So, technically my birthday isn’t until tomorrow but today is the day I am considering my birthday hikes and honorary day! With the altitude, it made most sense to do Toco (~3.5 miles, max elevation: 18,401′) today and then come back down a few thousand feet tomorrow so my body adjusts gradually down just as I’ve been adjusting gradually up. They say that 40 is “over the hill” so I was determined to make it a good hill! With a departure time of 8am this morning I felt spoiled getting to sleep in a few minutes later. I had the same breakfast I’ve had every morning and saw Jill and James as they were heading out for Peñaliri. Poor Sumeet felt even crappier today and was staying behind. I can’t imagine having spent as much money as it is for this place and not going on any of the explorations; it’s all-inclusive.
I gathered my snacks and water and met my guide, Giuliana, for my gear check and the usual map viewing explanation for the day. With two trekking poles in hand we were escorted away in a Forerunner by our driver, Don Juan. The first stop was the police station in town, to climb Toco you are supposed to register with the police, and then let them know you made it safely down, as a safety measure. I waited in the van while Giuliana ran in and gave them all of our information, Driving out of town, Don Juan was cracking me up, rolling down the window to yell to his friends, making a woman sweeping a parking lot blush with his bellows of “Mi amore!!!”
Giuliana is the most senior of the guides I’ve met so far, having been working for Explora for over 6 years. I mentioned that I had done Volcan Blanco yesterday and she said that Tian must have pushed us too fast because all the guides were surprised at how early we got back, nobody ever gets back from Volcan Blanco that early. I feel vindicated. Giuliana has a natural friendliness and was immediately enjoyable to chat with; she was excited when I told her that my birthday is tomorrow but I am counting today as my birthday celebration. In just the short 45 minute drive to Toco I felt her beautiful spirit. I mentioned that I was not excited about the hike that the guides had suggested for my birthday but I couldn’t figure out anything better based on my knowledge of the explorations and no one had suggested anything better. I was scheduled to climb Kimal tomorrow but none of the guides had done a good job selling me on it and she agreed. Her suggestion was the Incahuasi hike, it is challenging and her personal favorite. We made a note to make that adjustment to my schedule when we got back and I immediately felt better about how I’d be spending my actual birthday.
As Don Juan off-roaded us closer to the base of Toco, the snow got closer and closer. I have been told to expect it to be as cold as 12F but given how much warmer all the hikes had been I didn’t really expect it to get that cold. But nonetheless it was cold. I layered up my thicker merino over my base merino with a puffy jacket on top. Two layers on the bottom. And my fleece beanie under my hat, with my hood pulled up most of the time. Giuliana pointed up the mountain to show me our path, seemingly straight up, and I took a few deep breaths, I can do hard things.
A guide with two guests started up the trail ahead of us. He had a pic axe to help break up the ice and snow and had huge feet, following them was perfect as we could just stay in his footsteps. Two other large groups were starting up the mountain behind us. Giuliana showed me the pace we would use, very short and very slow steps, almost like barely shuffling our feet. Stopped for a water break, Giuliana was telling me about the machismo culture and how she’d had male guides worry about her on Toco even though she’s the most experienced guide in the area. As if on cue, one of the guides from a group behind us rushed up to give her an axe, he noticed she didn’t have one and thought maybe we’d need it.
We shuffled our way up the mountain in the snow, watching each step to make sure we weren’t sliding on ice, stopping to share a snack of chocolate covered almonds. Someone had made a “snowman” that looked like a bird. I was constantly checking in with myself, my body, my lungs, my head, everything felt good. There was not stress on my body other than the normal racing heart I feel when I’m doing anything uphill at sea level. This is the highest altitude I’ve ever been in, other than an airplane, and the air felt crisp and clear and cleansing. Turning around to look behind me, the juxtaposition of the snowy white mountain against the dark tan desert was enchanting. Always remember to take the time to see from where you’ve come; looking backwards sometimes offers the best views.
