Now that our kayaking adventure in Tierra del Fuego has been  over for a day or two I have had a bit of time to reflect on things. Things were tough right from the start but the challenges that we faced were not the ones that either of us were expecting. Even before we arrived in South America things had been difficult for Justine as she was the one sorting out all the emails, paperwork and permisions. We had plenty of time to prepare ourselves mentally for the challenges that lay ahead with the increadibly strong almost relentless winds, the long distances that we would have to cover on some days for things to work and the possibility of surf landings which neither of us were particularly looking forward to. We had our trip plan all sorted and eventually after a lot of waiting for the kayaks to arrive off we went full of excitement. Unfortunately as soon as I started with tendonitis in my wrist the real challenges began which neither of us were prepared for. 

We knew that both the Chilean and the Argentine authorities would be following our trip very closely and I think at first both of us were a bit nervous of this. It soon became apparent that they were looking out for us and looking after us. We had to rest for 4 days close to a navy post to let my wrist settle and every day I was fortunate enough to be given bag after bag of ice for the inflamation. One very kind guy from the navy gave us bread and sweets and before they changed their shift invited us in for tea and toast. After what seemed like a very long 40 miles of paddling in a lot of pain we arrived at the border where Chile and Argentina both have a lookout about 20 metres appart. We spent all day being looked after by the Chilean navy and the Argentinian marines as if we were family. I spent the next three weeks worrying about how long I should wait knowing how difficult it was for Justine. I listened to all the advice and rested as long as possible. The first day back on the water was exhausting as I did very little but think about my wrist and try to concentrate on how I paddled. We made good progress but by the time we reached Rio Grande it was not 100% and the next day became the test paddle for the isolated and exposed stretch of coast ahead. After about an hour of discomfort I broke the news to Justine and reluctantly looked for a place to land.

It was a very dissappointing time and I felt that I had let Justine down and everybody who has helped us along the way. A few things have occured to me in the last couple of days. One thing that strikes me is how unbelievably friendly, kind and generous people who I have never met before can be. Another thing is that I have had a great adventure, just a differnt adventure to the one I was expecting. I can go kayaking anytime but I can’t always meet such fantastic people and develop new friendships like the ones we have on this trip. As a few people have pointed out, Tierra del Fuego will be here for a long time yet. I would like to thank everybody who we have met along the way for making things so much easier and pleasant for us. Especially Monica and Marcelo and Kiko. Thanks to everyone who has followed the progress or lack of it and sent messages and emails of support. It really is important to us when we see them. Thank you very much to Justine for being patient with me while I was being a bit soft about a little injury. Also a big thank you to our sponsors. We had quite a few and we really appreciate the help. I hope they dont feel too let down by us not completing what we had planned to do but it isn’t over yet. 

I had an email from a friend this morning which put everything in to context and made me realise that although completing this trip would have been nice, it really doesn’t matter. If anyone reading this could have a look at www.croydesurflifesavingclub.co.uk/?page=alfiereed then that would be great.

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