Torres Del Paine Circuit

"Chile"

The trails in between the Torres Del Paine famous craggy mountains are among the world's classic trekking routes. Breathtaking views over the glaciers, rivers, lakes, forests and abundant wildlife provide this trip with constantly changing scenery and new experiences. For those interested in riding on Chilean saddles together with typical "baqueanos", the trails are equally fascinating. The 18 hours of daylight in summer, provide explores plenty of time for this hiking journey.
Paine means dark blue in Tehuelche language (natives of the area) as it is the color the mountains take at dawn (see photo on the left)
Unlike the classic Paine Trek, we hike around the solid granite walls of the Paine Massif and their covered peaks, exploring some trails out of the beaten tracks. The circuit covers a distance of approximately 80 kms/50 miles and is best done in an anticlockwise direction that saves the hardest sections until later and prevents the walkers from being stopped by strong wind currents. This trek is more demanding than the others.

The Itinerary

DAY 1:
Reception at Punta Arenas Airport and drive to Puerto Natales (3 hours) visiting en route the Otway Penguin Colonie (during season). Arrival in Puerto Natales and transfer to your hotel. (L)

DAY 2:
Transfer to Torres del Paine National Park (3 hours) visiting the Milodon Cave en route. Once in the park, we drive till Azul Lake (blue lake) where we set up the camp. It is a very unique forest landscape from where you enjoy spectacular views over the Paine Massif. The lake hosts several species of birds including Parinas and black woodpeckers. (BLD)

DAY 3:
Long walk north along the Paine River. After 4 hours we arrive at Lago Paine and discover spectacular views on Dickson Glacier and part of the Continental Ice Fields, the third world's largest expanse of ice after Antarctica and Greenland. The trek continues for 2 hours and a half along the eastern bank of the Rio Paine. We descend to Paine Lake and continue across open grasslands along the river to Dickson Lake. We set up camp by the lake.(BLD)

DAY 4:
The trail follows for 4 hours Los Perros River and crossing the wildest and most remote section of the trek. Virgin beech forests crossed by many watercourses leads the way towards the lovely Los Perros Lake where we set up camp along the river.(BLD)

DAY 5:
We keep going for 8 hours to the most impressive part of our trek. We walk down the moraines located at the foot of the Grey Glacier and of the fascinating granite peaks. We cross the John Gadner Pass, the highest point of the circuit at 1241 mts /4068 ft. An extraordinary scenery awaits us as we discover the huge ice flows of the Patagonian Ice field calving into Grey Lake. We walk down on a trail that borders the Grey Glacier .We camp close to the eternal ice. (BLD)

DAY 6:

We walk alongside the eastern side of Grey Lake through clearings of Calafate bushes and Lenga and Coihue Forests. The track climbs onto flat ridges and passes a small lake before descending through a shallow dry valley to arrive at Lago Pehoe. We enjoy the fantastic vista on the Paine Grande Peak and Grey Lake with numerous giant icebergs drifting across the waters. We set our next camp on the shores of the beautiful Pehoe Lake. (BLD)

DAY 7:
Today the trekking goes over 8 km (2,5-3,5 hours) up to Campamento Italiano at the bottom of El Frances Valley (3 km 2 hours). The track between Camp Pehoe and Camp Italiano makes its way north through rugged terrain of mixed grassland and light forest, passing two small lakes, and continues by the south-east slopes of Cerro Paine (culminating at 3248 mts / 10,649 ft) to meet Frances River and Camp Italiano. From here, we follow the wild river upstream to El Mirador Lookout Point facing Frances Glacier. This magnificent setting is surrounded by high peaks on all sides and by the impressive Paine's famous horns (locally called Cuernos del Paine). Once we are back at Camp Italiano we proceed walking (1hr) by the shore of Nordenskjold Lake until reaching Refugio Los Cuernos for overnight (B L D).

DAY 8:
Full day hiking along Lake Nordenskjoeld, overlooked by the horns of the Paine Massif, to Las Torres Camp. The equipment is carried by boat and car to Las Torres Camp where we spend the night (B L D).

DAY 9:
Today, the trekking (10 km, 8 hours round-trip) takes us to the foot of the impressive granite massif of El Paine. From here admire the most typical sight of the Paine Towers (weather permitting). The famous Torres del Paine (2.900m/9.400ft) consist of three gigantic granite monoliths, remains of a great cirque that has been sheared away by the forces of glacial ice. We are back at Las Torres Camp in the end of the afternoon. Transfer back to Puerto Natales. Overnight in hotel. (B L).

DAY 10:
An early departure ensures we reach Punta Arenas in time for your flight back to Santiago or Puerto Montt.(B).

General Information

Read our customers' feedback about this journey.

Rated: Moderate/Difficult. Paths are really easy to follow and the altitude gradient is rather low. The maximum altitude is 1241 mts / 4068 ft. However, some days require more than 8 hours hiking.

This trek is recommended to outdoor-minded people who really enjoy camping, as frequent bad weather conditions may affect comfort (rain, strong winds...). Trekkers who really care about comfort should consider the Torres del Paine Eco Camp.

Participants will have to carry parts of their belongings in their bagpack.
Useless items for the trek can be deposited in Puerto Natales on day 2.

Departure dates
2006: January 2 & 16 & 30 - February 13 & 27 - March 13 - April 3 & 17 - September 3 - October 1 & 22 - November 12 - December 3 & 31
2007: January 21 - February 11 - March 11 - April 1

Tour Tariff
N° of Participants	2	3	4	5	6	SGL Supp.
USD	$ 2152	$ 1670	$ 1670	$ 1670	$ 1488	$ 107
EUR	€ 1786	€ 1386	€ 1386	€ 1386	€ 1235	€ 88
GBP	£ 1205	£ 935	£ 935	£ 935	£ 833	£ 59

(*) Price last updated on 15 March 2006. Current price may vary due to elements out of our control, so please always check by sending us a quotation request .
(**) All fixed departures are shared. We also organise private departures at other dates upon request.
(***) 15% discount for departures between April and June

Included: Lodging in hotels (2 nights, refuge or in double tents, meals as specified, transport, experienced bilingual trekking guides, camping equipment, park entrance fees.

Not included: Other meals, flight from/to Punta Arenas, sleeping bag

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