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Published: October 29th 2009
starting the trek
the first day just starting the trek with our 3 German friends, Fabian, Mattias, and Matthew who we met on the bus ride overWe left Ushuaia on a 14 hour bus ride bound for Puerto Natales, Chile, the base for people who want to do the Torres Del Paine Trek. We arrived around 9 p.m., got off the bus, and began walking around the town with our backpacks blatantly in search of somewhere cheap to stay for the night. As we were walking down the sidewalk, we ran into two guys who also seemed to be in the same position as us, so we teamed up and started looking for a hostel and also planned to start the trek together the following day. They were 2 Israeli guys, one named Elad and the other, a Russian, named Sasha. We were walking around, checking prices of places that had space, when it started to downpour with ridiculously strong hospedaje ng winds, so strong that we all had to huddle together against the corner of a building, when we finally found a that was cheap enough for our liking and got a room.
It was one of those places where a family lives in the house but rents out rooms, so as we were downstairs cooking ourselves some dinner, they were also eating. It was
a very odd family, but really nice. One member of the family was a middle aged man who apparently was mute, and would communicate with hand gestures and facial expressions and would giggle constantly. So finally, we went to bed to get a good night's sleep for the trek the next day. We spent the next morning getting ready for the trek (buying food, renting a stove, etc.), during the time we had while we waited to catch the second of the 2 busses that go to the Torres Del Paine park daily. Elad and Sasha insisted on hitchhiking their way to the park for a 2 and a half hour ride on a dirt road where you barely see any other cards, so we split the food and hoped they would be able to find our tent in the first campsite when they arrived. Sasha gave us 2 bright green stick lights he still had from his service in the army to put on our tent so they could easily find us. Bo and I got to the park around 5 p.m., and immediately started the "W Circuit" of the trek. We met 3 German guys, Fabian, Mattias, and
trekking
Fabian, Matthew, Bo and Mattias Matthew, on the bus ride over so we started out trekking with them. The first part of the hike was really steep and challenging (especially because this was when our packs were the heaviest because we had not yet consumed any of the food we brought, which weighs A LOT!), but revealed beautiful views of loose horses, pretty rivers, mountain ranges. At one point, we were walking on a path carved out of the side of the mountain when really, really, really strong winds started to come on and I was ready to get blown off the mountain. However, after 2 and a half hours of walking up hill, we eventually cross a pretty footbridge over a really wide, rapidly running river that led to the first campsite option, El Campamento Chileno. This campsite is a paid site (there are numerous paid and free campsites in the park), so Bo and I wanted to make it up to the free campsite for the night, which was supposed to be just an hour farther up the mountain, and closer to the summit, which would be more convenient for the hike up to the top for sunrise the next morning.
It
was already around 7 p.m. when we arrived at El Campamento Chileno and the sun was starting to set and would be completely down by 8 p.m., giving us what we thought was just enough time to reach the second campsite, El Campamento Torres before it was completely dark. The German guys decided to stay at the first campsite, so Bo and I said goodbye and starting out on the hike up to El Campamento Torres. Oddly enough, there were no signs that pointed specifically to the campsite, only signs that pointed to the Mirador Los Torres, so we assumed that would have to pass by the campsite so we followed those. We had been walking for a while through very wooded areas, and it was started to get really dark. We even had to take a picture of a tree to confirm that it did have the red trail marker on it to make sure we were still on the path. Eventually, when it got completely dark, we decided we had been walking for over an hour, and we still couldn't see signs of a campsite (lights, noise) ahead, we decided to turn back toward the campsite we came
tree markers
I took this picture on the first night after sundown when Bo and I got lost trying to find el Campamento Torres, the campsite closest to the summit of Cerro Torres, so that we could see the tree marker to make sure we were still on the trail from and just sleep there. So, we turned on our flashlight and headed back to the first campsite option. We must have been about 10 minutes from that site when we saw 2 headlamps walking toward us. We got really excited thinking it was our two Israeli friends showing up a little late cause they had hitchhiked, but it turned out to be two Australian guys named Dean and Warren who were also in search of the same campsite. They were exhausted, having walked over 13 hours that day, and just wanted to reach the campsite so we decided to team up with them and try again. So we turned around, after walking 2 unecessary hours, and walked another hour and a half until we rejoiced at the first sight of a flashlight realizing we finally reached El Campamento Torres. We walked straight up to a little 3 walled shack that everyone was sitting under eating dinner. All of a sudden the guy in front of me eating his rice turns around to see who just arrived, and it turns out to be my friend, Gon, who I met a few towns before and had already run into 3 times
Torres del Paine sunrise
these are the torres at the summit of Cerro Torre at sunrise, the main attraction of Torres del Paine on our travels. It's crazy how often you run into people you have met in past towns and cities, and how you can even run into them at 10:30 p.m. on the top of a mountain in the middle of the Andes! So Bo and I went to go pitch our tent, make some rice for dinner, and then sit and eat and socialize with everyone at the campsite. Eventually we all headed to bed knowing we were all waking up really early to make it up to the very top of the mountain just before sunrise the next morning.
