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Even though San Cristobal is a small island, there is so much to explore. Some of my favorite places include everything from gorgeous beaches, to high altitude lakes. I never knew what I would see next, which is one of the things that I loved about this island. Below,in no particular order, are some of my favorite locations, or activities on San Cristobal Island.
Punta Carola
La Loberia
Puerto Chino
Junca Lagoon
Location: Torres del Paine National Park Let me tell you about what might have been the best day of my life... It all started with the tiring 6 hour drive from El Calafate, Argentina to Puerto Natales, Chile. I dreaded this long drive, knowing that the first half would be completely uneventful and some of it would be spent driving in the mountains at night. This might sound horrible to you right now, but I was thinking the same thing. Torres del Paine National Park, which is about an hour detour during this drive, is one of my favorite places on this Earth. Knowing what to expect on the long and much dreaded drive, I decided that spending an extra hour and the entrance fee to go into the park once again was completely worth it! I am so glad I stuck with that decision! Arriving in the park, the rangers said that there was horrible weather, which is saying something. These rangers spend most of their days in the park, so they always seem to know what's considered good or bad. Anyways, as I have said in many of my posts about Chile and Argentina, guanacos are everywhere... literally. On the roads, on the hills, by the water, anywhere. My first sign of wildlife entering the park however, were Nandus! They look sort of like ostriches, except smaller and fluffier! I saw about a dozen of them when I first arrived! Next, of course, were guanacos! Right on the side of the road most of the time, I probably have a thousand pictures of just guanacos, and that's an understatement! One of my favorite things I saw during this detour was a nursing baby guanaco on the side of the road! I thought that when I pulled over my car they would run away, like most guanacos do, but instead the baby kept nursing and the mother stayed still, staring right at the camera! I felt so lucky to have seen that. However, my luck didn't end there. I continued through the park, stopping many times to take pictures, until I slowed down. I reached the place where I saw 3 pumas last time I was here. I didn't think that this day could get any better, but I was wrong! I almost screamed when I saw a puma, slowly walking beside a hill on the side of the road. It wasn't that close to the road, but I was positive that it was a puma. However, it wasn't just one puma, soon I saw another. Except this one was a cub! One... two... three... and four! Four baby puma cubs! I freaked out, trying to change the lens on my camera. The mother was no where to be seen so I didn't risk going outside.
However, the four cubs were running up the hill, where they stayed and posed for probably about 10 minutes or more! I watched and photographed them, as they licked each other and stared at me and the camera. I didn't want to leave, but I knew I had to unless I wanted to drive in the dark for the rest of the way. It ended up that I drove in the dark anyways! The rest of the drive, I thought about what just happened with a smile on my face! Day 9-13
Day 6-8
Day 2-5
Day 1 After my 30+ hours of travel, I finally arrived in Punta Arenas, Chile. Once out of the airport, I rented a car and took the 4 hour long drive to my first stop, Puerto Natales. I didn't get to spend a good amount of time there, for it was just being used as a way to lessen the driving. However, Puerto Natales is in fact very beautiful. The lake next to the town is surrounded by snowy mountains and wildlife. On the drive down, I encountered many different animals. To start off, there were probably hundreds of sheep! They were literally everywhere. I also saw guanacos, which look sort of like alpacas or llamas. Another creature that I wasn't expecting to see, was a fox. I'm not sure what kind of fox it was, but it just ran across the road in front of me! One of the coolest animals I saw was the rheya. It looks like an ostrich with its fluffy feathers and long legs and neck. I only saw about 5 of those, but they were one of my favorite things I saw during the drive. All of these animals were also accompanied by different types of birds, dozens of cows and horses, and many other animals.
When the time came for the sun to set, I had just finished eating. The sunset was at about 4:30 pm! That's very early considering I am coming from Florida, the Sunshine State. However, the sunset was amazing! The bright oranges, pinks and yellows silhouetted the mountains, emphasizing their unique shape. I captured the sunset by the lake before returning back to my hotel to get a good night sleep! |
My Other WorkYou can find my work on many other sites such as Instagram, Flickr, 500px, and other social media, as well as places that I have been featured. For links, look below!
Social MediaHere are the social media sites that I use most often. However, if you wish to contact me, please go to my contact page here page.
• Flickr • 500px FeaturesThe Economist
The Economist has my photo of a sea lion in the Galapagos featured on their Instagram here, and will also put the photo in one of their newspapers/magazines. Bored Panda:
Bored Panda is a website that showcases many people and their discoveries. Photography and travel is just one part of Bored Panda. This is where about a dozen of my sea lion photos from the Galapagos Islands were featured. Cover Images:
Cover Images is a news and entertainment company that also does feature stories. I have my sea lion photos are on their website here, and I have many other travel images in various newspapers that are a part of Cover Images. Little Things:
More of my photos of the sea lions in the Galapagos. Little Things found my photos via Bored Panda. CNN Turkey:
My images have been featured on Turkish CNN. From Bored Panda, they have found my photos of sea lions in the Galapagos. |