Two Backpacks One Couple

Nick and I adjusted to being back on land quickly after our cruise. It was an early 6:30am walk in the rain to the bus station in Ushuaia. That day we would make the long bus journey to Puerto Natales, Chile to start exploring a new part of Patagonia. The rain completely dissolved the paper bag we had been using to hold all of our snacks. Luckily for us there was a nice couple on the bus who had an extra re-useable bag they let us have. They also gave us some extra snacks they were trying to get rid of. So that was a short lived disaster. Our first bus went to Punta Arenas. We had a smooth border crossing and rode on a ferry. The journey was from 8:10am to 5:40pm, about 30 minutes shorter than scheduled. The only hiccup on the bus was that an older man had put his 1 liter coke bottle on the top shelf of the bus. He decided after a long bumpy ride that he would open it while standing in the isle. Coke sprayed all over the man in the seat below the shelf and some on Nick, too. He seemed very apologetic.

Unfortunately for us, our next bus to Puerto Natales departed at 9:00pm and all the earlier busses were full so we could not switch. After an okay dinner in town and a short walk, we waited in the bus terminal for our last leg of the journey. Finally, we arrived in Puerto Natales around midnight. My luck continued since Nick felt like he had been sitting too much and made us walk 45 minutes to our hotel rather than take a 5 minute taxi. By the time we checked in to our hotel and went to bed it was 1:00am. Every bus was on time, though, so it was a successful travel day. We had special guests already at the hotel who we would get to see at breakfast.

In the morning we went down for hotel breakfast and got to see our family who had all flown in to spend about 2 weeks together in Patagonia. Nick’s mother Deb, his father Jeff, his sister Emily, and her husband Gabe joined us to make a group of 6. They all had long journeys to arrive from the US with many flights. One of them (I won’t disclose who) had a horrible stomach virus of some kind and had had a particularly uncomfortable journey to Puerto Natales. Unfortunately for the group this bug would hit most of the group one at a time over the next 2 weeks. Hotel breakfast was impressive, with many baked goods, fruits, breads, eggs, and more. 5/6 of us so far uninfected enjoyed it very much.

That day was a relaxing day we allocated nothing to just in case anyone was jet-lagged and to get some supplies for our upcoming hike. We walked along the ocean where there was a nice walking path that went all the way from our hotel into town. Along the path were various large sculptures. In the ocean were many different types of beautiful birds, some of which we had already been seeing in Ushuaia. My favorite were the swans with the black necks. In town we ate at El Brisket, which unsurprisingly had great brisket. Some of us choose to get the healthy looking juices. Wow what a mistake that was. Mine was the beet juice with ginger and it tasted like licking the ground. Nick had to help me drink half of it. We balanced the meal out with some giant red velvet cookies.

After lunch we got some supplies that we needed for our backpacking trip. We were feeling a bit worried about being able to complete the O-Circuit because the park kept closing the trail, then opening, then closing, and the status at the time was that it was closed unless you had a certified guide to take you through. With 24 hour notice it wasn’t looking too optimistic, but Nick somehow managed to find a guide. We met our guide, also named Nicholas, in town after walking through some parks. After paying him a deposit for the hiking we all joked that hopefully we would see him the next day at our first campsite.

For dinner we ate at Cafe Kaiken in town. The calafate sours were yummy. We all shared some salmon and shrimp ceviche for appetizers. I had the salmon ravioli. Nick got a brownie with ice cream after his meal. We both agreed that it was fine, but didn’t stand out. We walked back along the ocean to the hotel pushing through strong winds. It was a preview of what was to come.

To get to the trail we first had to get to Torres del Paine National Park. We walked to the bus station where busses were pulling in and departing to the park frequently. After a couple of hours we arrived to our first stop in the park where we switched to a shuttle bus to get to the Welcome Center. We arrived about 3 hours from the start of our bussing. After a quick coffee for Gabe and bathroom for the rest of us we were on the trail. Finally, after months of planning we were off! The weather was a bit fresh, but not too windy or rainy so we were lucky.

