Now really having such a long break in El Calafate so soon after El Chalten was a little bit of a bad thing to do, but we're on holiday and here is the only place we can get a flight down to Ushuaia so here we stayed. In the 4 days here, we did little else than take it easy and be dis-illusioned with the possibility of the trip back from Ushuaia on the bikes. This came about after talking to a women called Holly from Alaska who had just ridden up the route we intended doing. Her stories of head winds and very little to see sent a cold chill down our spines and started the cogs turning. What should we do? Sticking with the plan of taking our bikes on the plane with us on Monday would mean a very hard cycle back and one which potentially was not as scenic as we hoped. Or do we change our plans and leave the bikes here, get a bus back here after the Antarctic trip and then cycle down with more chance of tail winds. STRESS MONKEYS!!! Neither of us are the best at making quick decisions and we scratched our heads for a fare while, the final straw which swayed our decision was a conversation with another couple who pretty much told the same story as Holly.
So, our plans have changed again and at this point certainly aren't set in stone. The bikes are staying here at a hostel and we are flying down then busing back up. On arrival we will spend another couple of days in El Calafate then cycle south to Torres Del Paine where we will spend sometime hiking. The next part is a little hazy as it depends on what we see of the scenery on the way back from Ushuaia. All in all our stay has altered our plans, but probably for the best.
We did get away from the whole decision making with some clothes shopping, bread eating and chilling at the hostel we where staying at. It is a really nice place with small numbers in the dorms, resulting in a good night sleep. Here at the hostel we shared a room with Tyler, he was on vacation with his girlfriend Steph (she arrived a day later). It was so nice to have someone who's first language is English to speak to. Although with my colloquialisms I'm sure I lost him occasionally. They are both in the US air force and were having a holiday in South America. Steph had just finished an Antarctic cruise and we were looking forward to picking her brains and hearing about some of the things we are likely to see. Unfortunately we burnt much of our time sorting things out and never got the chance to really sit down and have a proper chat, but maybe our paths will cross again and we can compare stories. So, if you are reading this and if your ever in our neck of the woods your more than welcome to come and stay.
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