Reunion

After almost 3 years without seeing my eldest sister, I was impatient to see Marie in Argentina. We met in Bariloche, a beautiful city known for hiking.

Remi, Marie and I had one week together. After, we would go south to meet the rest of my family and Remi would fly back to France. Therefore, we decided to conclude Remi’s travel and start Marie’s journey with a long hike.

However, we had to introduce the famous Argentinians asados to Marie before doing anything else !

We stayed in a hostel, planned our trip and partied one last time before hiking.

Hiking in Bariloche was a very different experience compared to Chili or other parts of Argentina. It looked very similar to Switzerland with a lot of alpines lakes and fir trees.

We were at the beginning of summertime and decided to take a 2 days hike and make it in 3 days.

Some landscapes deserved more than an hour to really enjoy their beauty.

We only walked for a few hours and settled our first camp by a lake and spent the rest of the day swimming and grilling chorizo sausages on the fire.

Until late at night.

We left the lake and went up to the second base camp, 800 m higher.

It was not easy to settle our tents but the view was worth it.

Most people come to enjoy this spectular view and return the same day.

We decided to keep on exploring and went further the next day.

Summer was coming and most of the snow was melting. It provided an easy access.

The more we kept going, the more interesting became the path.

Until it became almost pure climbing.

We finally made it to the top and enjoyed a well deserved view on the Andes.

It was a great ending for my trip with Remi. After a month together, he was now coming back to France. Traveling with Remi was one of the most unexpected things yet one of the best. He had come as a buddy and left as a friend.

Marie and I took the longest bus ride of my life (27 hours) to make sure we met our little sister just in time in El Calafate (1400 km).

That’s a very long ride on the same road !

On the 15th of December, it was now time for Cécile, my little sister, to take part of my adventure.

We did not lose a second. We went on the road with Marie and Cécile and hitchhiked to the Argentinian capital of trekking, El Chalten.

This is the very last ride I had after more than 2000 different lifts (approximately) over the last 3 years.

We went for a 4 days hike close to the famous cerro Fitz Roy, one of the most emblematic mountain of Patagonia.

It took us half day until we could get to the beginning of the trek. It was incredibly windy.

Walking with my 2 sisters was not a underrated pleasure.

It also seemed they have traveled years. They knew everything and walked at the same pace as I.

And most importantly, they loved hiking as much as having a nice and complex breakfast.

Full of energy, we went up to the next glacier.

We could not keep on going  to the main glacier because a river was overflowing over the path. Therefore we went up to a glacier lake and made our own way.

We went as high as we could.

And enjoyed a beautiful frozen landscape.

The weather was getting really bad so we had to flee to the next camp.

We spent the rest of the day in the tent surviving under the rain. It did not bother my sisters at all !

Next day was better. After each rain, the sun shines !

However, we only had a couple of hours until another storm arrived. We woke up early, packed everything and took a last chance to see the glaciers.

We were lucky.

It was worth it ! This is the laguna torre, another big glacier lake.

Exhausted, cold yet happy, we went back to El Chalten and drank a well deserved beer.

While drinking those beers, we met other hikers, who offered us a drive to El Calafate, where we were going to meet our last sister and parents.

After three years of challenges, discoveries and opening on the world, I finally met the warmth of home.

The reunion was now complete.

Still, the trip was not over. Indeed, my parents decided to spend one week around Patagonia.

And they wanted to extend the adventure ! We went off the paths and kept exploring those desert open lands.

Some hikers we met a week before with my sisters had advised to hike Cerro de los Cristales, a beautiful mountain with an incredible view on the Perito Moreno glacier (far behind in the picture).

It was not a frequented path. We had the whole mountain just for ourselves.

We walked all day enjoying the bright summer sun.

After seeing the Perito Moreno glacier so far away, we decided to see it closer the next day.

I might have seen dozens of glacier from Alaska to Argentina but this one was the most impressive.

Every now and then, huge blocks of ice collapsed in the water in a complete chaos.

We went even closer by boat and gazed at this natural wonder.

On Christmas eve, we came back to El Chalten and took our parents to one of the most famous hikes of Patagonia, the lago de los tres hike.

It was a special moment for me since I knew it was the very last hike of my world trip.

 

Well realizing this hike with my family was quite a good ending to my time in the wilderness.

Those azures lakes were mesmerizing.

That was our last day in Patagonia.

We drove back to the airport and I looked one last time at the road I followed for the last 3 years. That was the end. I made it.

It was a weird feeling to leave this continent after all those adventures, meetings and love I shared.

While flying over the Atlantic, I looked at the world map of my screen. I could not believe how much distance I had covered over the last 3 years. Every kilometer I did, I did it thanks to the help of a complete stranger.

Planning this travel, believing and finally doing it, is by far the best thing I could have ever done for myself and for all the people I met.

After more than 50 000 km on land, 15 000 km over the ocean and more than 2000 different rides, I was finally back home. I had survived.

The first thing I did was to open the 10 liters of arranged rum that had matured during all this time (delicious by the way) !

And share it with my closest friends and family !

And not just one time !

I am now back home with some of the people that count the most for me. My travel is officially done.

If anyone ask me how could I go for 3 years alone, I will just say one thing. Believe and love. Believe and love yourself. Believe and love people.

When I started, I was full of fears, doubts and anxiety. Still, I walked away from home and start my trip without much ideas of how to achieve my goals. I received so much love and help from complete strangers that my fears turned to trust, my doubts to self-confidence and my anxiety to acceptance.
Even if some days were tough and I could have lost hope, I met some really amazing persons no matter where I went and realized I was way stronger and resilient than what I thought.
I would never, and no one else would either, have believed I could have done all of this, but I did.

All you got to do is start even if you have no idea of what is going to happen. Opportunities don’t happen, you create them. Don’t wait too long to do what you truly love, time passes and it passes fast.

Hope this blog will help some of you to make the first step towards your goals !

Arthur