We woke up at 5:30 a.m. to the pouring rain, debated whether or not to just stay in the warmth of our sleeping bags, and then decided we would face the rain and hike up to the summit for sunrise; it is all we had heard about the Torres Del Paine trek from other backpackers we met who had already done it, so we figured it was a must-see, even though it probably wouldn't be anything like what they saw because of the rain. Everyone at the campsite was waking up and leaving at about the same time we
Torres at sunrise
we woke up at 5 45 a.m. in the pouring rain to hike up to the summit for sunrise because if you get lucky with the weather, at a certain point of the sunrise the rays cause the towers to glow bright red- luckily it stopped raining for about 60 seconds and we sort of experienced the effect were, so we all did the hike up together. It was a REALLY steep, difficult hike so we were able to stay warm even though it was really cold and rainy. (When I talk about how cold it always is, I sometimes am talking about below freezing, because this region of South America is one of the most southern areas, and on top of that it is in the Andes Mountains). Anyways, Bo, me, and 2 Israeli guys were the first to the top after about a 1 and a half hour hike up. The reason for hiking up for sunrise is because if you get lucky with the weather, as the sun rises and is directly horizontally across from the Torres, it's rays cause the towers to turn bright red and glow from the reflection of the sun. So, we all huddled in between big boulders trying to shelter ourselves as much as possible from the wind and rain while waiting for some miracle. For about 2 minutes, the rain stopped allowing the sky to clear just a bit right above the Torres. For those 2 minutes, we saw a slight effect of the sun as they glowed red,
Photo 8
Bo and some other trekkers trying to stay warm on the summit of Cerro Torre at sunrise not anything like on a good day, but enough to make the hike very worth it. Eventually we made our way back down to the campsite where all our things still were, sat in the shelter with everyone making breakfast (oatmeal, of course) and tea and socializing as we ate. Eventually, knowing we had a long way to go that day, we said goodbye to everyone, packed up our tent and backpacks (in the cold and rain, which is always super fun packing up a wet tent especially when you take it out later and its wet and smelly), and headed out towards our next destination, El Campamento los Cuernos.
So, we walked about 3 hours to the bottom of Cerro Fitz Roy to where the Hosteria Los Torres is, then followed the trail another 5 hours to Los Cuernos- a long walk, but not as steep as the walk from the previous day. It was funny, because during our walk we ran into our Swedish friend, Hampus, who we had met trekking in Fitz roy and then saw again in El Calafate. He was also doing the "W-Circuit" (a 5 day trek in Torres Del Paine in the
Me
summit of Cerro Torre at sunrise shape of a W), but was coming the opposite direction, so he was on his 2nd to last day. The walk to Los Cuernos was long, but time flew by; the day turned out to be a really nice day after all the rain in the morning, so all the scenery kept me really occupied as we walked, so occupied i was completely unaware of the time passing by.
When we arrived to El Campamento Los Cuernos, we set up camp right away. It was EXTREMELY windy when we were trying to set up our tent, and we had arrived on the later side so most of the sites were already occupied, so we had trouble finding a site that was well protected from the wind and big enough for our enormous tent. The wind had our tent seriously blowing around so it was a little difficult pitching it, but once we had it up, we staked it down really well with really heavy rocks. Also, we bumped into our 3 German friends there, which was fun because we ended up sticking with them for the remainder of the trek.
This campsite was one of the various paid
campsites on the trek, so there is a little hosteria, or a shelter to sit inside with a HEATER! Bo went to go take a nap in the tent while I immediately took advantage of the heater leaving my cold, wet clothes to dry and warm next to it so they would be comfortable to sleep in. I sat there for about 2 hours happily writing in my journal, drinking tea and soup, and socializing with the other people in the hosteria. I was so happy because I had been told about how at the hosterias, you have to pay for literally everything including if you want to use their hot water, silverware, cups, etc., but they let me use everything for free, even offering to wash my very dirty dishes in their sink when I was done. That was when I saw the 3 Germans again and we decided to continue the trek as a group. As it got closer to dinner time, the hosteria became more packed with people coming in off the trails, and Bo finally woke up so we had our usual rice cooked in soup packets for flavor and happily dined in the warmth of
Bo!
summit of Cerro Torre the shelter. We spent a while in there talking to people and watching everyone play cards and drink their boxed wine. We were exhausted from waking up so early that morning and walking such a long day, so we went to bed pretty early. When I went out to the tent to go to sleep, the sky had completely cleared revealing a beautiful night sky with a perfect view of the stars and the milky way. The southern cross, a constellation only visible from the southern hemisphere of the world, was completely visible and shining really bright. The wind had also surprisingly completely died down to nothing, and the air was bearable. So, with all that said, I slept very happily and well that night.
