Where We Be
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| Navimag Ferry, Chile |
The ad says that a journey on the Navimag ferry --
a small freighter ship -- is more than just a means
of transport: it's a bonding experience with your
fellow travelers and a sea voyage you'll remember
for a lifetime. Well, we'd have to say this ad is
actually true. Sailing through the Chilean fjords on
a small vessel with sixty other adventurous souls
is an experience in its own right. The scenery on
the sunny days is awesome, and the cameraderie
on the cloudy or rough ones more than makes up
for it. The four-day journey begins in Puerto Montt
and ends in Puerto Natales in southern Patagonia.
On the scenery side, we saw our first-ever fogbow
and spent an entire wonderful day on the open top
deck watching the scenery pass by. We saw seals,
sea lions, and dolphins frolicking in the rich
waters -- no whales, but we certainly looked.
There was one rough 12-hour passage through
the Golfo de Penas on the open Pacific which
involved a lot of rocking but wasn't too bad. We
weathered that experience fine, and the rest of
the cruise was lake-like as we navigated through
the calm waters of the fjords.
In the evenings we shared meals and amusing
card games with new friends from around the
world. Our little coterie of friends were Belgian,
Dutch, Kiwi, Canadian, and Portuguese. We played
Patagonian bingo and listened to great guitar
playing by locals from the remote hamlet of Puerto
Eden in extreme southern Chile.
All meals were included, and the food was better
than we expected. We slept in small dorm rooms
with four bunk beds each. Each bed had a curtain
you could pull across for privacy.
We were originally scheduled to sail the week
prior and were glad we waited since we learned
that it rained nonstop on that trip. Our luck was
better. We had two days of great weather and two
days of decent weather -- and our small ship made
it to its destination in on time in Puerto Natales,
near the southernmost tip of Patagonia in Chile.
a small freighter ship -- is more than just a means
of transport: it's a bonding experience with your
fellow travelers and a sea voyage you'll remember
for a lifetime. Well, we'd have to say this ad is
actually true. Sailing through the Chilean fjords on
a small vessel with sixty other adventurous souls
is an experience in its own right. The scenery on
the sunny days is awesome, and the cameraderie
on the cloudy or rough ones more than makes up
for it. The four-day journey begins in Puerto Montt
and ends in Puerto Natales in southern Patagonia.
On the scenery side, we saw our first-ever fogbow
and spent an entire wonderful day on the open top
deck watching the scenery pass by. We saw seals,
sea lions, and dolphins frolicking in the rich
waters -- no whales, but we certainly looked.
There was one rough 12-hour passage through
the Golfo de Penas on the open Pacific which
involved a lot of rocking but wasn't too bad. We
weathered that experience fine, and the rest of
the cruise was lake-like as we navigated through
the calm waters of the fjords.
In the evenings we shared meals and amusing
card games with new friends from around the
world. Our little coterie of friends were Belgian,
Dutch, Kiwi, Canadian, and Portuguese. We played
Patagonian bingo and listened to great guitar
playing by locals from the remote hamlet of Puerto
Eden in extreme southern Chile.
All meals were included, and the food was better
than we expected. We slept in small dorm rooms
with four bunk beds each. Each bed had a curtain
you could pull across for privacy.
We were originally scheduled to sail the week
prior and were glad we waited since we learned
that it rained nonstop on that trip. Our luck was
better. We had two days of great weather and two
days of decent weather -- and our small ship made
it to its destination in on time in Puerto Natales,
near the southernmost tip of Patagonia in Chile.
| Quite the contrast between the Norwegian cruise ship (anchored off Puerto Montt) and our little Navimag ferry! |
| The night before our ferry trip, we stayed at Hospedaje Rocco in Puerto Montt and made some new friends |
| A huge lift raised us and our luggage up to the lowest non-cargo level of the ship, where the least expensive berths were located (ours included) |
| The Puerto Eden "Navimag" freighter served as our home for four days and three nights |
| Our four-bed bunk room was actually an upgrade from the 16-bed bunk room we had been expecting |
| A little Chilean wine, a little Patagonian bingo, and a lot of cards with new friends made the evenings pass quickly |
| Robin with Sophie from the Netherlands who loved every minute of the trip and was usually on the top deck (when she wasn't teaching us new card games) |
| Multilingual Ilse from Belgium (left) became a close companion during the trip. Ian from New Zealand was a riot, and Carol from Canada always had a book in hand. |
| Ilse dances with a local man from Puerto Eden in the dining area while a guitarist strums away |
| Hanging around with great people -- Arnaudo from Brazil and Ilse from Belgium |
| Robin in her Puerto Varas cap during a quiet moment aboard the ship |
| Our first-ever sighting of a "fogbow." Can you see it? |
| Lower aft where the trucks and cargo are stored |
| Passengers play chess and take pictures on the top deck |
| Navigating a narrow passage through the southern fjords |
| Sunset of our first day -- a day full of sunshine and calm seas |
| Our second day was misty but beautiful, especially with the snow capping the mountains |
| Bright orange lifeboat with cords of knotted rope |
| Rows of blue-gray hills fade into the mist |
| Fast approaching abstract art |
| We spent as much time as we could on the top deck enjoying the beauty, with a mug of hot coffee in hand to keep us warm |
| The ship's wake fans out behind us as we cruise through peaceful waters |
| It grew colder and more forbidding the further south we sailed |
| Sailing for that distant opening on the horizon. At this point we're hundreds of miles away from any human habitation. |
| Rare sighting of another ship on the Chilean fjords |