Ventisquero Colgante, aka the Hanging Glacier, was the undisputed highlight of Queulat National Park. Unfortunately, we picked the day with the worst weather all week. Taking photos of a grey glacier sitting in front of grey clouds was never going to look impressive. We decided to wait until the afternoon to see if conditions improved.

 

To fill in the time, we drove out to Bosque Encantado, where a short trail through the forest would take us to Laguna Los Gnomos. We parked our car by the side of the road and took off down the path. Within 50 metres, we encountered a fast-moving river with no discernible way to cross it. We searched up and down the bank, attempting to use tree logs and rocks to our advantage, but it was all in vain. There didn't even seem to be a way to safely traverse through the water. On one unsuccessful attempt, Danny slipped straight off a tall log and fell neck-deep into the freezing cold river, drenching not only himself but also his backpack. We gave up after that.

 

Once Danny had changed out of his saturated clothes, we stopped briefly at 2 waterfalls, both only a couple of minutes’ walk from the road (no water crossings required). Salto El Condor was a high-drop fall, with the path leading right to the base. Here I could clamour over rocks all the way up to the spray, but I think only one of us getting soaked was enough for today. The second waterfall, Cascada Padre Garcia, was much smaller but more powerful, with 2 viewpoints that were high above the action. It was a pleasant surprise that they were both free to visit, a rarity in Chile.

 

The weather hadn't improved by the time we arrived at Ventisquero Colgante. In fact, it had deteriorated, with a light but steady drizzle now falling. As we had already purchased our tickets (they had to be bought in advance), we decided to test our luck.

 

Inside the park were 5 trails of various distances out to miradors, which each showed the glacier from slightly different angles. The first route was the longest, 3.5 km uphill through a dense, deep green forest on a path consisting mostly of tree roots. At the end was supposedly the best view of the glacier, yet all we saw was a thick layer of clouds with a couple of long, forceful waterfalls spilling out the bottom. We waited around and crossed our fingers, and much to our amazement the clouds shifted briefly, exposing the full glacier and its connection to the falls. It was a hazy sight, but at least we could say that we had seen it.

 

Miradors 2, 3 and 4 offered us nothing but grey - not even the waterfalls could be seen. There were sightings of a greenish lake and a wide, furious river that originated from the glacier, but nothing of the ice. We didn't even bother with the last viewpoint. At this stage the rain started to pick up, causing us to give up on today and spend the rest of the afternoon rugged up indoors.