Torrential rain. Sub-zero temperatures. Sleet and snow. Cyclonic winds. They sound like good names for heavy metal bands, but they're not the kind of words you want to hear while you're hiking through Chile's Torres del Paine National Park. My fourth day on the W Trek dawned with absolutely appalling weather that saw a number … Continue reading Torres del Paine, Day Quattro: The rain in Paine falls mostly on me
Patagonia's hiking wonderland of Torres del Paine is like 50 worlds in one. It doesn't take long to walk from dense forest to sparse flatlands, or to wander from bright sunshine into pelting rain, dense fog or worse. For my third day on the W Trek, I made my way up the Frances Valley towards … Continue reading Torres del Paine, Day Tres: Avalanches A-Go-Go!
After a spectacular first day in Chile's Torres del Paine National Park, I was looking forward to a cracking second day that would see me hike 23km from Camp Grey to Camp Frances. This section of the W Trek winds past lakes, mountains and waterfalls, but when I woke up, all I could see was … Continue reading Torres del Paine, Day Dos: Prances to Frances
Tonight, Drunk and Jobless is coming to you live from Patagonia's world famous Torres del Paine National Park. Don't worry, I hadn't heard about it until a few weeks ago, either, but it's famous with the hiking set, and for good reason. The mountains in this part of Chile are incredible, the lakes are so … Continue reading Torres del Paine, Day Uno: Wild on the W
After the lush, green beauty of Chile's Los Lagos district, flying into Patagonia was like soaring into another dimonsion. Over the course of the most remarkable plane trip of my life the trees, mountains and volcanoes gave way to gnarled shrubs, murky swamps and endless flatlands - an alien landscape that makes it hard to … Continue reading Punta Arenas – Industrial wasteland at the end of the world
Since arriving in Puerto Varas, Chile, a few days ago, the mammoth spectre of Volcan Osorno has been haunting me. The ancient behemoth has been hiding behind the clouds, peering out sporadically to give me some idea of his glory, before disappearing again. I'd had enough, so today I decided to go out and find … Continue reading Osorno Volcano is Beuno!
What's the fruitiest little town on the planet? No, it's not Orange, and it's certainly not Berry, it's the Southern Chilean village of Frutillar, a picturesque spot on the shores of Lago Llanquihue. With its gorgeous Germanic architecture, tree-lined streets and sweeping views out over Volcan Osorno, this place is sweeter than a handful of … Continue reading Tutti Frutillar
After sleeping off my hangover, I woke up bright and early and ready to hike to the top of Volcan Villarrica, near Pucon in Chile. But when I skipped outside, the big bastard wasn't there anymore. It was like he'd thrown up his massive molten hands during the night, said 'Fuck it' and just walked … Continue reading The Wetter the Better in Parque Nacional Huerquehue
I love everything about Germany (well, except for their history of starting wars and slaughtering innocent people by the millions), so when I found out there's a town in Southern Chile that looks like it's straight out of Bavaria, I had to check it out. After a number of run-ins with the locals, Santiago was … Continue reading Pucon ist wunderbar!
Santiago is a monstrous metropolis, but like most South American cities it's not exactly overflowing with skyscrapers. Most of the buildings are about as high as Danny De Vito's dick, with low-rise walk-ups spreading for kilometres in every direction. There is one high spot in the Chilean capital, however - the Gran Torre Santiago, which … Continue reading A Gran Torre Day Out
The Drunk and Jobless World Tour 