First Backpacking Trip to Torres del Paine

Andy and I finally had some days off to enjoy the park.  It has become somewhat of a tease since we have the most amazing view from our office (the common area of the hotel).  Due to the fire in late December, a large portion of the park was burned so we decided to avoid that area and bypass part of the standard "O" circuit.  We talked with many of the guides at the hotel and they all thought (1) it would be slightly morbid to backpack through the recently burned areas, (2) the trail wouldn't be as scenic as going back the way we came, and (3) we should avoided inhaling the ash.   We postponed the trip 2 days due to weather (2 days of rain and 120 kph winds) but finally on our third day of waiting, we decided to go rain or shine.  One thing is for sure...you can NEVER predict the weather in Patagonia, especially on the Paine Massif.  Greeted with a breezy, sunny day, we were determined to make it to Refugio Dickson 31km down the trail.  Maybe this was slightly ambitious for the first day as our backpacks were weighed down with 4-5 days worth of food.  The first half of the day was fine but after a considerable amount of downhill my knees were worse for wear.  I've never been so happy to see a campsite in my life not only because I was in pain but also because it was one of the most beautiful sites I've ever seen.  Refugio Dickson is situated on a small prairie peninsula (that almost reaches the other side) with a pristine blue glacier to the west and a lush lenga (beech tree) forest to the south. There were tents of all colors scattered along the shore and a horse grazing on the grass in front of the refuge building.

Refugio Dickson in the background.  We have been taking advantage of the panorama function on Andy's camera.

 We took it easy the next day and headed to Los Perros camp site.  The hike from Dickson to Perros winds through a lush forest with glimpses of rivers, waterfalls, and glaciers.  Los Perros campsite is the most remote site in the park and nestled in the woods under large lenga trees.

 

Lenga Forest

All of the campsites have very basic cooking shelters that are usually equipped with a furnace to keep "warm".  The furnace seems like a magnet for cold hikers and various articles of wet clothing.  Socks hang from the furnace like stockings over a fireplace at Christmas.  This shelter in particular had tarp walls, a tin roof built around a tree, and a door latched by placing a chain through a hole in the tarp. Although it allowed the rain to enter through the gap between the tree trunk and the roof, after a day of walking in the frigid cold and rain, it was like heaven.  The shelters provide a perfect environment to get to know your fellow backpacker and since the park is world renown, it usually houses people from all corners of the earth.  When we arrived, the French guys were cutting fresh garlic to garnish their gourmet pasta, the girls from the U.S. had peanut butter sandwiches, the Israeli was sipping on tea, and the Chileans steamed rice to go with soup.  Andy and I warmed up by the furnace before finding a small place on one of the tables to cook lentils with tuna and drink boxed wine.  Yum!

Puma Glacier on the way to Los Perros Campamento

 Our new sleeping bag and sleeping pad purchases came in handy after two nights  in 25-30 degree weather.  The third day started off by packing up a muddy, wet tent in the rain...Andy was excited about that!  After a few conversations with other people on the trail we discovered a ferry you can take across lake Pehoe that cuts off a day of the trip.  This would put us back at the hotel in time and cut off about 20 km so we headed to John Gardner pass instead of back to Dickson like we originally planned.  We were warned not to go through the pass during a snow storm but since it was only raining and not very windy at Los Perros, we thought we would have a shot.  Little by little the rain turned the trail into muddy streams and as we climbed up to the moraine and further up the pass, the rain turned to hail and hail into a snow storm.  We kept climbing until we could barely stand due to 90 mph winds, we could barely see 10 yards ahead of us due to the snow, and we were completely drenched from head to toe.  Given the blizzard like conditions and what Andy describes as "the fear of my mother in my eyes", we made the decision to turn back to Los Perros.  Everybody turned back that day and by 2pm, the shelter was full of 30 people, fighting for a spot next to the furnace.  After we regained feeling in our hands (and most other parts of our bodies), we headed back through the rain to Dickson campsite in order to make it out of the park the following day.

Almost back to base camp

We made it out the last day having experienced Patagonian weather and having much more respect for the Paine Massif.  They say in Patagonia you can never predict the weather from one hour to the next but on an average day you will experience all 4 seasons.

Total kilometers hiked = 96

Nights spent = 3

Days Hiked = 4
Weather = high 80*, low 25*, 130 kph winds

Map of Torres del Paine National Park