Itinerary

Adventure awaits!

• DAY 1
  • Destination Puerto Natales
  • Elevation --
  • Climb Time --
  We will travel from YVR to Puerto Natales.
• DAY 2
  • Destination Puerto Natales
  • Elevation --
  • Climb Time --
  We'll spend the day in Puerto Natales, preparing for our trek and recovering from travel!
• DAY 3
  • Destination Las Torres
  • Elevation --
  • Climb Time 7-8 hours
  Let's get trekking! Our guides will pick us up early from our hotel and bring us to Torres del Paine National Park where we will trek to the Towers base lookout point, following the Ascencio River into the Ascencio Valley. After our first hour’s trek we’ll pause to observe how the valley’s beauty unfolds with rich beech forests, glaciers and waterfalls. We’ll then continue uphill for another 90 minutes and prepare to ascend a gigantic terminal moraine (a ridge formed at a glacier’s end point). At the top, we’ll be rewarded by the arresting sight of the Towers themselves. We will then descend down the same path to Las Torres area.
  Today's trek will be 22 km
• DAY 4
  • Destination Seron Campsite
  • Elevation --
  • Climb Time 3-4 hours
  Depending on the weather, our early morning start will be lit up by orange-tinged views of the Towers. Our path takes us through a very old forest of beech trees where we may hear woodpeckers or find fresh puma tracks. Today’s 9 km hike is the Circuit’s easiest and takes us via a well-marked, slightly sloping trail. Along the way, an exceptional view of Paine Chico Mountain will accompany us.
  
• DAY 5
  • Destination Dickson campsite
  • Elevation --
  • Climb Time 18.5 km, 6-7 hours
  Depending on the season, today will can see gorgeous floral delights, as orchids, calceolarias, violets and oxalis flower. Circling Paine Lake, several impressive
  mountain views will appear, such as Cerro Escudo and Cerro Cabeza del Indio (in which the profile of an Indian is seen as if carved into the rocks). At the beginning of the Paine River we’ll see the curved peak of Cerro Cubo, as well as Lake Dickson (a lake straddling Chile and Argentina).
• DAY 6
  • Destination Los Perros Campsite
  • Elevation --
  • Climb Time 9 km, 5 hours
  Today is a day to please the senses, filled with beautiful sights and textures. Often touted as one of the most beautiful sections of this wilder side of Torres del Paine, we’ll hike through ancient beech forests, wander undulating trails and follow Los Perros River. Mountains, waterfalls and lush vegetation will never be far away, as our trail crosses the river via suspension bridge and arrives at the base of our second terminal moraine; this time belonging to Glacier Los Perros, a hanging glacier that feeds the crystalline lagoon at its base. A final half hour hike takes us to today’s destination, Los Perros Campsite. Tonight’s campsite is the only one on the Circuit with hot showers and standard bathroom facilities such as flushing toilets.
  
• DAY 7
  • Destination Grey Campsite, via John Gardner Pass
  • Elevation --
  • Climb Time 22km, 10-11 hours
  
  The most strenuous day of the Paine Circuit has arrived, bringing demanding trails and variable weather conditions. Of course, your efforts will be more than
  rewarded with some of Torres del Paine’s most heart-stirring landscapes, experienced by very few visitors to Torres del Paine. We’ll begin along a clear trail through forests, then make our way through swamp-like section before beginning our ascent to the John Gardner Pass. At this Pass, 1200 meters above sea level,
  Patagonia’s famous winds are strong and the views across Grey Glacier and of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field’s still unexplored peaks are astonishing. The trail now takes you alongside the glacier, ascending and descending through forests of fallen trees and beneath the imposing, almost muscular granite walls of Cordon Olguín. As we come closer to Grey Glacier we may see an ice calving (where chunks of ice break off a glacier’s edge).
  
• DAY 8
  • Destination Paine Grande campsite
  • Elevation --
  • Climb Time 11km, 3.5 hours
  
  Our morning begins slowly, resting and stretching around camp. Depending on your energy levels, choose from several options this morning. Walk to the Grey
  Glacier’s lookout point and watch for ice calvings on its massive walls; complete an ice hike with the aid of crampons; or kayak on Grey Lake, paddling around
  icebergs and in front of the glacier. Later, we’ll have lunch at the Refugio and hike to Pehoe Lake.
  (Ice hike and kayaking expedition at an additional fee, advance booking required)
• DAY 9
  • Destination The French Valley and transfer to Puerto Natales
  • Elevation --
  • Climb Time 17 km, 6-7 hours
  
  Today's destination, the French Valley, is a spectacular natural basin surrounded by peaks and hanging glaciers. This is a return hike, so we will be able to leave our packs behind and trek lightly. We start by walking around Paine Grande, the highest peak in Torres del Paine, through native Patagonian firebush and evergreen beech forests. At the suspension bridge over the French River, the arresting hanging glacier atop the valley will come into sight. From here, we’ll walk for another hour, ascending 300m through a dreamlike Japanese garden landscape before arriving at the lookout point (the “Plateau”). Your reward is a heart-stirring bird’s eye view of granite peaks and hanging glaciers. To one side, the French Glacier and Paine Grande (3050 m); while to the other, La Espada, La Hoja, La Máscara and the main and north “horns” of Los Cuernos arch upwards. In the upper section of the Valley, Cerro Catedral and Cerro Fortaleza loom like turrets above the landscape.
  We’ll take our time to have lunch at the viewpoint, surrounded by these imposing peaks and open skies. Our return hike is along the same track, and the catamaran will take us back across Pehoe Lake to meet our private transfer back to Puerto Natales.
  Accommodation will be in a hotel in Puerto Natales.
• DAY 10
  • Destination home, or on with your own adventure!
  • Elevation --
  • Climb Time --
  We will have breakfast at the hotel and then transportation to the airport to head home. Or, continue on with your adventure!