06 January 2011

I decided to drive to El Calafate instead of returning to Puerto Natales to replace my tire. On the way out of Torres del Paine I stopped to take a few photos but it was cloudy and not as clear as yesterday.

The border of Chile was crowded with passengers from a bus but the officials let me cut ahead since I was the only one exiting the country. At the border of Argentina I met a girl and her boyfriend who were hitchhiking with an RV caravan. One RV was an Austrian couple and the other was a German couple. Both of the couples were older and probably retired. The girl said she was from Raleigh, NC.  They approached me asking if the car with the NY plates was mine. After brief pleasantries they wished me well and I was on my way to El Calafate. I had to unhook the chain blocking my way into Argentina.

About two minutes later I realized my RPM gauge wasn’t working and neither was my speedometer. Immediately I knew this was going to be a problem. It meant the alternator was dying. Sure enough when I braked to turn off the gravel road and onto Route 40 the car died.

I let it roll slowly downhill. Behind me I saw the German RV approaching so I waved him over. He pulled his RV around facing my engine and we tried a jumpstart. The other RV pulled up and the Austrian was helping to fit the cables. The jump lit up the battery but when I braked to shift into reverse the engine died again. The German suggested we tow my car to the next service station.

Jump start

He got out a thick flat rope and clamped either end to each car and we were off. Steering and braking were easy. We were going 50mph. We had to stop when the rope got tangled in my axle. It sounded like I had ripped off part of my front end with all the noise and jolting.

The Germans had driven around the world in their RV

The next service station was  In Tapi Aike. There was nothing there. No mechanic. No city. Nothing. Just a gas station that didn’t open until 1 pm. It was 12:45. I told the German I would pay him to tale me to El Calafate but he said it was too far for him.

The girl’s boyfriend ran across the street to the building over there and he was told that there is a mechanic in Esperanza which was 80 kilometers away. The girl remarked that it sounded hopeful (esperar, from which Esperanza is derived, means to hope) and that getting there and finding a tow truck would be my best bet. I did not want to do this at all. El Calafate is a large city and I knew I would find what I needed there. But we pushed my car out of the way and I hopped into the German’s RV.

The Argentine pampas is a terrible place to break down. The land stretches for an eternity in all directions with no sign of life. The wind shifts the clouds into enigmatic shapes. There are streaks and cotton balls and large battle ships floating in the blue sea above. You can see the heat shimmering off the ground making all watery and hazy. The sun pounds the earth without mercy. I am sunburned from yesterday.

They dropped me off at the gas station. I knew right away nothing I needed was here. Esperanza is a gas station, a hotel, a police station, and a scattering of smaller buildings. The gas station clerk said the mechanic was across the street. But I needed more than a mechanic. I needed a tow truck. The mechanic pointed me to the police station. 

Through my terrible Spanish I told them I was broken down 80 kilometers south and needed to be towed to El Calafate. They called three different tow companies. First was 2300 pesos, the second 2600, and the third 1800 pesos. The lady at the front desk called the third company while the the two men were getting ready to leave. The cop had his gun holster in his hand wrapped in his sweater. The barrel was sticking out and pointing directly at me.

Police dog

She told me the tow truck would be here at 4:30 with my car. An hour and a half. So I walked to the hotel restaurant and had some lunch: steak topped with eggs and french fries on the side.

The tow truck did not arrive until 5:30. I sat in the police station for an hour and a half. I had some half conversations with the lady cop, Alexandria. She had a ring tattooed on her right ring finger. I think I fell asleep for a moment. I woke to the sounds of a little girl and a scampering puppy. A man followed them inside. He also had a ring tattooed on his right ring finger. They were married, both cops, and the little girl was theirs.

In El Calafate we went to three mechanics and they all said they couldn’t fix my car. Then we went to find an ATM so I could pay for the tow. The first two ATMs were out of money and the third had a long line. Waited for at least twenty minutes. There were strange curved horn billed birds honking and fighting in the tree tops.

We dropped my car off at a gas station. There’s also a repair shop there. Tomorrow begins the long search for a mechanic.

The hostel I’m staying at is nice and cheap but you have to make your own bed and the ladder to the top bunk is loose and a hazard. You also have to turn in the key to the room when you leave. Each room has one key. So it’s cheap but it’s pretty lame.

I had a large pizza for dinner. I think I’m becoming a glutton.

Yesterday I met an old fat man and his wife in the woods. He was wearing a Wisconsin hat so I asked if he was a Badger. We talked for a bit and he said “You’re living my dream.” Made me feel gross inside. I don’t want to be living someone else’s dream.

While I was hiking I thought a lot about pop culture. So many movie quotes and songs rang through my head. I didn’t like it one bit. Here I am in Chile in Patagonia and I can’t get away from T.V. and movies. I saw this guy with a hat that read “Marmot” so I said, “Nice marmot” and laughed hard but I felt like jerk. I don’t think he got it and he didn’t come all this way just to hear a Big Lebowski joke.