The trail started off very busy. We had backpackers and day hikers all going at the same time from the Welcome Center. The trail split, one direction going to the iconic tower viewpoints and one going towards our camp for the night. We would do the viewpoints at the end of our loop, so we lost a large crowd when we headed down our trail. To start, the trail was mostly 4×4 unpaved road, sometimes gravel or mud, with some bridges to cross over small streams. As we continued the trail got better. We went through some forested areas and then had views of mountains, an open valley with a winding river, and endless fields of daisies. I had never seen so many daises before. Rabbits frolicked through the daisy fields that were blowing in the wind.

The first day’s hike was an easy one covering about 12.7km with 340 meters of elevation gain to get to Camp Seron. It took us around 4.5 hours at a very leisurely pace with several photo stops. We arrived at 1:50pm and checked in. Deb and Jeff got their own raised tent, me and Nick got a raised tent, and Emily and Gabe got a set up tent on the ground as the raised tents were fully booked. The camp was super nice with a covered outdoor eating area, bathrooms with hot showers, fields of daises with mountains in the background, and neat raised tents. Nick and I had never slept in raised tents before so that was fun.

We enjoyed a snack of salmon quesadillas from the kitchen. They were so unbelievably delicious. I want to recreate them at home and I hope that they weren’t just good because of hiking. For dinner we shared some dehydrated meals. Well Gabe and I each got our own and then everyone else shared to be exact. I had the beef lasagna. Jeff and Gabe had a few beers, Deb had some red wine, and then a few of us had the lemon meringue pie for dessert from the kitchen. Everything was surprisingly scrumptious.

We woke up bright and early to try and get ahead of any other groups going the same direction. The night before there were several people who showed up without a guide hoping to find one at camp or to join a group with space in order to continue on the trail. By 7:15am we were off with our guide who had arrived the night before, thankfully. The trail started relatively flat with fields of daisies and a few ibis’s flying among the flowers. The river was a bright milky turquoise color with mountains in the distance. There was a small section with short trees and two sections of short uphill and downhill.

We took family photos with the water behind us before continuing into an insane wind tunnel. Once around a bend in the trail the wind was so strong we got blown backwards a few times. Jeff had to catch Deb. My rain pants clip together at the waist and the ankles with zippers going all the way down. Unfortunately for me I had them all the way open for a breeze. The wind blew my pants up like balloons causing me to struggle not getting blown up the side of the cliff our trail ran along. After fighting my pants to close them I was able to slowly push forward. I had never walked through wind like that before, it was insane. At 10:00am we were relieved to make it to the ranger station and be out of the wind.

The relief we felt would turn out to be short lived as the rangers brought bad news. They told us that due to them closing the John Gardner Pass, hikers had to turn around and stay at camps coming back down. That meant Camp Dickson, where we were supposed to stay, wasn’t letting any new hikers arrive from our direction. Ugh, to have arranged a guide at the last minute to be turned around anyways was disappointing to say the least. It would mean that our entire route was compromised, and since it was one of the busiest weeks of the year the campsites were full for all days. That was pretty stressful for us since we were a group of 6 with no equipment of our own.

At noon Deb and I hiked back to Camp Seron together arriving at 2:40pm. The winds were even crazier on the way back than on the way in. On our way back we said hello to a couple that were heading in the direction of Camp Dickson. I asked them where they were going to which the man harshly responded, ‘Who wants to know?’ I explained that we didn’t know that Camp Dickson wasn’t allowing any new hikers to come in and we had to turn around so we just wanted to make sure that they knew so that they didn’t have to have a long hiking day like we did. The wife quickly thanked us and said they were day hiking. It was such a hostile interaction for no reason. They never returned to Camp Seron so we knew they snuck their way into Camp Dickson with no guide. He was so paranoid and rude I hoped they would get caught and fined.

