We finally made it!  Our trusty mechanic Moises was able to put some life back into the Super Trooper so we could take the much anticipated journey down to the Chacabuco Valley.  We took two days to drive South down the Carratera Austral getting to take in the ever changing dramatic scenery.  We traveled through the majestic Cerro Castillo pass as we left behind the last strip of paved road we will see until our return to the North.  The rest of the ride turned into a long bumpy massage as we passed Lago General Carerra and the mystic blue water of the Baker River.  We took lunch on day two of our drive at the confluence of the Neff and Baker rivers.  The crystal blue water of the Baker cascaded over two consecutive falls before it met the milky glacial runoff of the Neff river.  It was humbling to sit on the banks of the falls and feel the power of the river as it swept passed us leaving only a gentle mist behind.  After leaving the river we climbed our way up the incredibly textured landscape until reaching the entrance to the Chacabuco Valley.

Finally we reached our new home that consists of a great lean-to and a bathroom with toilets that flush (Counterclockwise!).  We have settled in and have begun our fieldwork doing a vegetative inventory of the grassland vegetation present in the valley.  We split the valley into ten different zones and are moving West to East across the valley observing the changes in species composition.  We have just completed the first two zones and have been able to make our days more efficient by using GPS navigation as well as the compass.  With our extra time we are able to hang out  and enjoy a swim in the brisk water of the Chacabuco River.

During the fieldwork we have encountered some amazing wildlife.  We have seen aplamado falcons, armadillos, guanaco, culpeo foxes, Andean condors as well as the native flamingos.  One of our first days in the valley we spotted a guanaco kill that was surrounded by tons of predatory birds.  Condors and a peregrine falcon circled the carcass and before we knew it there were fourteen  Andean condors circling overhead.  The group was really excited to be able to see so many birds of prey in one spot.

This past weekend we adopted a pair of Chilean law students from Santiago that were camping right next door.  We all had dinner together and hung out in our lean-to.  It was great to get outside perspectives on the work we are doing and hear their views about the current conservation issues going on down here in Aysen region, even if they differed from our own.  They stuck around on Sunday when we took a day off from our transects and spent the afternoon at the river fishing and exploring.  They were able to catch a few rainbow trout, which was a great break from the regular menu.

Monday evening we were lucky enough to have Chris Tompkins and Nadine from Conservation Patagonica come to camp for a quick talk about how the park got started and what the future of the park looks like.  The Chacabuco Valley plays a key part in drastically increasing the habitat connectivity for the local wildlife by connecting five major parks in the area.  This paired with the reduction of pasture land and fences has helped restore a natural ecosystem for the local flora and fauna.  We were able to capture this with our first Gigapan image that displays an old pasture that is now starting to be inhabited by the local grasses and grazed by the ever abundant guanaco.  We are now working hard to complete Zones three and four before we head out for our first backpack next week up towards the Aviles to the East.