Posted on October 11, 2018
By Bastián Palma, Sales Team Pure! Chile
Torres del Paine is one of those places that will always surprise you. Depending on the season in which you visit, this location delivers many diverse landscapes. However, what makes it special is that you can enjoy four seasons in just one day. It is so impressive, you can literally see how the wind blows away the clouds. It almost looks like they are running after each other!
Based in Puerto Natales, we woke up early in the morning to get ready for the famous Base las Torres Trek. After a two-hour drive, we reached the starting point where a snow-filled route was waiting for us. We climbed for four hours before reaching the highlight of this tour. Every step you take forward is made harder and harder due to the snow, but is nevertheless interesting and fun. After walking the first three hours, we came to the realization that we would have to climb the rocks for the last part of the tour! As nature has always been our endless provider, we were lucky to try sweet, cold water straight from the mountains, which is perfectly natural and tasty. After reaching the base, we enjoyed the view while eating some well-deserved food. Later, we started on our way back.
Our next challenge was the French Valley trek. We were transported from the beautiful Pehoe Lake to Paine Grande, where our next adventure began. We were lucky to start our day surrounded by the most iconic landscapes and beautiful mountains. We hiked through the Lenga Forest while we were rewarded with impressive views of Paine Grande. During the hike we were surprised with some beautiful birdsongs that joined us through the path. All the natural colors mixed with the strong white of the snow just looked amazing.
The next day we hiked to reach the Grey Lodge. This was a 3.5 hour activity with special lookout points, like the Duck Lagoon, and we enjoyed the endless Patagonian beauty that joined us everywhere on this trip. Upon our arrival at the lodge, we had to walk just a little bit further to find the lookout over the Grey Glacier. There are multiple ways to experience the amazing view, but walking on a mountain right next to the glacier will take your breath away. The intensity of the strong blue color of the glacier, mixed with the purple colors of mineral stones will give you a perfect memory of this trip.
At this moment during our trip, everything seemed to be so beautiful that our awe increased to another level. A level that only the ‘puentes colgantes’ (hanging bridges) could exceed.
However, just when we thought that things could not get any better, we started our hike on a very empty path. This is because before, hikers had to be part of the ¨O Circuit¨ to be allowed to take this incredible excursion, which makes it very exclusive. Now, there is a new connection that makes this possible with a less demanding itinerary. A total adventure in nature surrounded by nothing but mountains, trees and the spectacular giant Grey Glacier view on the side. There are three bridges that connect all this and when we got further, we felt like the view kept getting better. On our way back to the base, I thought about how lucky we were for having the chance to share this experience with our clients. To develop and update our destinations to always keep them interesting and top notch.
Believe me, the only thing you will miss during your trip here is time. More time to never forget.