Jeff, Nick, Emily, Gabe, and our guide Nicholas all hiked to Camp Dickson as a day hike. Our guide insisted that the camp was his favorite and that it would be worth the super long day. The viewpoint there was stunning and they got some nice photos for Deb and I to look at. As it turns out, no hikers were staying there at all from the other direction so we could’ve gone there after all. The staff served them some pork and rice bowls as we had already paid for meals there. It was a long day for them and they arrived back to Camp Seron at 8:00pm in the rain. In total they hiked 36.3km and had an elevation gain of 545m. We ate some dehydrated meals of beef and chili mac with nerds gummy clusters as dessert. We also said goodbye to our guide who would hike back to town in the morning.

It was a bit of a bummer waking up in the morning and having to hike the 12.7km back to where we started instead of being able to complete the full loop. The day’s hike was easy so we had a relaxed morning and started our hike at 8:40am. The weather changed frequently from sunny to windy to rainy as expected in Patagonia. The trail and camp were incredibly busy since there were so many people from a few days stuck at Seron and doing a similar plan to us.

As we hiked a large rainbow formed over the field of daisies. I noticed more of a cool flower on the way out than I did on the first day. Everyone assured me that they saw them on the way in, too. At 1:00pm we made it to the Welcome Center where we enjoyed delicious chicken burgers, chicken ciabatta sandwiches, beer, and calafate juice from the cafe and food truck. That really hit the spot after such a disappointing turn of events. It was the same journey back to town with a shuttle to the bus area, waiting for our late bus to show up, then bussing to town. Since it was Christmas Eve, lots of restaurants were closed. We ended up going back to El Brisket due to my painful hunger levels. Apparently I was the only hungry one so the group was less enthusiastic. I have no idea how these Ralston’s can go so long without eating, it’s like a super power I swear.

The only place left that was reasonably priced and available on Christmas Eve through to the 27th with 36 hour notice was an AirBnb. Online it looked good enough so we booked it. Well when we showed up it was pretty shocking to see the state of it. There were food crumbs on every surface, including chairs and couches. The bathroom was dirty, the towels provided were wet, and there were other people’s hairs on some of the bed sheets. The group had different levels of grossed out varying from not caring at all to wondering how we would sleep here (spoiler alert I was on the latter end of that scale). Emily and I bought some cleaning supplies and got to work. We wiped every surface, swept, and cleaned the bathroom. Just when I thought the worst of it was over I went to clean the toilet and noticed used condoms on the ground beside the garbage can, disgusting. It was very lived in and not at a cleanliness standard for paying guests. We missed our fancy raised tents in the park. It was a bit of an awkward night and not at all what we probably all expected for Christmas Eve.

Christmas day was very relaxing. We watched a few movies and Nick and I shared the gifts we had gotten the family while on our travels. The family did lunch at Jose Antonion de la Patagonia, which looked pretty good from the photos. I stayed back and got some productive work done. We all went to Afrigonia for dinner later in the evening and it was the best food we had all together for our family trip. A win was much overdue so hallelujah. We had a crab trio appetizer and some of us got the king crab risotto. For dessert I had the passion fruit ice cream, which was also delicious.

Boxing day was another relaxing one. There are several things to do in the area but they are hard to coordinate so last minute, so we decided to not even try. Cafe Artimana was where we had lunch. Deb and I both got a dish with scallops cooked in white wine and butter. Hers was with the full amount of spice. I think Nick’s meal was a soup of some kind. We got gelato from Aluen, which would be a regular spot for Nick and I. After walking around downtown for a bit we went back to the AirBnB and watched some more movies with frozen pizzas for dinner.

After having to skip a few days on the trail we were finally going to be heading back to the park and using the ferry to jump ahead to one of the camps we had booked. After checking out from the AirBnB nobody would miss we got breakfast from two different cafe/bakeries. I went to Hornero Bakery which had the most heavenly freshly baked cookies imaginable. I got the brownie cookie, classic walnut chocolate chip, and red velvet. They were so good I went back for seconds and bought some for the rest of the group, too. I ended up buying all of their brownie cookies. The family went to a cafe next door called Menta Cafe for vegan sandwiches and coffees. We caught our noon bus and rode for 3 hours to the ferry port in the national park.

