By Ella Doyle from University of Vermont
Our first research project of the semester was to determine the Least Acceptable Change (LAC) on the hiking trails that run from Valle Chacabuco to Lago Jeinimeni in Parque Nacional Patagonica (PNP). LAC is a way to measure tourism-related changes to the ecosystems in PNP. Data collected on our trip will be used by Corporacion Nacional Forestal (CONAF) to determine our current impact on the park and how to limit human impacts along the trails. Kendall Muzzy and Emily Taylor both of the University of Vermont were the lead researchers on this project and were responsible for delegating tasks regarding the data collection. Kendall and Emily each had a GPS with a pre-marked location every 500m where the width, depth, trail condition characterization, soil type and photos were taken and labeled according to the coordinates. Along with these pre-determined points, Kendall and Emily also had to mark poor trail conditions, social trails, infrastructure sites, waste sites, undesigned campsites and trail experiences such as viewpoints on the GPS with corresponding photos.
February 12th, 2023
We began our first day in Valle Aviles in the Patagonian Steppe habitat. We walked along a path that was surrounded by neneo, calafate and paramella. We passed by a large herd of Guanaco that were grazing in the distance. We crossed a large wobbly bridge just before beginning our ascent up the plateau. Atop the plateau, we were surrounded by lenga and nirre trees and we got to see a condor soaring above the valley. We were all amazed by the bright red summit of Cerro Pintura off in the distance. We hiked a total of 16km and crossed two rivers, the second of which we set up our campsite by. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel very well on the trail this day but I figured a good night’s rest would cure me.
February 13th, 2023
We began the day at our riverside campsite and left for our first day of LAC data collection. We stopped every 500m to measure trail width and depth along with other trail data. Kendall and Emily did an excellent job collecting data at each point and marking other important points on the trail. This day also consisted of many river crossings, each one colder than the one before. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel better like I had hoped I would, and Garrett had revealed that he was also feeling unwell. I did in fact fall asleep on the trail multiple times that day and started to feel much worse. The group was so kind and let Garrett and I go ahead on the trail with Mariapaz and not collect LAC data. It was snowing as we crossed rivers and set up tents at the Puertozuelo Aviles campsite and it was freezing that evening. Again, I went to bed hoping I would be cured of my illness by the morning.
February 14th, 2023
We left Puertozuelo Aviles campsite ready to take notes for our first Grinnell journal. I still felt absolutely terrible, but I had more energy from my 12 hours of sleep. We hiked through Lenga forests taking diligent notes about the species we saw. Around 12:15pm we left Valle Aviles that ran North to South and entered Valle Hermoso that ran East to West. We walked along the riverbeds full of Flor del Viento and more calafate. We arrived at Refugio Valle Hermoso between 1 and 2pm, this was supposed to be our final stopping point for the day but we decided as a group that we wanted to continue on to make our next day shorter. This decision also meant we had to collect more LAC data for the rest of the day. While it was difficult to take Grinnell notes and collect LAC data, we got it done and arrived at Raleigh campsite around 8:00pm. All day I had felt ok but that changed dramatically once we stopped walking and ate dinner. I was in quite a bit of intestinal pain and it was decided that Garrett and I would be making a pit stop at the hospital in Chile Chico the next day. Despite my exhaustion, I laid awake in my tent around 4:30am trying to convince myself that I felt better so I would somehow not have to face my intense fear of doctors.
February 15th, 2023
We left our campsite as a group and crossed the big scary river around 11:00am and then had breakfast on the other side. I fell asleep soon after breakfast and my colleagues thought it was silly to take pictures of me while I was asleep. Garrett, Mariapaz, and I set off for the hospital after crossing one more small river. The trail to our final campsite, Camping El Silencio, was nice and flat which made it manageable. As I walked out of Valle Hermoso, I felt very guilty for leaving the other half of the group with so much work to do but I knew at that point there was my only option. Leaving Parque Nacional Patagonia I was anxious about my visit to the doctor but not anxious enough to stay awake. We arrived at Mariapaz’s house in Chile Chico and got to meet her two dogs that were in fact the cutest dogs in the world as she had described. I took the most amazing shower in one of the first boats to travel across Lago Chilenco that had been converted into a room at Hosteria de la Patagonia. We arrived at the hospital and got some medications that were supposed to make us feel better but didn’t do much in reality. We chatted with Mary from Global Rescue on the phone about our hospital visit and got a good nights rest.
February 16th, 2023
Weak and feeble, Garrett and I did wake up that morning, I felt about the same as the day before. We chatted with Mary from Global Rescue again and then rapidly returned to the hospital for another visit. This time we were prescribed some antibiotics and put on the BRAT diet which didn’t consist of very much. We foraged for food for the group at the grocery store and returned to the wilderness.
February 17th, 2023
I slept well that night but was still sleepy from my mystery illness. Garrett seemed much better and was recovering quickly from his illness so he joined Vicky, Emily, and Sam who were pulling up pine trees for the morning. I stayed behind and tried to do the readings I was very behind on for class but immediately fell asleep when I entered my tent. I awoke when they returned from pulling pine trees and joined them for lunch. I ate some bread and soda crackers and drank some electrolytes and headed back to the pine trees with them. I did enjoy pulling pine trees for about 15 minutes before I felt very exhausted and needed to stop. A CONAF ranger showed up to help us remove pines and then brought us to another area infested with pine trees. I really felt like a weakling then and couldn’t pull any more pines so I sat down feeling very ashamed about my lack of strength. The CONAF ranger didn’t approve of my lack of participation but I tried not to worry too much about that. I started feeling intensely hungry that evening which was an excellent sign that I was recovering from my illness but was only able to consume rice and boiled carrots and apples. This made me sad. I went to bed around 8:00pm hoping finally I might feel better in the morning.
February 18th, 2023
I did in fact feel better this morning but not 100%. This was lovely but we had our first species quiz and that was very stress inducing. I did well though, 12.5/20, not bad for sleeping though most of the trip! We left Camping El Silencio and Parque Nacional Patagonia for Chile Chico planning to stop at various points along the drive to collect seeds for Huerto Cuatro Estaciones, the native plant farm we visited on our drive to Cochrane. We collected lots of coiron that was growing on the side of the road. We saw lots of horses and cows as well, it was a very beautiful drive to Chile Chico. When we arrived, it was sunny and beautiful and we set up our campsite for the evening and went out to dinner. I was so hungry but I got to eat real food that night so I was thrilled. We got burgers and ice cream and went to the viewpoint at the top of a hill and could see all of Chile Chico. I was feeling amazing after eating food and it was a lovely way to end our trip. Even though I was ill, and my memory is blurry, I still had so much fun in the Chacabuco valley and can’t wait for our next backpacking trip.
