Torres del Paine

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Torres del Paine
As the weather is so variable at the Torres I waited until there was an accurate forecast before booking my trip across the border and back into Chile. Unfortunately by the time I had worked out the best time to go the only accommodation available was $500 US a night, hence this became a day trip!In hindsight this was the right call. The guide told me they had only seen the towers two days of the last seven, while I had a bright morning with some cloud on the tops which cleared into a glorious sunny afternoon with amazing views of some of the most stunning mountains I have ever seen.The day started at 6.45 in an 'overland' type truck for the drive across the steppe, mainly on dirt roads. Apart from the occasional ranch the land was empty. Border formalities were slow on the Argentinian side but better for Chile as we approached the mountains the scenery became greener and there was more wildlife, llamas, xxx a type of ostrich and even a pair of foxes. We even saw a llama with a baby not more than a couple of minutes old. At our first viewpoint cloud still covered the towers, but a fair bit of the Paine massif was visible and it was possible to see the scale of these massive granite spires. Later we walked from the road end to a great viewpoint above the centre of the massif, where the major peaks of Paine Grande, the Horns and yyy towered over us. The route of the famous five day 'W' walk could be imagined. The towers themselves were partially hidden, but we got a clear view in the late afternoon as we headed home. The Torres del Paine are truly amazing and I would love to come back one day and complete the W walk, although it involves a lot of ascent so some fitness work will be needed. I am really happy to have seen these mountains on a clear day, the contrast between the steppe and the vertical granite spires makes Patagonia unique .

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