After Torres del Paine, I made quick progress south on Ruta 3 from Cerro Castillo to Punta Arenas. The road is sealed and with the wind mostly at my back, I was able to average well over 20 km/h for the 310 km journey. Along the way I stopped in the pleasant seaside town of Puerto Natales and also had a night in the little village of Villa Tehuelches out on the pampa. The scenery in the pampa is nothing special but the vastness and emptiness of the wind-swept landscape leave a lasting impression. The wind on the pampa can be a cyclist's greatest friend or bitterest enemy. Like a spirit, he can arrive without warning, stick around for hours, and disappear just as quickly as he came. Riding north to south offers the best chance of a healthy tailwind and was one of the main factors I took into consideration when planning the trip. So far I have been pretty lucky, and I hope my luck holds all the way to Ushuaia...
Arriving in Punta Arenas was a bit of a shock. Although not a big place, it's definitely the largest city I've been to since Santiago de Chile 7 weeks ago. The outer suburbs are scruffy and pockmarked with industrial buildings but the downtown area is nice to wander and I've enjoyed cooking some decent food in the guesthouse kitchen. After a couple of rest days, it'll be time to take the ferry across the Strait of Magellan to Porvenir for the final push to Ushuaia.
Leaving the changeable weather around Torres del Paine behind, for a while.
Birds on the old pier in Puerto Natales.
A view back across the pampa between Puerto Natales and Villa Tehuelches. Soon there were no more trees...
Punta Arenas with the Strait of Magellan in the distance.
Sorry dude, they´re all for us.
