South America Galleries

Hiking in Patagonia, Chile (2005) : In September 2004, with 4 other friends, we signed up for a 5 day "W" trekking in Torres del Paine, Chile. We chose Cascada Expediciones www.cascada-expediciones.com mainly because of its comfortable Ecocamp. On January 10, 2005, dressed in our Gore-Tex, we were all happy to be on a trail in Patagonia. the weather was always unpredictable (the strong gusts of wind were always exciting), the hiking was challenging for some parts but the scenery was breathtaking. We all had a wonderful time! From Punta Arenas, we went to Isla Magdalena to see amusing Magellanic penguins (also called Jackass penguins for their characteristic bray). That island has an estimated 150,000 penguins. We finished our Chilean trip in Pucon, a nice town very close to Volcan Villarrica. ** These photos not to be reproduced without express written consent from the photographer.** Thanks!!

Hiking in Patagonia, Chile (2005)

In September 2004, with 4 other friends, we signed up for a 5 day "W" trekking in Torres del Paine, Chile. We chose Cascada Expediciones www.cascada-expediciones.com mainly because of its comfortable Ecocamp. On January 10, 2005, dressed in our Gore-Tex, we were all happy to be on a trail in Patagonia. the weather was always unpredictable ...

Updated: Jan 05, 2007 6:37pm PST

Hiking in Patagonia, Argentina (2005) : From Punta Arenas (Chile), we flew to Ushuaia (Argentina): the capital of Tierra del Fuego, the southern most city in the world, and the primary tourist gateway to Antarctica. We stayed in a very nice and friendly B&B www.avesdelsur.com.ar From Ushuaia, we flew to El Calafate and stayed at the friendly Youth Hostel America del Sur. http://www.hostelz.com/display.php/3596+America+del+Sur+Hostel The main purpose of this destination was a walk on Perito Morino Glacier and going to El Chalten, (a village inside National Park Los Glaciares). Hiking around El Chalten and seeing Fitz Roy was the highlight of our entire trip. More info: http://www.elchalten.com/i.html We ended our adventure in Argentina with the gauchos in Junin de los Andes.

Hiking in Patagonia, Argentina (2005)

From Punta Arenas (Chile), we flew to Ushuaia (Argentina): the capital of Tierra del Fuego, the southern most city in the world, and the primary tourist gateway to Antarctica. We stayed in a very nice and friendly B&B www.avesdelsur.com.ar From Ushuaia, we flew to El Calafate and stayed at the friendly Youth Hostel America del Sur. htt ...

