Patagonia is the southernmost part of South America and it’s famous for it’s fantastic scenery and hiking. And one of the most famous hikes is the W Trek in Torres del Paine National Park. It’s called the W because when you draw the route on a map it looks like the letter “W”. It takes about four days to hike the W and it’s no walk in the park. It was definitely the hardest physical thing either of us has ever done. We made it a little bit easier on ourselves by doing it as part of an organised hike so that we didn’t need to carry camping gear with us. So we have a LOT of respect for the people that hike the W while carrying 15-20kg with them. Especially the guides and porters who carry even more.
Day 1: Eco Camp (Hotel Las Torres) to Paine Grande Refuge – 12km, 4-5 hours
Setting Off From Eco Camp
This was the first part of our trek and our guides made it easy by not pushing us to go to fast, and letting us stop for lots of drink/snack breaks. The terrain wasn’t too tough either so it was a nice way to get into a comfortable rhythm.
The section of the W that we hiked on this day was “not very scenic” compared to what we would see later in Torres del Paine. But our whole group was pretty amazed by what we were walking past all through the day.
This first day was also good to work out what gear we actually needed while hiking. We were told that we should only wear warm clothes when we got to camp at the end of the day, and just wear lightweight hiking pants and T-shirts while we were actually hiking. No need for jackets unless it was pouring rain. Since we started at dawn, and it gets really cold at night, I decided that I needed long-sleeve woollen layers in addition to my hiking clothes. I also thought that it would be a good idea to wear my rain jacket & pants as protection against the wind.
Turns out that this arrangement worked well for the first 15 minutes, then it was hot. Very hot. And this wasn’t a particularly hard part of the hike. It just goes to show that some people (like me) need to learn things the hard way.
Los Cuernos Refuge
Once we made it to the refuge we had a little tiny cabin all to ourselves with a nice view over the lake and a nearby waterfall. It even came with a wood stove so we could have a fire. Luckily there were people there that could light the fire for us. Turns out that we really needed the fire since the cabin had no insulation and we didn’t put enough wood on the fire before we went to bed. So it went out during the night and then it was cold. Really cold. But I didn’t have all my warm clothes on when I went to bed since it was nice and cosy with the fire going. So I learnt the hard way again which clothes I needed to wear.
Day 2: Los Cuernos Refuge to Paine Grande Refuge – 24km, 10 hours
This was the hardest day in Torres del Paine for both of us. We had a lot of ground to cover this day so our guides set off at a cracking pace. We didn’t even stop for our first water/snack break until 2.5 hours into the hike.
French Glacier (Glaciar Frances)
The big challenge for this day was to climb up into French Valley to get to the glacier and then on to the lookout at the end of the valley. It was a fairly steep climb over rough terrain and big boulders. We reached the French Glacier after 2 hours of solid work. Again, no rest break for 2 hours until we made it to the glacier. But once we made it it was worth it. Even as we were hiking towards it throughout the morning it was a breathtaking sight.
The best thing about this glacier is that it regularly has avalanches (that you can watch from a safe distance). Maybe every 15-30 minutes if the conditions are right. We were lucky and there was snow overnight on the glacier, but it was a clear sunny day, so the sun melted the fresh snow and sent it tumbling down the glacier throughout the whole morning. As we were hiking up we could hear loud rumbles like thunder, but they were actually avalanches.
Mirador Britanico
After French Glacier we pushed onwards and upwards to Mirador Britanico at the end of the valley. This was another hour of difficult terrain with an actual climb up big boulders to get to the lookout. This last climb nearly killed Pedr, since when he got to the top of the lookout he barely looked around at the view before collapsing on a nice flat rock and refusing to move for most of the lunch stop.
The trip back down through the valley was where it started to get difficult for me. I found out last year that I had plantar fasciitis (from too much walking/standing) and it feels like you’re walking around with a small stone under your heel. The annoying part is that the only cure is rest, and that it can take up to 12 months to go away. So the whole hike back down the valley I was limping a lot to try and avoid the pain. By the time we had made it out of the valley it felt like both my feet were on fire.
Pedr wasn’t going too well either. He had recovered a bit on the downhill part, but the last couple of hours to the refuge he said it felt like his legs were going to fall off. Every time we came to the top of a small hill, or around a bend we were both desperate to see the refuge in the distance. At this point there wasn’t a whole lot we could do but grit our teeth and just keep going.
Paine Grande Refuge
When we finally made it to the refuge it was late and they had started serving dinner. This was a good thing since after Pedr had dinner he climbed onto his bed to put his feet up, and then refused to move. If he’d got to that bed before dinner he probably wouldn’t have eaten. He was also lucky because he missed out on the nice lukewarm shower where you have to push a button every 20 seconds to keep the water running. This is pretty common in Torres del Paine. I ended up colder after that shower than when I started. But this refuge had dorm rooms instead of cabins which meant that it didn’t get too cold at night.
But during the night they turn off all the electricity in the building. So when I got up to go to the loo, there was nothing but darkness. I didn’t realise there was no electricity until I had gotten to the bathroom, and I wasn’t going back to the dorm to find my headlamp. (I made enough noise just trying to figure out how to get out of the sleeping bag). So I had an interesting time stumbling around trying to remember where the toilets and sinks were in pitch black darkness. And hope that I didn’t end up pushing a button in one of the showers by mistake! Somehow I found the only toilet without a door, but since there wasn’t any light then it didn’t matter. In the time it took me to stumble around the loo I think everyone in the dorm had gone back to sleep, so no one noticed when I snuck back in.
That’s the first half of our hike in Torres del Paine, the second half is here.
Were you hiking at high altitude? What would happen if you couldn’t have gone any further? Would they helicopter you back to the start?
No, no altitude here. Just steep and difficult terrain. I asked one of the guides what happens if people can’t continue, and they only call helicopters if it’s urgent like a heart attack or stroke. Otherwise if it’s just a broken wrist or leg then you might have to walk yourself out or get stretchered to the lake where a boat can pick you up.
That is a lot of hard hiking, tough and requires all stamina. You will be so fit by then, keep safe, slow but sure.