Patagonia O Trek Recap

Hello friends! We just finished the 5th month of our sabbatical and I have only written one blog post. My apologies. I had meant to do this regularly and have totally let that slip away. But I am here today, thumb-typing on my iPhone mini while laying on a bed in a hotel room on a drizzly day in Punta Arenas, Chile. So that’s something, right?!

Three days ago we finished the longest backpacking trip of my life. We hiked more than 75 miles and climbed more than 15,000 ft over 8 days, camping at 7 different places along the way. We met lovely people from around the world: Italy, Australia, Canada, France, Ireland, Netherlands, and even the USA and Chile (our current locale). 

If you have heard of Patagonia, you have probably seen the quintessential vista of Los Torres and its beautiful lake. This is the first and/or last stop on most Torres del Paine National Park visits. It was the final destination on our circumnavigation of the park. 

Some highlights:

- Cresting John Gardner pass on Day 4 only to discover that the bank of clouds I saw spread across the horizon was actually Grey Glacier. And then getting to hike alongside the glacier for miles. Epic!

- Avoiding blisters, thanks to dorky toe socks and the super handy leukotape that Josh picked up in Seattle for me. 

- 7 bottles of $22 red wine, which we bought and drank together—one per day except for the 3rd day when none was for sale.

- Sunrise on Los Cuernos (the horns) on day 7, spied from the trail after starting our hike in the dark. I was eager to get moving because we had a long day ahead and I didn’t want to miss the cut-off time to hike to Los Torres, but Josh convinced me that we could spare 15 minutes to watch the sky change colors. It was totally worth it and we made it to Los Torres with 90 minutes to spare—or in my case, 90 minutes to draw and paint that stunning landscape.

- Watching the funny caracara bird prance around the campground at Dickson as we prepared to set out on day 3 of our trek. Its red face, high-and-tight hair cut, and serious expression made me laugh.

- Watching Andean condors soar above countless vistas, including on day 5 when a half dozen of them climbed in thermals above a ridge while we watched and wished we could join them in the sky.

- Sketching mountains and painting glaciers with my sketchbook hidden in a dry bag to keep it safe and functional on drizzly day 6 at Mirador Francis. I impressed myself with my creativity on this setup!

- Surviving 3 (or 4?) suspension bridges and countless of other un-reinforced wooden bridges, boardwalks, slick and muddy planks, and rocky stream crossings.

- Several pretty rainbows including a couple leaping forth out of the glacier, giving me a reason to appreciate rain. 

Bottom line, I’m delighted that the feet I broke this month 10 years ago on our last sabbatical could carry me and my 25-30 lb pack across so many miles and mountain passes, enabling me to experience this incredible place with my beloved.

And here are some photos:

Starting the O Trek in the rain. 

Boardwalk between Seron and Dickson

The view towards Dickson glacier.

One serious Caracara bird. 

Painting by the mountains next to Dickson glacier. 

Hike up to Gardner Pass. 

Grey Glacier.

Josh starting one of the suspension bridges. 

Our greenish-white tent squeezed in amongst the premium tents at Grey. 

Rainbow on our hike to Paine Grande. 

Sunrise at Paine Grande. 

The beach and Los Cuernos (the horns).

Sunrise on Los Cuernos. 

Painting at Los Torres (the towers).

A completely unnecessary “bridge” on the hike to Los Torres. 

Enjoying our final bottle of white at the end of the O Trek.