Updated: Jan 05, 2007 6:15pm PST

Exploring the Andes in Ecuador (1996 & 2004) : In 1996, I went to Ecuador with my friend Melanie and we mainly explored the Andes (Quito with Rigoberta Menchu, Otavalo, Saquisili, Salasaca, Banos, Cuenca...) In 2004, I went again with Dave and we did some amazing hikes (Cotopaxi, around Lake Quilotoa, Chugchilan, Banos...) This small country is one of my favorite destination in the world because it is so varied (many different groups of people, scenery...) I mixed photos from the 2 trips (the scans from prints are not great :(( In a matter of hours you can move from jungle-rainforest to foothills and the high slopes of the Andes, and then down to the Pacific Coast, while observing a breathtaking panorama of scenery and nature. For a map of the country: http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/samerica/ec.htm The Andean region (also known as the Sierra and the Highlands) is the most visited region in the country. Its cultural and natural diversity spans grassy highlands (páramo),cloudforests, mountain lakes, active volcanoes, thermal baths, Indian markets, colonial towns and haciendas.Once the capital of the northern Incan empire, Quito is home to "Old Town", one of the most extensive colonial districts in Latin America. ** These photos not to be reproduced without express written consent from the photographer. ** Thanks! Merci! Gracias!** Here is one part of Dave's journal: "We arrived at our Aubergue de Montana Cuello de Luna around 11:00AM and were in an ancient truck by 11:30AM heading into Cotopaxi NP. The volcano itself is huge and impressive. The park surrounding it is deforested and grazed by cattle, but it is still a nice place to hike. Our first stop was around 12:30PM to hike around a lake. It was a pretty, marshy spot with clearing views of the volcano and lots of birds. I already mentioned the cows. The weather has been great and was great again today. The ground is dry, even in the marshy spots. It's not too hot or cold, even at altitude. We hiked up a side canyon for a while after a lakeside picnic. Then we were back in the truck. At 34 years old, that truck has been running as long as I have. We both seem to be holding up okay. As we labored up the hillside I started breathing harder and the truck required a carburetor adjustment. The dirt road got steeper and more tuggly. Finally we got to a spot where several cars had called it quits. Our driver pressed on, belatedly downshifting, losing traction, stalling. I was amazed when he managed to get us over the gnarly section instead of dumping us off the hillside. From there it was a short hop to the end of the road. We were high -- I mean as high as I'd ever been driven -- something like 15,000 ft. The clouds had parted just for us and we gasped our way up toward the refuge. Here climbers sleep before tackling the summit. I read that it's not very technical, but we left our ice axes and crampons at home, so oh well. Anyway we snapped some great shots of the volcano without climbing to the top of it. We didn't even make the refuge before our turnaround time, but there was no need -- the clouds moved back in just as we turned back down. Our truck was still the oldest vehicle in the parking area when we got back to it. The ride down was wild in an old truck ride kind of way. We traded in our altitude headaches for nosefulls of dust. Around 6:00PM we were back at our hotel, happy and tired. One shower later our bodies and noses were dedusted".

Exploring the Andes in Ecuador (1996 & 2004)

In 1996, I went to Ecuador with my friend Melanie and we mainly explored the Andes (Quito with Rigoberta Menchu, Otavalo, Saquisili, Salasaca, Banos, Cuenca...) In 2004, I went again with Dave and we did some amazing hikes (Cotopaxi, around Lake Quilotoa, Chugchilan, Banos...) This small country is one of my favorite destination in the wo ...

Updated: Oct 10, 2008 4:00pm PST

El Oriente (Ecuador: 1996 & 2004) : El Oriente is the term used by Ecuadorians to refer to the Amazon basin in eastern Ecuador. The amazing fauna includes sloths, caymans, jaguars, monkeys, tapirs, pink dolphins, and over 1,000 species of birds. The rainforest is also home to thousands of indigenous inhabitants, who make up nearly 200 distinct nations, including the Siona, Secoya, Cofan, Shuar, Zaparo, Huaorani, and Quichua. The region has experienced ongoing conflicts between oil companies seeking to develop the area and indigenous communities who are loosing their land. In January 1999, the Ecuadorian President issued a decree blocking future oil exploration, mining and colonisation by oil companies of the Cuyabeno-Imuya and Yasuni national parks. Ecuador's oil environment disaster has been recently named "the Amazonian Chernobyl". http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2008/08/08/eaecuador108.xml ** These photos not to be reproduced without express written consent from the photographer. Merci! Thanks! Gracias! **

El Oriente (Ecuador: 1996 & 2004)

El Oriente is the term used by Ecuadorians to refer to the Amazon basin in eastern Ecuador. The amazing fauna includes sloths, caymans, jaguars, monkeys, tapirs, pink dolphins, and over 1,000 species of birds. The rainforest is also home to thousands of indigenous inhabitants, who make up nearly 200 distinct nations, including the Siona ...

