Today was probably the most physically grueling activity of the entire trip…..the hike up to Obsession lake, a spectacular glacial lake high in the Andes. From the Peuma Lodge, it was a 3.5 mile hike up, and I mean UP, to Obsession Lake.  Imagine walking 3.5 miles with 3000 feet of elevation climb. I think that qualifies as a difficult hike!  I was not about to put my ankle through that and based on the feedback from the others at the end of the day, I definitely made the right call.

After breakfast, the others got ready and headed out to Obsession Lake.  At about the 2/3 mark, Ralph stopped, ate a sandwich and turned back, since the climb got much steeper. At some points, there were ropes attached to trees  to help hikers on the steepest parts of the climb. Guess who was first to the top?  Emily and Bobby. And Bobby said it took all he had to keep up with Emily. I’m proud to say that Nancy also made it to the top!  And she took some great pictures!  She was beat when she returned and her thighs ached for the next two days.

I don’t think I have mentioned yet that northern Patagonia is loaded with bamboo. The group saw lots of it on the hike, as well as a lot of very large ferns.

Ralph, Lou and Tyler on the trail

Crystal clear Obsession lake is over a hundred feet deep. A glacier is visible at the base of the granite tooth in upper right.

Kennedy, Nixon and Eisenhauer at Obsession Lake

I ended up going fly fishing with Cade while the others did the hike. The Peuma Lodge provided a fully rigged NRS raft with seats and oars for the guide. Once we got on the river, I did my best to make some good casts but the wind was just too strong. Cade and I ended up just floating on some beautiful and calm sections of the river and chatting. I missed the hike but still had an exceptionally nice day!

Sunset that night

The grilled salmon dinner tonight was fantastic….