The next morning we woke up on our own at around 8 a.m. to clear, blue skies and really nice, once again, bearable, weather, and it warmed up with the sun as the day went on. We made our oatmeal mixed with honey and dried fruits and nuts breakfast as usual and some tea. Again, they let me use their hot water and sugar for my tea which made me very happy, and they
Me and Bo at the Torres
we took many of these pictures... one of us made an "0" with our hand and the other a "5" (GCDS class of '05)... haha. even gave me some fresh-baked bread they were making for the people who pay for breakfast, which I gave to Bo. After breakfast, we packed up our tent, which was much easier than the previous day being that it was completely dry, packed our backpacks, and headed out on the trail with the Germans towards El Campamento Italiano, a free campsite at the bottom of the Valle Francesa.
It was a 2 hour hike to El Campamento Italiano, all very enjoyable because of the nice and sunny, warm weather. We arrived at the campsite, put our things down, so we wouldn't have to walk with the weight of our packs on our backs, in another one of those 3-walled shacks incase it would start raining later (you never know with the weather in Patagonia...). Then, we set out on the hike out to the end of the Valle Francesa and back. It took about 3 hours out and back (it's the middle of the "W"). This hike was INCREDIBLY beautiful. We started out walking on rocks along a river, which eventually turned into a path through the woods and eventually came out along the same river, which widened and
had an extremely strong current because it was flowing downhill coming from glacier melt-off water. We were walking for a while along a mountain with a HUGE glacier on it that had the most beautiful bright blue colors in it from the compact ice. It was so pretty; for the entire walk I was so distracted by the scenery, always just staring at everything around me. To left of me were the mountains covered in big glaciers, but off to the right were huge mountains/rock formations that were so picturesque with the perfectly blue sky and passing, white, puffy clouds. Behind me was an awesome view of a giant lake set in front of more snow capped mountains; the Andean lakes have the most unique coloring to the water, a clean, creamy green/bluish color that ripples with the wind creating white caps. As we were walking, all of a sudden we started hearing huge crashing and booming noises, and we would turned to the glaciers on the mountains and see huge pieces of glacier breaking off causing an avalanche effect. I even caught some good pictures of them. We followed the path all the way to the end which had
Bo
notice how we covered our backpacks with big trash bags as a waterproof cover after we learned our lesson when all our clothes got soaked in our bags from rain on the Fitz Roy trek an amazing look with incredible views in every direction. I literally stood there just slowly pivoting in a circle taking in everything around me. At the center of it there was a huge boulder that I climbed to the top of for an even better view of all the mountains, glaciers, rock formations, trees, the lake, etc. Eventually we turned around to head back to El Campamento Italiano. On the walk back another GIANT piece of glacier broke off, which was awesome to see. I got a good picture of that one too. On the walk back it started to get REALLY windy, and we could tell a rainstorm was coming on. It started to rain as we were walking, but the rain didn't pick up and start down-pouring until later. On the walk back we ran into another person we knew from our hostel dorm in Ushuaia and 2 Israeli girls we had met at a bus station in El Calafate. Funny to run into people you know in the middle of the Andes mountains... We got back to El Campamento Italiano and relaxed for about an hour and a half while we had a snack. We thought about
Me
2nd day after the rain had finally stopped... for the rest of the day! spending the night there, but we realized we still had enough time left to make it to the next campsite before sunset. We spent some time talking to other campers in the shack for a bit, and then eventually put our plastic garbage bags around our backpacks because the rain had really picked up, and set out towards the next campsite, El Campamento Paine.
We walked for 2 hours in a torrential downpour with our funny looking plastic trash bag covered backpacks, but it did do the trick and kept the water out from soaking our clothes. However, the water completely soaked through my rain pants, some of my rain jacket, and my boots and socks and all the clothes underneath. We walked super fast in complete silence for most of the way because we were on such a mission to get to our destination. My wet clothing didn't bother me so much because I was so focused on walking, and if I kept up my pace it prevented me from getting cold. Finally, the hosteria came into sight and I think that was the first time we all said a word for a while; everyone got so excited.
Bo and I pitched our tent, and then headed to the little shelter to hang out and have dinner. This also was a paid campsite, so there was another shelter for us to hang out in, even though it wasn't as luxurious as the previous one (no heater, silverware, hot water, sugar for your tea)... simply a closed in wooden shack... but definitely good enough. about 100 feet away was the hosteria, kind of like a lodge with rooms for people to pay to stay in, a bar, and a cafeteria... pretty luxurious for the middle of no where, but also VERY expensive. Bo and I had been carrying a bottle of cheap Chilean red wine, and we decided it was a good time to bring it out, so we drank our wine, which actually ended up tasting very good (not sure if it was the wine, or just the atmosphere in which we were drinking it) and playing cards with the Germans. After, we headed off to bed in our tent. That night was harder to sleep through because it got REALLY cold, rainy, and windy, and the tent was blowing around all night... I was ready for it
to just blow away completely even with us inside it.
