Lessons Learned From Traveling to the End of The World
Traveling to a remote corner of Chilean Patagonia felt a bit like stepping outside of time. The roads stretched endlessly without traffic lights, the wind roared intensely at its own rhythm, and the towering mountains put everything into perspective. Patagonia was a place where nature was raw, vast, untouched and beautifully wild.
After 10 days in Patagonia, we returned home and went right back to our normal routine - a lifestyle that often feels rushed, stressful and structured around tight schedules and convenience. Patagonia offered us something very different: a slower rhythm, a deeper quiet, and a refreshing recalibration of what life can be like.
I feel incredibly fortunate to have traveled to five continents and immerse myself in such a wide range of cultures. Each journey has challenged me, expanded my views, and has reminded me how much there is to learn from the ways other people live. From rushed city life to remote living to enjoying a delicious cappuccino from a gas station to eating with my hands, every place has offered its own lessons in resilience, community, food, and what it means to live a meaningful life. The more I travel, the more I realize that the greatest privilege isn’t just seeing the world, it’s allowing those experiences to change me.
Here are some of the lessons I brought home from our trip to Patagonia......
1. Simplicity Isn’t A Choice
In much of Patagonia, life is simple - not out of trend - but necessity. Connectivity is limited, amenities are basic, and people rely heavily on nature, family and community. Instead of feeling deprived, I found myself feeling less stressed. Tasks take the time they take. Patience is needed. Conversations are meaningful. Meals are unhurried and appreciated.
Every person we met was nice and helpful. Despite not having a lot, there was a lot of happiness around us. Simplicity stripped away the complexities of life, revealing how much of daily stress comes from a self-imposed pace that we feel obligated to maintain and the anxieties we feel from the constant distractions around us.
2. Nature Restores
The landscapes of Patagonia don’t just impress, they ground you. Glaciers that have existed for thousands of years. Winds that reshape trees. Lakes so blue you can see the reflection of mountains towering above them. Animals roaming freely over the mountains and farm lands.
Being surrounded by such immensity has a way of shrinking everyday worries. In a world increasingly consumed by screen time, nature has a way of restoring balance, perspective, and a sense of calm. A gentle reminder that spending time outside, in nature, is a critical component of mental heath.
3. Detachment From Digital Life
For over 12 hours, I supported Karel without any distractions - no radio signal in the car, poor cell service and no company. With limited cell service, I didn’t have the option to compulsively read emails, check texts or go on social media. There was no TV, radio or political noise. During our time in Chile, we stayed in three different Airbnbs to truly get the Patagonia expeirence. Every day I noticed details: birds chirping, chickens clucking, dogs barking. A series of strong wind guests. The crackling of the fire. The sound of a match lighting our stove. Moments became something to experience, not document. The absence of constant digital noise gave me the ability to be present and to focus deeply on what was around me.
4. Resourcefulness Is a Way of Life
In remote areas, people fix what breaks, repurpose what’s available, and make do without fuss. At our Airbnb in Coyhaique, Karel joked that there was no way the beat-up truck in our driveway was moving from under our unit. Sure enough, the truck made its way out of the driveway and a day later, it returned with a bed full of chopped wood for the wood-burning furnace. There's no Amazon Prime to make a quick delivery. The closest gas station (outside of town) was often more than an hour away. If you live in a town, you shop for groceries on a daily basis. If you live on the farm, you stock up with what you need and live off what you have. There’s a refreshing humility to this approach. It stood in stark contrast to the throwaway, materialistic, impulsive culture we often see in the U.S. Patagonia reminded me that resourcefulness isn’t just practical, it cultivates gratitude, respect for what we have and using creativity for what we need.
5. A Slower Pace Isn’t Laziness
In Patagonia, slowing down is not seen as inefficiency, it’s simply the rhythm of life. Roads are long, supplies take time to reach small towns, and nature dictates the schedule more than schedules do. The road conditions in Patagonia are not great. A mix of asphalt, concrete, pavers, and gravel. It takes time to get places, especially when you are driving for miles on a bumpy, twisty, gravel road. The slower pace taught me patience. It also reminded me that rushing rarely improves the quality of an experience, if anything, it tends to diminish it.
7. Travel Is All About Perspective.
Going somewhere remote forces you to confront your habits, assumptions, and expectations. Patagonia didn’t just show me a different place, it reminded me of different way of being. One of my most memorable trips was in 2004. For May term of my senior year, I travel to the Philippines for a work service trip. I spent over two weeks sleeping on a bamboo bed, pumping my water, taking bucket showers, creating our own tools to fix schools and riding around in Jeepneys. This trip forever changed me. When you return home from traveling abroad, you are left with an internal reminder that life can be lived in more than one way, and that often the most meaningful moments are the ones where you step outside of your comfort zone.
Final Thoughts
Traveling to remote Patagonia was a lesson in resourcefulness, presence, and intentional living. It taught me that many of the things we consider essential are, in fact, optional.
If we let it, travel has the power to reshape how we live long after the trip ends.
Thank you for letting me share our travels with you.
Karel's Patagonman race report is coming soon.
