Several people have asked me to keep them posted on my South America trip, so here goes . . . 

Torres del Paine, a Chilean national park at the end of the Andean cordillera, is the the ultimate objective. Before Torres we'll be in Buenos Aires for a week attending a Spanish school for a quickie course and seeing the city.  I'm trying to recover whatever skills I gained in the 9th and 10th grades.  I took a community college adult ed conversation course last fall.  It was a good start.   I don't expect any fluency, but any improvement should help.

After Buenos Aires we go by way of Santiago de Chile to Punta Arenas, Chile - 1400 miles south of Santiago and our jumping off point for Torres del Paine.  Tragically, the week after Christmas an enormous wildfire burned more than 14,000 acres in the park  The area includes many of the trails and roads, and one of our prime destinations.  We'll still be able to spend three days in the park, but we have three days to replan.  Maybe we'll go to Tierra del Fuego. 

The third leg is to fly to Puerto Montt, Chile (800 miles back towards Santiago).  We'll have five days to camp and explore either on the Chilean side or perhaps in Argentina.  Then back to Santiago and home.