The adage—water means life—maybe cliché. \240But after backpacking five days through Torres del Paine and ending my stint kayaking in front of, and hiking on, Grey Glacier, I feel specially connected to the point.

The people of this region have deep respect for their water and environment. Water is sold in glass bottles, not plastic. \240Placards explain why. \240Plastic is bad for the water and the creatures who live there, and in any event, people do not need bottled water in southern Chile.

You can drink water from the tap without fear of lead poisoning. \240You can drink from the streams when you are in the park without fear of giardia.

The Chilean Patagonia region has 34 glaciers. \240As glacier melt cascades downstream, the surrounding rocks and plants naturally filter the water making it not only safe but delightful to drink. \240I have enjoyed hiking in the mountains for a quarter of a century. \240This is the first time I haven’t had to pack or filter water.

This trip revealed the start of water as frozen blue and white ice, melting into water runoff that finds its way to various lakes (lagos). The lakes retain sediments and take on milky gray, blue or turquoise colors. \240The water then travels onward to the rivers and back to the sea.

Although the calving icebergs in Lago Grey are visually stunning, the guides on the kayaking trip report that calving has increased and that all of the glaciers are receding. \240They point out the miles of recession over a 25 year period and ask us to carry back the message when we leave.

They also ask us to do all we can to protect the park by picking up trash if we see it even if it is not ours. They ask us to throw toilet paper in a trash can next to the toilet instead of flushing it. \240Part of the reason is to keep the pipes clean. \240Another part is to reduce pollution.

As we leave the park, I contemplate lessons I can implement in my own life to protect water. \240After this experience, it is hard not to think about the people of Flint, Puerto Rico, and even my own Portland community where many children take bottled water to school to avoid lead poisoning. \240The contrast resonates.

The next day we travel to El Calafate, Argentina. \240After building an airport in 2001 or so, El Calafate grew quickly as it became a launch for Patagonian and Antarctic tourism. \240During the boom, city planners failed to design measures to protect the water causing sewage and run offs to periodically mix. \240Even though the city installed a treatment plant, the water is not safe to drink by stream or tap. \240So we return to bottled water—some plastic, some glass.

Great adventures await for the rest of this trip. Today I will get to see the Perito Moreno Glacier—the only glacier in the region that is actually stable rather than receding.

I am quickly falling prey to the allure of Argentina. Yet in the heat of the desert, a little piece of me longs to return to Torres del Paine just so I can dip my cup back in the stream for a cool drink.