[彭蒙惠英语] 智利百内国家公园 风情万种(2/3)
Chile's Constantly Changing
Torres del Paine (2/3)
There's nothing normal about the Torres del Paine National Park where the weather changes minute by minute
Patience pays off
There are defined circuits-trail routes-that trekkers use to explore Torres del Paine. Trekking for kilometers on rugged trails is about the only way to see the actual torres - the towers-of the Rio Paine. Odds are fair to good, however, that when you get to the point when you can see them in their entirely, they'll be enveloped in cloud or you'll be battling rain, or the sun will frustrate photographers by being in precisely the wrong position.
This park yields all its charms only to those with patience and strong, steady legs. There are trails, and there are lakes; there are rivers and meadows and wild-flowers. There are even llama-like animals that practically pose. It's even possible to spot a huemul, an endangered deer that's as elusive as the puma.
A gray lake
An excursion boat at Lago Grey loads outside the Hosteria Lago Grey. The lake is, indeed, gray. Icebergs float near the dock, and the 50 passengers who paid $73 for this experience-virtually all with camera-take pictures of these blue bergs even before the boat sails.
The day, too, is gray, and squalls frustrate those who dare walk onto the deck as the boat eases from the landing. Sara Petri, the boat's naturalist-guide, is 34, from Sweden, and brightens the grayness. She had arrived in the country only months earlier with a tour group, went home, then came back.
"I fell in love with a Chilean guide. When he proposed, I said ‘yes' in all the languages I know."
I asked about the rain: "Normal weather here?"
She flashed a half-smile: "Nothing is normal in this park."
Vocabulary Focus
circuit (n) ---a path shaped somewhat like a circle, especially a route which starts and ends in the same place
odds (pl. n) ---the probability that a particular thing will or will not happen
ease (v) ---to move or to make something move slowly and carefully
Specialized Terms
puma (n) ---美洲狮a large brown wild cat that lives in North and South America
squall (n) ---强风；狂风a sudden strong wind or brief storm
naturalist (n) ---生态学家；自然主义者a person who studies and knows a lot about plants and animals
