5 hours, 300m climb
• Los Perros - 12.3 km in 3.75 hours, 419m climb
• Grey - 15.2 km in 9.3 hours, 724m climb