When we reached the summit, Giuliana congratulated me and we toasted with brownies as she pointed out the borders behind us. The road I could see at the base of the other side of the mountain and the teeny dot of a red building. That was the road into Bolivia and the immigration checkpoint. To the east, that was Argentina. Standing atop Toco I could have my eyes on three countries at once. Looking back at my pictures, I realize I was so awe struck I forgot to take any regular pictures of the landscape, just one video and a pano.
I put on my special birthday tiara that I had safely somehow gotten all the way to Atacama, and all the way to the summit of Toco in one piece and Giuliana and I laughed as she took pictures and I held on so it didn’t fly away in the gusty wind. Another lady at the top saw me and approaching, reaching out and grabbing me by my shoulders, today was her birthday. She embraced me in a big hug and without speaking the same language we celebrated each other. This is what life is about. People being good and connecting with others; we were two women, strangers to each other, not even able to speak the same language, but we could embrace and celebrate each other.
Tears started to stream down my face; I just did a steep ascent to 18,400’ and it felt amazing. I had to reel myself in. Summiting Toco was amazing and cleansing and emotional and stirred me to my core. The fact that I physically felt great with no altitude sickness was the icing on the cake.The goodness and wholesomeness of the celebratory people around me didn’t hurt either. I had a hard time tearing myself away from the magic when it was time to descend.
Watching the snow turn to ice in the high sun as we climbed up, we were prepared for it to be slippery trying to get back down. Giuliana is an excellent guide and together we looked at different route options as we made our way down and chose what felt best to both of us. Even coming down the mountain, carefully using the friction of the snow to stabilize my steps, I was in awe at myself for the accomplishment and for how crazy I must be for this to be how my soul thrives. I am thankful for the snow as I think the descent would have been much tougher on the loose shale and gravel than it was having the deeper snow to provide some traction. I am so thankful for my boots! At no point were my feet cold, wet, or slipping unnecessarily. Did I realize that I am absolutely crazy as I was snow stepping my way down the mountain? Yes. But that doesn’t come as a surprise to me or anyone!
When we reached Don Juan at the bottom he was laughing and pointing behind us; he’d been standing behind the SUV watching us most of the time. There was a couple doing the hike without any poles, and not seeming super prepared, I’m not even sure they reached the summit as had passed them in the opposite direction not that long ago. They were following my and Giuliana’s tracks down and Don Juan told us that every minute or two they were falling flat on their butts, much to his entertainment. On another route down, a large group was sitting and one by one literally sliding down parts of the mountain on their bums. Don Juan also pointed out beautiful icicle formations we hadn’t noticed in the morning.
The guide and couple who had paved our trail up were also following our trail down. The poor woman had gotten hit by the altitude though and was vomiting as they descended. When they got to the base, Don Juan gave their guide 7-up and other refreshments that he thought would help settle her stomach. I loved this exchange; they had paved our steps up and we were able to repay them with steps down and soda for her tummy.
Once back at the lodge, Giuliana and I sat down in the exploration center to confirm that I still wanted to go on my afternoon hike today (you better believe it!) and to change tomorrow from Kimal to Incahuasi. I felt further vindicated against Tian who tried to tell me I’d be too tired for anything else after Toco, I felt great, full of energy, and ready to go!
With an hour or so break before leaving for Punta del Inca I sat down for some lunch. My usual salad from the buffet and a hummus bowl, the more appetizing sounding option of the lunch entree selections. James and Jill arrived back from their Peñaliri hike while I was on the patio and joined me for a few minutes before I had to go. My excitement over Toco enticed James to change his schedule to tackle it tomorrow.
I bid them adieu and met my guide, Dani, for Punta del Inca (~2.3 miles, max elevation: 10,512′), a short canyon hike. He brought a set of trekking poles for us to use when needed but it wasn’t necessary for us to use them for the most part and I was glad to be doing a hike without them. Our driver Paulo delivered us safely to start our hike, only about half an hour from the lodge, a treat to have such a short drive yet again today.
We started on a fairly easy trail into the canyon. Dani asked me what other hikes I’d done and then commented, “Oh you were in that group that got back too early from Volcan Blanco! Nobody ever gets back that early and Tian was so happy so he could have his afternoon free.” Aha! Further vindication! Dani’s passion is photography so he was a great guide to have with me for the afternoon, though I didn’t end up taking advantage of that skill as much as I should have. The canyon was another different jaw-dropping landscape and the first time I’ve seen basalt in Atacama. Every hike I’ve done so far has provided a new and unique landscape, introducing me to this beautiful region of the world.