Updated: Oct 10, 2008 4:06pm PST

Cruising the Galapagos Islands (Ecuador, 2004) : In February 2004, sixteen of us boarded the Lobo de Mar III in Baltra and we did an eight day cruise around the Galapagos Islands. We used CNH Tours which arranged our own charter a year in advance. It was great and I would highly recommend their service. http://cnhtours.com/ I took a lot of photos but most of them are slides (not included here). Enjoy! Here is a brief summary of our adventure: Arrival at airport on Baltra Island (also known as South Seymour). The island is very arid and vegetation consists of salt bushes, prickly pear cactus and palo santo trees. Day 1: South Plaza Island. The flora of South Plaza includes Opuntia cactua and Sesuvium plants, which forms a reddish carpet on top of the lava formations. Iguanas (land and marine and some hybrids of both species) are abundant. Day 2: Espanola Island(Hood): Gardner Bay is a swimming and snorkeling site as well as offering a great beach. Punta Suarez has migrant, resident, and endemic wildlife including brightly colored Marine Iguana, Española Lava Lizards, Hood Mockingbirds, Swallow-tailed Gulls, Blue-footed Booby,Red-Footed Booby and Nazca Boobies, Galápagos Hawks, a selection of Finch, and the Waved Albatross. Day 3: San Cristobal (tortoises and Cerro Brujo) This islands hosts frigate birds, sea lions, giant tortoises, blue and red footed boobies, tropicbirds, marine iguanas, dolphins, swallow-tailed gulls. The largest fresh water lake in the archipelago, Laguna El Junco, is located in the highlands of San Cristóbal. The capital of the province of Galápagos, Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, lies at the southern tip of the island. Day 4: Genovesa Island (Tower): Its nickname of “the bird island” is clearly justified. At Darwin Bay, frigatebirds, red-footed boobies, noddy terns, lava gulls, tropic birds, doves, storm petrels and Darwin finches are also in sight. Day 5: Santiago Island: Bartolome, Bucanneer Cove, Puerto Egas. Marine iguanas, sea lions, fur seals, land and sea turtles, flamingos, dolphins and sharks are found here. Pigs and goats, which were introduced by humans to the islands and have caused great harm to the endemic species, have been eradicated (pigs in 2002; goat eradication is nearing finalization). Day 6: Fernandina Island: Punta Espinosa and Isabela Island: Elizabeth Bay. The famous Flightless Cormorant inhabits this island and also Galápagos Penguins, Pelicans and Sea Lions are abundant. Day 7: Floreana Island (great snorkel around Devil's Crown). It is one of the islands with the most interesting human history and one of the earliest to be inhabited. Pink flamingos and green sea turtles nest (December to May) in this island. The "patapegada" or Galápagos petrel is found here, a sea bird which spends most of its life away from land. Day 8: North Seymour Island North Seymour is an extraordinary place for breeding birds and is home to one of the largest populations of nesting blue-footed boobies and magnificent frigate birds. Pairs of blue-footed boobies can be seen conducting their mating ritual as they offer each other gifts, whistle and honk, stretch their necks towards the sky, spread their wings, and dance--showing off their bright blue feet. Magnificent frigatebirds perch in low bushes, near the boobies, while watching over their large chicks. The frigates are huge, dark acrobats with a 90-inch (2.3 m) wingspan. Male frigates can puff up their scarlet throat sacks to resemble a giant red balloon. Boobies and frigates have an interesting relationship. Boobies are excellent hunters and fish in flocks. The frigates by comparison are pirates, they dive bomb the boobies to force them to drop their prey. Then the acrobatic frigate swoops down and picks up the food before it hits the water. Day 9: Day on Santa Cruz in Puerto Ayora (sadly, the Darwin Research Center was closed: fishermen were on strike) Santa Cruz is the island that hosts the largest human population in the archipelago at the town of Puerto Ayora. The Charles Darwin Research Station and the headquarters of the Galápagos National Park Service are located here. The GNPS and CDRS operate a tortoise breeding center here, where young tortoises are hatched, reared, and prepared to be reintroduced to their natural habitat. The Highlands of Santa Cruz offer an exuberant vegetation and are famous for the lava tunnels. ** These photos not to be reproduced without express written consent from the photographer. Merci! Thanks! Gracias!**

Cruising the Galapagos Islands (Ecuador, 2004)

In February 2004, sixteen of us boarded the Lobo de Mar III in Baltra and we did an eight day cruise around the Galapagos Islands. We used CNH Tours which arranged our own charter a year in advance. It was great and I would highly recommend their service. http://cnhtours.com/ I took a lot of photos but most of them are slides (not ...

Updated: Oct 10, 2008 4:11pm PST