5 days in Torres del Paine

So, once we were geared up it was time to head outdoors and into one of the world’s most revered trekking destinations, Torres del Paine. Towering rock formations, glaciers all over the place, ever changing weather, 100kmph+ winds, a harsh blazing sun (no ozone down here), long beautiful sunsets, and the list goes on. We had 5 days set to enjoy the park and here’s what we did …

The most trekked route in Torres del Paine is called the W based on the shape of the route and that’s basically what we did, however we did a shortened W in 3 days just via day hikes rather than the full trekking. So on Day 1 we came into the park and set out on our first hike along Grey lake to the Grey Glacier …

On day 2 it was a long haul up into the French Valley which offered a wonderful view where you are surrounded by mountains and glaciers all around you. Along the way you have some great views of the various flora in Torres del Paine as well as some of the best views of the “cueros” (horns). I’ll try and stitch a photo together for a panoramic view, but i don’t have the time/tools right now …

Day 3 the weather turned a little bit worse and we lost our beautiful sun and blue skies, but none the less we had a great day for our hike up to the torres (towers) …

After 3 days of hiking we decided it would be good to switch gears and try seeing Patagonia in a different way so we setup a 2 day overnight kayaking trip down the river Serrano at the southern boarder of the park. The wind proved to be a bit of a challenge for the kayaking and made it a bit more difficult than we had envisioned, but none the less it was great fun and we had some amazing views of the park from a distance on day 4 …

At this point we were beat and ready for some R&R, but we have no time to waste, so it’s off to El Calafate to check out the Perito Moreno glacier, one of the world’s largest and still advancing glaciers. More about that in a couple days.

Merry Christmas everyone, we are off to a good old fashioned Chilean Christmas BBQ. yum!