Parque Pumalin is privately owned by The Conservation Land Trust.

The pavement ended on the Carretera Austral after the first 31 km on a sunny day with snow-capped peaks poking up everywhere. We ate a gourmet lunch at a lakeside hotel then camped nearby. After washing clothes we took the 6k hike through this temperate rain forest to get closer to the Ventisquero Yelcho glacier.  We passed by Pumalín Park, a nature sanctuary owned by The Conservation Land Trust which was founded by Douglas Tompkins; an American billionaire who started North Face outdoors gear and Esprit clothing.   Though many Chileans are skeptical of a foreign-owned national park, they seem pleased to have it saved from development.

Reflections in the Rio Yelcho.

The Ventisquero Yelcho glacier.

Julie in Wonderland, under a canopy of Nalca, or Pangue, leaves. They look like gigantic rhubarb plants, and their stalks are also edible.

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