WINTER DISCOVERING TORRES DEL PAINE (5 DAYS)

Our first day begins with a short transfer from your hotel or accommodation in Puerto Natales – making for a laid back morning.

We’ll start by traveling 30 minutes along the beautiful coast of Natales before arriving to the Milodon Cave Sector where we’ll begin today’s adventure. Our guide will take us to visit a viewpoint over the “Cueva Grande” (Large Cave), ascending 600 meters (1,968 ft.) where we’ll be introduced to the fauna and flora of Patagonia.

With sweeping views of the surrounding landscapes, this is a great spot for some first photos and for watching condors soar above us. We’ll pass by natural condor colonies and through native lenga forests, later arriving to the ‘Sofia Lagoon viewpoint’.

After resting a moment and enjoying the spectacular views of the far reaching fjords below, we’ll continue alongside mountainous walls to see our first cave paintings of the day. Our guide will tell us about their significant value and history.

Moving along, we’ll enter another cave equipped with headlamps to discover the millenary stalactite minerals which have taken millions of years to form above.

After carefully inspecting these incredible formations, we leave the cave and head towards the eaves of “Two Horseshoes” where we live an experience in the forest and discover yet more cave paintings on the rocky walls.

As we make our way back, we will visit the Milodon Cave Natural Monument, a 200 meter (656 dt.) long cave where the remains of a mylodon (a large ground sloth) and other early Patagonian animals were discovered.

After our time exploring this magnificent natural formation, we will enjoy a delicious, locally prepared lunch  with fresh ingredients. Once we are finished, we’ll take the transfer back to our hotel in Puerto Natales (double room, The Veat hotel or similar).

Our journey begins from Puerto Natales as we travel 2 hours to Estancia Lazo, a 13,000 hectare (32,123 acres) cattle ranch founded over a century ago and still operating today beneath striking views of the Paine Massif on the shores of Laguna Verde.

From here we’ll hike into Torres del Paine National Park along a generally flat trail through peaceful stretches of native beech and coihue forests teeming with wildlife.

As you walk, watch for condors and caranchos circling the skies; guanacos grazing on the hills; and woodpeckers, owls, and lesser-known species such as the cachaña (Austral parakeet), peeking out from the leafy trees.

We’ll reach Honda Lagoon and continue on to the Toro Lake lookout (559 m / 1,834 ft.), where 360 degree views of mountains, rivers, lakes and glaciers await. Take a moment to identify the Grey, Serrano and Paine Rivers, Serrano Valley, Mount Balmaceda and the Geike and Tyndall Glaciers.

After our short descent to the Weber Bridge, our private transfer awaits to take us to Hotel Lago Grey located right in front of the Grey beach, where we are greeted with a freshly dinner and stunning views of the Paine Massif.

*Chile Nativo Transfers allow us to continue our commitment to sustainability by minimizing our carbon footprint whenever possible. For this reason, Chile Nativo Transfers are semi private, sharing among our clients who are coming in or out of the park.

After an early breakfast you will walk right in front to the Grey Lake to meet your kayaking guide. Here, with views of Paine Grande and Grey Glacier as our morning backdrop, you’ll be briefed on kayaking safety and paddling techniques.

You’ll paddle Grey Lake, weaving amongst the floating icebergs that have calved from the glacier and been whittled into natural ice sculptures by the wind and sun.

While paddling, take time to look around you: the granite peaks of Paine Grande, Cordon Olguín and Los Cuernos interplay beautifully with the water’s multiple shades of turquoise.

Leaving Grey Lake we’ll begin our descent of Grey River, which snakes through canyons bubbling with rapids and framed by steep rock faces.

After 3 hours of paddling we’ll arrive at our end point where we will change out of our wetsuits and head back to our cozy hotel to warm up, enjoy lunch, and get an early night’s rest in preparation for our next adventure tomorrow.

A morning transfer will take us to Salto Grande Waterfall where we’ll begin our hike. Our first destination is the Paine Grande and Lake Nordensjköld lookout point.

Here, we’ll have lunch before setting off for Mirador Condor (Condor Lookout) along a path offering changing panoramic views of the Park and views of Pehoe Lake and twin granite peaks Los Cuernos from the summit.

Have your cameras ready at the condor viewpoint: this is a prime spot for observing condors and black-chested buzzard eagles as they glide and soar above.
We’ll return along the same path to our transfer which will take us to our cozy accommodation for the evening.

Today, we begin early with a energy-boosting breakfast to prepare us for our final trek – the base of the iconic Towers. Along with our guide, we take a 1.5 hour transfer to the Las Torres Sector of the park where our trek begins with an ascent, following the Ascencio River into the Ascencio Valley.

After about an hour, we’ll stop to observe how the valley’s beauty unfolds with rich beech forests, glaciers and waterfalls.

Past this lookout point, we continue uphill and through lush beech forests before ascending a gigantic terminal moraine (the ridge formed at a glacier’s end point) where we’ll be rewarded by the arresting sight of the three Towers themselves.

At this lookout point 900 m (2,953 ft.) above sea level, we’ll rest, take photos and have lunch. Our descent is along the same path, taking us back to our transfer where we will travel to Puerto Natales.

*This hike is demanding and many parts of the trail are steep. This trek is a minimum of 8 hours along challenging, rugged mountainous terrains. This trek is suitable for travelers with a strong physical stamina.