When we arrived to the ferry port the winds were 84km/hour. They were so strong that they blew Jeff’s glasses off of his face. Luckily, they landed in a nearby bush so he was able to retrieve them easily. The 30 minute ferry ride to Paine Grande was stunning, with views of white trees, turquoise water, and large waves. Standing outside by the steps to take some photos was worth it, but the cost was getting drenched by the waves. It was great that the ferry existed because that meant we could link up to what would’ve been our 6th day in the park and 5th hiking day in the original itinerary and keep all of our existing reservations for the rest of the loop. We just missed out on Dickson to Los Perros, Los Perros to Grey, a bonus day at Grey for activities around the glacier lake, and then finally the hike to Paine Grande.

Once we arrived to Paine Grande camp we went straight to check in. We managed to get 3 rooms with one bunk bed in each so every couple had their own room. It was very windy so we were glad to not be in tents that night. We also had full board, so dinner was included. There was a large selection of food but the main items were beans, rice, quinoa, pasta, chicken, beef, tomato soup, mystery soup, salads, breads, vegetables, and desserts. The desserts were in a self-service fridge that was away from the long food lines. That was dangerously tempting and I ended up having about 3 of them. They were little cups of various soft desserts like puddings, whipped creams, etc with various toppings. My favorite was the strawberry dessert topped with meringue. We didn’t ‘earn’ the big dinner with a day of hiking, but we were happy with it nonetheless. The showers were hilarious as they had a door rather than a curtain. The doors ended just under the chest so they weren’t great at coverage.

After one false start where one family member had to run back to use the restroom again we were off towards Camp Francis. It was one of the harder days with nearly 21km and 1080 meters in elevation gain. The trail was great, with views behind us of the camp and large lake. In front of us almost immediately after starting we began having spectacular glimpses of a mountain face. As we continued we closed the distance between us and the mountain. The trail was open but occasionally lightly forested. We could tell there had been a fire through there somewhat recently. There were bridges and boardwalks to avoid getting too wet. That day was the biggest mosquito day by far, but still not too bad if we kept moving. The problem with hiking in Patagonia ,though, is that due to constant weather changes there is a constant battle with the layers of clothing, on and off, on and off. The mosquitos loved those quick stops.

It didn’t take long for us to reach Camp Italiano where we left our big backpacks and packed our smaller day packs. At 10:15am we started our big out and back hike to the Britancia viewpoint. There was an additional viewpoint on the way to the final viewing area, too. The hike was mostly flat with very gradual uphill. There were views of the turquoise lake behind us with many vibrant green islands. In front of us were mountains, glaciers, sharp dark grey mountains with steep rock faces, and many small avalanches. The trail was a mix of dirt, rocks, mud, and a few sections of scrambling. It was forested most of the way, though, so it was nice and protected.

We made it to the top at 12:39pm and enjoyed a nice lunch break while taking in all the views. There were two spots on some rocks that most people sat on. Luckily for us a group left as we arrived so we got a nice spot to sit at all together. Our descent back was at 1:10pm and we arrived at 3:30pm. The out and back was pretty manageable. On the way back Jeff slipped on some rocks since his shoes did not have much traction. It sounded horrible, but he was fine.

After putting our small day packs back into our larger bags that waited for us at Camp Italiano we did the short and flat 2km remaining to Camp Frances where we would spend the night. The campsite had the elevated tents again which we thought were super cool. Each couple got their own and we stayed all in a row. Our row was in the forest, high up, with views of the lake. The bathrooms had lots of natural light and the cafeteria had huge windows, too.

Camp Frances truly felt like glamping, wow. We had welcome drinks of local beer, wine, pisco and calafate sours. Dinner was salmon, quinoa, mixed vegetables, sauce, dill, bread, salad, and a warm oatmeal cookie. We were not expecting such fancy food while camping. I think that place must be where the expression, ‘happy camper’ comes from. In the evening our tents were super quiet even though it was windy outside. They were set up much tighter than in Seron where every gust of wind flapped our tent like a hurricane. The tents even had lamps and chargers for our phones, unreal!