It wasn’t long before the friendly trail started to become less friendly as the canyon walls started to narrow. Suddenly I found myself scrambling along canyon walls, holding on to pointed basalt as I found my footing and Dani reminded me to hold with two hands at all times. Scrambling along the basalt walls was fun, unique, and not something I was expecting. We crossed back and forth across the narrow river, at times using rocks and the trekking poles to get across, at other times having to jump and hope for a successful landing; my long legs definitely came in handy.
At one passage, we had to scramble along the wall with the water just below us. It’s a good thing I have a screen protector on my GoPro since I cracked it when I misjudged my step, slid forward, ate shit against the rocks, and ended up with two feet dangling in the water. Here I am in the driest desert on Earth with soaking wet feet. How ironic is that (I bet Alanis would sing about it)? And yes, it’s captured on video. I appreciate that Dani’s reaction was to laugh and tell me it’s all part of the adventure. The fact that I let out a mellow “oh man!” when it happened and not some more colorful words is a true testament to the peace this desert is washing over me.
True to form, when one hikes into a canyon, eventually one must get out of the canyon. A rock formation in the shape of a llama looks too purposeful to be natural. The rest of the hike was real fun with my feet sloshing with water. Even so, the climb out was easier than anticipated. My lungs are thrilled to be 8,000′ lower than we were this morning! Paulo had another picnic of the same post-excursion refreshments, fruit, and charcuterie waiting for us. Enough food do feed half a dozen people. By this point, I’m getting tired of the post-exploration picnic.
Back at the lodge, I did my typical cleanup and hang out in my little corner in the lounge before dinner. Jill and Sumeet showed up just a few minutes after me. Jill went to check something at the restaurant and came back to declare success. We had all been complaining about the late dinner hour, tonight, dinner service would be available at 7:30! These ladies had time to spare and used it for the good to lobby for the earlier start time.
Another women they had met on their first exploration, Martha, was sitting at the bar and they invited her to join us in the lounge. As soon as I met Martha I didn’t like her. She’s the first person I’ve met here that I had a visceral reaction against. She was immediately full of complaints and talked about how she preferred to go uphill and at her own pace, asking about our knowledge of different hikes where she wouldn’t have to worry about being slowed down by others. Then it hit me. Her voice, I know that voice, this was the biatch that had tried to make the guides change Penaliri the other day! Jill and Sumeet had no idea that she was the reason they got the call asking if they were willing to do it backwards. And it turns out, she’s scheduled to do Incahuasi with me tomorrow. Her and I are the only two on the schedule for it. Oh shit. I do NOT want to hike with this terrible person, especially not on my actual birthday. I tested the waters by warning her that I would be slow tomorrow because my body is tired and sore from today so I need to make sure I don’t hurt myself and I don’t want to rush, I’m there to connect with the earth. Her face said it all and it was not good. Thank goodness she thinks even 7:30pm is too late for dinner and wasn’t joining us.
I was stressing. Jill, Sumeet, and I sat for dinner and I told them how stressed I was, explaining what I knew about Martha and how I think I will be miserable stuck with her. They encouraged me to talk to the guides. Feeling frazzled I left them at the dinner table and marched to the exploration center. Two guides that I do not know were in there and I explained to them the predicament. I met the lady I’m supposed to hike with tomorrow, she seems like a terrible human being, we don’t like the same pace, it’s my 40th birthday, and I don’t want her to ruin my day. I implored them to send a trainee guide or someone else with us so I didn’t have to be stuck with her and it wouldn’t be a big deal for us to each enjoy our own pace. They informed me that it would be tough and they can’t promise but they’d see what they could do. “Please don’t ruin my birthday and make me deal with her!” I begged as I walked back to dinner. Yes, I feel a little dramatic but I also don’t want to be around negative energy. I’m so glad I considered today my birthday celebration hikes!
Taking On the World 
Leave a comment