Woken up by the morning sun and had to get out of the tent before we cooked. Very tempting to go for a swim, but there was a long day ahead and we wanted to get going before the sun got any hotter. After a breakfast of porridge and rasins, taking picutres of a small wooly llama and packing the bags, we set off. I felt like we had only scraped the surface of what Frey had to offer, but the next leg of the trek was calling and I had a bus to catch (in a couple of days, but all the same).
The walk round the edge of the lake was boggy, not too hard going, but I understand why most people were walking on the other, more bouldery, side the previous evening. Stopped to read a sign about the giant tadpoles and take pictures as we made our way to the base of the steep route out of the corrie. Absoultely clear skies outlined the jagged peaks very clearly, some climbers had just started up a route as we left. Up we went following the red blobs painted on the rocks to guide us up to the next section. It was steep, getting toasty and we were still being followed by a very persitstent buzzing thing. However, we were rewarded by another meltwater lake at the top of this stomp and some shade under a big rock. Snack time and picture time. A condor flew close overhead but I was too busy watching it to take a picture. The next section was covered in snow and the route was not entirely clear, no obviuos red blobs! We waited to see which way two more walkers were going, which was towards a red blob hardly distinguishable from the orange rock it was painted on. The walking on snow was a little scary, but I followed Heather's foot placements and kicked in and we got to the rock. Looking back the lake we had left the colour of the water created a bathymetric plot effect and if you squinted it was shaped like a heart.
Up and over the ridge we went, scrambling here and there, waving goodbye to the pointy rocks. Could now say hello to some new ones, this time big mountains in the distance, including Tronador on the border with Chile. Now it was time for the first steep descent of the day, long and slidy, luckily not too chossy but still a pain to go down. After a what seemed ages I finally reached the bottom of the loose stuff. Heather had gone on ahead, I must learn how to go down steep slopes faster! It was still a long way to the valley floor and almost demoralising to look at the next ridge we had to get up and over. However, the buzzing thing had returned so we had to get down a boudery chute as fast as possible without injury. This descent got boring after a while, down down down with no end in sight. It was a relief to get to the flat, but boggy, valley floor.
Lunch was definitely on the cards, but finding a place to stop was tricky and the buzzing things would descend on us when we stopped. Eventually we found a log and had our picnic of pitta bread, olives and cream cheese with sprinklings of cashew and peanuts, which was very tasty. We were overtaken by a couple who were kind enough to tell us that there was still a long way to go! The path meandered in and out of woodland and bog for a while. The uphill got closer. It was good to see the valley floor fall away again, but the top of the uphill was still non-existent. To add to the atmosphere, distant rumblings of thunder were getting closer. The path flattened out and the little red blobs led us along the top of a spur, time for legs to relax before the final push uphill. There were some very cool rocks scattered around, wiggly patterns in pink and white, some big forces acting around here! It had started to pitter patter with rain and the thunder was getting louder, so we had to press on. More red blods guided our way up through another snow patch. This time it was a bit steeper and more scary with the weather closing in. Got there eventually and went over the ridge quicky, lightning was very close by. Another steep descent to finish off our day. Not Helen friendly, loose rock and a long way down. Got overtaken by the helpful couple from earlier, which did nothing for my morale. The end of this slope was very welcome. The next challenge was to cross a swollen river, there was a marked crossing point, but I wanted to find a place higher up closer the the refugio hoping for a narrower bit. After a few minutes trampling in the mud along the bank of the river, it was decision time and back we went to the marked bit. I got nice wet boots, but it did wash the mud off.
Home straight now, where we were met by a girl from the refugio who had seen us coming down the scree slope and come to check to see if we were ok. Reassuring. We were invited inside for a cup of tea, which was immensely welcome and warming. The tent went up and midge repellent went on. The big buzzing things had been replaced by mosquitos and midges, not sure which is worse! Dinner was again a combination of soup and pasta with added nuts and parmesan, tasted good after such a tiring day. The sunset kept me entertained taking pictures for a few minutes. A saddle at the back of the corrie allowed the light to perfectly reflect the ridge line on the lake and turned it a wonderful orangey pink colour. We sat in the shelter of the refugio and relaxed as everyone else was served dinner by candle light. Was not keen to go and sleep in the tent, but I was so tired it didn't matter. Had a small issue when the ground sheet decided it was going to keep the ground dry but let the rain between the tent and it. Rapid removal was required. The base of the tent did a good enough job on its own! Fell asleep listening to the rain on the tent, hoping it would be gone by the morning.
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