The spectacular landscapes of Torres del Paine

After our wonderful excursion to the Antarctic Pennisula, it was time to head back north. We had a bit of time before we needed to be in Buenos Aires, so we decided to head to a place I had dreamed of visiting, Torres del Paine National Park in southern Chile. Torres del Paine is world-renowned for its beautiful towering peaks, challenging climbing, and beautiful hiking.

For the first night off of the ship, December 5th, we found a nice side road next to the Strait of Magellan. It was amazing to think about Magellan's expedition there 500 years ago. Next morning we continued on to Puerto Natales, the main hub for tourists heading to the Torres del Paine National Park. We spent the night at a beautiful spot next to the Rio Serrano near the southern entry to the park. Next morning we got some breakfast at a hotel next to Lago Grey, went to a visitor center, then did a nice hike to a waterfalls, Salto Grande, and an overlook of Lago Nordenskjold and the peaks of the Horns of Paine beyond. As is common in Patagonia, the winds were very strong. But that made it kind of fun since it was quite an experience.

After the hike, we drove to the eastern part of the park, where we intended to camp and get an early start on a hike in the morning. On the way were more spectacular views and lots of large herds of guanacos with young ones. As it turned out, it was a challenge finding a place to camp and we ended up heading east of the park to a spot on the open plains.

We got up early the next morning and headed to the trailhead for the hike to the Torres del Paine. Sheri was kind enough to hang out at the visitor center while I did a pretty ambitious hike, at least for me. The hike was about 23 km (14 miles) and about 1,500 m (4,400 ft) of climbing. Although tired, I was pleased that my knee and back felt fine.

The towers of Torres del Paine are among some of the most challenging big-wall rock climbs in the world, not only for the climbing difficulty but also because the weather windows are narrow and can deteriorate quickly. Fortunately it was good weather when we were there. The hike was quite beautiful, going through some different life zones of grassland, forests, and alpine.

On the way back into town, we encountered a Patagonian traffic jam: lots of sheep, a few cows, and gauchos