The early part of the hike into Valle Ascencio is a steady climb from the trailhead up the mountain slopes.
Río Ascencio rushing down from the valley between high banks, carving a cerulean trail.
2 people at a time on the bridge.
A hike that was on my mind for months. We left Hotel Las Torres before sunrise and the skies quickly brightened beyond the mountains, leaving an impermanent reflection.
The mountains call the late afternoon clouds.
Pehoé means hidden in Tehuelche. Beauty waiting to be discovered.
A looming iceberg and mountains near the shore.
One of the arms of Grey Glacier reaching out into the lake.
Blue ice, grey lake. The slowly flowing ice with occasional calving was incredible up close.
Snow and clouds dot the steep sides of Los Cuernos del Paine.
Sloping down between the peaks into the French Valley.
Río Paine rushes through the steppe just above Salto Grande.
The Horns of Torres del Paine in view over Lago Nordenskjöld.
Torres del Paine has been on my bucket list for years and Mirador Lago Nordenskjöld is was the optimal viewpoint. The day's clouds were present enough to see the peaks and at times shroud them with mystery.
The jagged granite edge of The Comb rises high above Hotel Las Torres.
Nestled at the base of the Paine massif.
Flowers on the grounds of Hotel Las Torres
A full-fledged glimpse of the Paine massif and the hazy towers.
The wreck of Lord Lonsdale--inviting enough that people will climb it despite its precarious state.
This abandoned greenhouse had a fence around it that prevented getting close. The shape of a former structure remains without any glass, fading away with time.
Outside Parque Quinta Normal: graffiti and low-hanging trees.
The Museum of Memory and Human Rights, dedicated the history of the Chilean military coup of 1973 and memorializing the years of atrocities that followed.
over the city, under the mountains
The views from Cerro Santa Lucía over the expanse of Santiago were gorgeous. Gran Torre is framed by looming mountains shrouded in clouds.
Palm shadows on the terrace lead up to the fountain.
Cerro Santa Lucía is within busy Santiago. It was easy to kill an afternoon wandering around the different areas within the park.
Buildings of Santiago up against mountains beyond.
The massive urban expanse of Santiago fills the basin between mountains.
Sunset between the palm fronds with hazy mountains surrounding Santiago. We waited on the top of Cerro San Cristóbal for several hours to see this.
The funicular railway carries passengers up the steep slopes of Cerro San Cristóbal. Taken from Estación Pío Nono at the base of the hill waiting to ascend.
A closeup of twelve shades of red felt: zones of color were added to represent the presence of each tone.
museo nacional de bellas artes
The interior of the building's central hall felt like a work of art in and of itself.
Pedestrian streets of Santiago.
The lake was coated in a thin sheet of ice disrupting reflections, fading away as if we should wait to see what it reveals,
Morning sun lights up the steam.
Sol de Mañana geyser field, Bolivia
The most middle-of-nowhere I've ever been. 14,000 ft above sea level, at a hostel within a Bolivian natural reserve with power only from generators, I stepped outside before 5 AM to see the Milky Way emblazoned across the darkest of skies.
James's flamingos collected near a freshwater spring feeding into Laguna Colorada. There was something peaceful and mesmerizing about sitting on the shore for a while and watching birds bob their heads into and out of the water.
From the other side of Laguna Colorada.
A well-known rock formation in the Siloli Desert: a stone taking the form of a tree.
Color gradients in the mountains surrounding the Siloli Desert.
Andean and Chilean flamingos in Laguna Hedionda.
Framed by Wanaku, a pit stop in Bolivia.
The Dakar Rally monument surrounded by visitors and patches of salt above the water.
Clouds come down on the horizon--our view from within the salt flats.
A far-off view of the Dakar Rally monument reflecting in the salar.
across the reflective ocean of the salar.
A morning visit to the train cemetery outside of Uyuni. Arrived early enough on a cloudy and cool day to avoid the crowds and appreciate the sense of abandonment.
...and the walls became the world all around.