Nothing can prepare you for Parque Nacional Torres del Paine. The Torres massif and surrounding area is stunning, but not in a traditional Swiss Alpine sense. The range is much more chaotic and wild in nature, and the weather, particularly the wind, is much wilder. This was a world class trek, and one that every backpacker should complete in their lifetime. It was a journey that I will never forget.
I completed the gran circuito in six days and five nights. The grand circuit is the best option in my opinion; it combines the world class w section plus a section of trail around the relatively quieter north side of the park. You meet great people on the trail; I hiked the first day and a half with some south Africans I met in my hostel in punta arenas (completely unexpected meeting), as well as an Austrian couple I met on the trail. The circuit is a wonderful collection of different environments and windblown landscapes. There is a precipitation gradientfrom west to east across the park which is very evident.
That being said, all is not rainbows and unicorns in paradise. Never before have I seen a more ragtag group of backpackers in my life. At times I felt as though I had somehow been teleported to the eastern European gypsy trekking convention. The park is expensive as well; this was certainly the most expensive trekking trip I've ever done (not saying the price isn't justified, just an observation). The park is CROWDED; this is like the Disneyland of trekking. If quiet trails are your thing, this isn't the place for you. Part of the park is privately owned; what's up with that? It seems like Chile could scrape up some pesos to buy the private land in the park, but I digress.
After Chile I took off for Ushuaia, Argentina, which is aptly named the end of the world. The journey was roughly 12 hours from Puerto Natales, including a 30 minute boat crossing across the straits of Magellan. Ushuaia is the southernmost city in the world, and one of the major ports of call for cruises to Antarctica. The city is just 1000km from Antarctica. The city is very expensive and very touristy, but yet has an undeniable energy which I absolutely loved. I hiked up to a glacier just north of the city, whichoffers wonderful views over the beagle channel and ushuaia. On a side note, anti British sentiments are fairly strong in Ushuaia due to the Falkland war. The whole situation makes me extremely uncomfortable and I wouldn't even dream of discussing it with argentinians.
After ushuaia I returned to punta arenas, where I met up with my aunt and uncle. We went to isla magdalena, a penguin colony with as many as 200,000 penguins (Magallenic penguins). It was incredible to see so many penguins in one place.
Tune in next time when I write about my time in the lakes region, Buenos Aires, and how I accidentally ended up in Austria. In Argentina. Also, did I mention the nazi war criminals?
