Torre del Paine, Chile

Day Seventy One--Friday--March 4--Torre del Paine, Chile--12K Lake Walk

my morning view

The walk started at 9:30 so I was able to sleep in a bit.  I went for breakfast to the restaurant.  They had a buffet but not much was appealing.  Cheese and bread.  They had lots of sweet things.  They did offer hot food that was mostly meat related and scrambled eggs, but they didn’t looked so good.

I went to the lobby at 9:15 to wait for my hike around the lakes (Sendero de Los Lagos).

I met Angela and Shawn and I thought there were to be two other people but in the end it was just the three of us.

Our guide was Alfredo and James our driver.

Our full day excursion started a little more than an hour's drive from the hotel.  Distances are great here.  I had no idea that everything was so spread out.  I thought I would be able to see some of the other hotels I’d researched, just out of curiosity.  The only place within walking distance was the Cascada eco-domes.

The hotel provided a large bag lunch that included: a sandwich, a bag of nuts, cookies, a brownie, a water and a juice.  I put all these things, except the juice, in my backpack.  I also carried in my pack: another shirt, pair of pants, socks, mittens, and a headband that covers my ears.  I was told to be prepared for all four seasons when hiking.  The weather can change on a dime and you need to be ready.

We drove in the direction where I’d entered the park yesterday.  I asked Alfredo if this was the only entrance and he said no there were others but they were further away.  

We arrived a little after 11:00 a.m. at our starting point. The hike was suppose to be 5 hours of walking.  The sun was out, the temperature a bit cool and a fair bit of wind.  

our first view of the horns

The hike started out very easy and most of the day was walking on fairly flat ground.  At times the trail led us though some dense areas and sometimes more open areas.  There were many birds some we heard and some we saw. 


A lot of the trail was very narrow and when I turned around to look at the view I was a little off balance. The wind started to pick up after an hour into the walk.  It wasn’t cold but the wind was pretty powerful.  I had to take my hat off or it would have blown away.

The Horns of Torres del Paine

In Torre del Paine there are several large mountains which are the ‘main’ attractions to the park.  The views we had on this hike were of the Horns (not the Towers) and Mt. Almirante.  

The park, 181,000 hectares on the Seno de Ultima Esperanza, or Last Hope Inlet, was created in 1959 and declared a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 1978. The name "Paine" comes from a Tehuelche indian word meaning "blue". The Paine Massif is almost completely encircled by the Rio Paine. The river begins at Lago Dickson at the northern edge of the park, then crosses through the Paine, Nordenskljöld and Pehoé lakes and empties into the Lago del Toro at the southern end of the park. Orient yourself with this excellent interactive map with photos from Go Chile.

After about 2.5 hours we stopped for lunch where we had an incredible view of a lake.  I was incredibly hungry and ate my smoked salmon sandwich.  It was very good.  Alfredo actually brought a bottle of wine.  Angela and Alfredo were the only ones that drank the wine.  The wind picked up quite a bit during lunch.  We stayed here for about 45 minutes enjoying the view and resting our feet.  

our view for lunch

The second part of the hike was a bit more challenging.  The wind added to the difficulty.  

along the path

About an hour after lunch we came to the part where we had to walk almost straight up.  At the top of this hill we could barely stand due to the force of the wind, but the view was incredible.  You could see several lakes as well as the Horns and other peaks.  We were very lucky with the weather.  The clouds were amazing and move every second.  One minute you can see something and then the next it’s gone, covered by a cloud.

Alfredo told us that in the wind, we should stoop down, not lean, if we felt unstable.  Trying to take photos was rather humorous, in that I could barely stand let alone hold the camera steady, but I did what I could.  I was able to take some video of the wind blowing the tall grass which really gives a good feeling for the power of the wind.

the view from the top of the hill

What goes up must come down.  After our little climb up to 
the view we needed to come back down the same hill.  I don’t recommend this hike for anyone who has knee problems.  We had been warned that the last 45 minutes of the hike is straight down hill.  Boy they weren’t kidding.  I thought coming down this first hill was the downhill part but no it wasn’t for another 1/2 hour or so before the “real” down hill part came.  OMG, first we needed to walk on an extremely narrow path the path along side a steep hill.  Hard to explain except that it was so severe that I didn’t want to look anywhere but straight ahead.  Falling down this hill would not be pleasant it was a long way down.

We were on this path for a little while when Alfredo suddenly started to walk straight down the hill.  Really.  OMG not only was it straight down but the path (if you could call it that) was made of very loose dirt, almost like sand.  Add the wind into the mix here and you have for quite the amusing hike.  

We were a great team, laughing and talking all the way.  I was glad to be with other people and really enjoyed Angela and Shawn.  Angela is a little older than I am and Shawn a bit younger.  They have done lots of traveling.  A few years ago they did an around the world journey.  It seems the people I’m meeting are well traveled.  I guess a novice wouldn’t come to such a remote place as Torre Del Paine for a first time journey.

very happy to be down the hill

I was so happy when I finally got the the bottom of the hill and I hadn’t fallen down.  The girls and I were laughing about having Calafate Sours waiting for us at the van.  

snacks

Actually when we arrived at the van there was an entire spread of fruit, cheese, beer, soda and cookies.  Wow, we were just kidding but I guess when you pay for the “all inclusive” you get the royal treatment.

our team

We drove a different way back to the hotel and were able to see some new things.  We drove past Pehoe Lake and had more incredible views of the Horns.  I asked James if he would stop when I saw a great photo opportunity.  

Lake Pehoe

Seeing any of the peaks is always a plus given what the weather conditions are and can be throughout the day.  

There was a nice hotel here on the lake.  Alfredo pointed out where the Explora hotel was across the lake.  The Explora Hotel is about $1,500 a day per person.  My hotel was a mere $500 a day.  The Cascade geo-domes are $1,000 a day.  You really have to want to come here and have the money.  But I will say that it was worth it.

I decided to have dinner at the buffet tonight.  Not very exciting.  Lots of choices but the quality wasn’t so great. 

After dinner I had a drink in the bar with Angela and Shawn.  We also saw the people from Brazil who I'd ridden to the hotel with.  They went on the big hike to the Towers today.  Andrea (the Brazilian woman) told us that she couldn't make it to the end because she has fibromyalgia ( a muscular disease) and after 3 hours of walking she was in too much pain to continue.  I felt bad for her.

Anyway it was the end of a great day for me and my foot was doing fine.