I woke up pretty early the next morning because I couldn't sleep very well, and went to hang out in the shack and talked to a couple other people who also had woken up early for the same reason. Luckily, the sun started coming out so I lay out all my cold, wet clothes to dry in the sun. It was really nice to have the sky clear and the sun come out to clear away the clouds, because the surroundings of the campsite were beautiful, and I had no idea they were even there when I came in because all the rain clouds were blocking the view. We had totally missed the huge snowcapped mountains literally just behind the campsite and the giant lake with the unique Andean lake coloring in the front. Bo woke up about an hour after me, and we had our usual oatmeal and honey for breakfast and some tea with the Germans. My 2 friends I met in the morning when I was waiting for Bo and the rest to wake up were 2 Israelis, so of course they were with a huge
group. They all woke up and found out that I was an American Jew, got so excited, and automatically tried to force feed me their bread and nutella, make coffee for me, talk and what not... because that's what Jews do. It was very funny; they were all very nice. I had to go though, because Bo and I were trying to complete that day's 7 hour hike in time to catch the catamaran out across the lake to the bus stop to go back to Puerto Natales. We had considered spending on the night on the trek, but everything we had with us was completely soaked and the weather was supposed to be consistently awful for the next 2 days. So, we picked up the pace to finish by the end of the day.
We headed out around 9 a.m. to El Glacier Grey. It was a really nice walk with great views of lakes, glaciers, mountains surrounding them, and towards the end of the 3 and a half hour walk, we started to be able to see the Glacier Grey until we finally made it to the mirador for the best view of it. At the beginning
Bo
having a snack at the campsite on the 2nd night of the trek of the hike, the weather was perfect, still warm with clear, blue skies from that morning. However, it shortly turned to ridiculously strong winds and then pouring rain, until after about 20 minutes it would return to beautiful weather and a complete rainbow would appear. This cycle continuing on and on, and the winds got stronger and stronger the farther down the path we moved towards the glacier where there was less protection and it opened up more to the valley. We finally made it to the look out point where the path ended right before a rock formation that stretched out from the land over the lake's water. It was really slippery and covered in pools of freezing cold water because the the rock was all rough and uneven with deep ditches. The wind was stronger than it had ever been before when we were walking out on it. It was blowing me over, and at one point I had to practically crawl on all fours using my hands to keep my balance. Finally I made it over to the tip of the rocky area where it opened up into a perfect view of the lake and only a
few hundred feet away the massive, untouched Glacier Grey... well, perfect view minus the clouds and rain. We stood out there for about 15 minutes just taking it in, until we started to freeze from the wind and rain without moving to keep our body temperature up. Eventually, we climbed back over the rocks to the path to head back, when of course the rainstorm began to clear up allowing the clouds to slowly make their way out from above the glacier and the mountains around it so some sun rays could penetrate through. Although it was still slightly overcast and we couldn't see the full length that the glacier extended back, which was very far, it created a really cool effect with the bright blue and white colors of the glacier, the mountains, and the lake. So, we got our 20 minutes of sun shine and a rainbow, and then of course before we could get too excited the rain and wind picked up again, and this cycle happened for the entire walk back to the campsite. The last rainbow before we had officially complete the W Circuit and arrived back at the campsite was the most amazing one
Bo
resting on the shore of the lago of all. It was a complete rainbow, and on the left side the colors were cast against the edge of a damp, dark rocky mountain which was really pretty. Also on the way back I spotted my favorite flower; I forget the name, but I took pictures. They are like blue bells, but pink.
So, Bo and I finished the trek together, which was such a good feeling, although I was sad that it was over. We got back to the campsite and made some soup and pasta while we waited an hour until the catamaran was scheduled to arrive. On the catamaran we made friends with 3 Israelis named Yonathan, Idan, and Moshe and an English guy named Seb who was traveling with them. Unfortunately, they had only been out on the trek for 2 days and had to turn around because they didn't come prepared with the right clothing and all their clothes got soaked on the first day so they were too cold... not so much fun. We took the bus back to Puerto Natales with them, all enjoyed a nice, warm shower, and then met to go have a victory dinner in town. We got
Mattias and Fabian
skipping stones during our rest break along really well with them and spent a lot of time with them until they had to leave the next afternoon. Bo and I had to wait an extra day until Friday when we could catch a bus going to Puerto Montt, Chile. We spent the time just relaxing until 7 a.m. Friday morning when we began our 36 hour bus ride to Puerto Montt.
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