We woke up to a beautiful day at Camp Frances. Our breakfast was a cheese and tomato sandwich, boiled egg, a puff filled with raspberry jam and cheese, apple sauce with passion fruit, and a ‘cookie’ that gave me flashbacks of my moms’ phase of cooking where she refused to use any normal ingredient. It’s safe to say I did not enjoy the world’s healthiest cookie. There was one brief heart attack moment where the hot chocolate bag I had with me in the bathroom went missing. It turned out Emily thought I forgot it in the bathroom and took it back to the tents. False alarm!

We left camp at 8:50am and arrived to Camp Central at 3:40pm. The day was 16.3km and 639 meters in elevation gain. I think it wasn’t particularly long or hard compared to some of the other days, but as a group we felt tired. The views were nice all the way with much of the hike being along a lake. The weather was on and off rainy but we didn’t mind. That part of the trail was incredibly busy with hikers going both directions. We figured once we were on the ‘W’ part of the hike it would be. We crossed over a long suspension bridge, ate lunches in the rain, and enjoyed a section of the trail on a pebble beach. Once we arrived at camp we enjoyed our welcome drinks, dehydrated dinner packs, and an early bedtime.

Nick and I woke up at 2:30am to get ready for our last day of hiking. The final day was the highlight hike up to Mirador Base Torres, the most famous viewpoint in the park. It gets notoriously busy since people who camp overnight go in addition to day hikers from town. Going early is the only way to avoid the insane crowds. We picked up our lunch packs from the cafeteria and left 4 of them in a bag hanging from Deb and Jeff’s tent. The four of them would start the hike later on as they felt confident they would be able to make it in time for us all to catch our bus later. In total the hike was 20.8km with a 1258 meter elevation gain.

Nick and I started the hike at 3:20am with our headlamps. It was incredibly dark when we started, but slowly began getting brighter as sunrise crept up. We didn’t see any other hikers for most of the hike up. The started in an open area going uphill. After passing a camp it became forested. In the forest we took a short breakfast break and that is when one hiker passed us who had the same idea. After the forested section there was a scrambling section up rocks and a small creek. There were 50 people going back down the trail who had been at the top for sunrise. We made it to the viewpoint at 7:00am and had it all to ourselves after the hiker that passed us earlier left. We discovered that was the secret magical time between crowds. Too late for the sunrise group and too early for the regular morning group, fantastic!

The weather was nice for our entire hike up, with not too much wind and clear skies. Once we arrived, however the wind picked up and it was hard to get a nice photo at the viewpoint without my hair blowing everywhere. I was still happy, though, as many people don’t see the peaks due to clouds, but they were there! We found a nice little area with a partial cover from the wind and incoming rain. We sat there and enjoyed our lunch pack sandwiches, chocolate, and fruit. At around 8:00am the rest of the family made it to the top and did a quick photo. By the time they arrived it was raining harder and the wind had picked up so it was less pleasant to stay up there.

At 8:05am we started our descent and made it to Camp Chileno at 9:50am. The crowds had started pouring in. We had originally wanted to get some teas and coffees at the camp cafe, but every person coming up in the rain had the same idea so we gave up after trying for 10 minutes. It was way too crowded. Our way down was insane with people. We have no idea how many we saw. The stream of groups was never ending. The rain began to stop and the sky was completely white with clouds. The peaks disappeared from view and we wondered if anyone in this mass of people would get to see them. We met our guide Nicholas from earlier on our trip guiding a big group. He was happy to see us and chat for a bit before easily catching up with his group.

We made it to the Welcome Center at 11:35am, which was perfect timing to get some well deserved lunch. That time we had hamburgers and potato wedges followed by a quick nap on the grass. After our shuttle, 1 hour wait, and then bus back to town we were all exhausted. It turns out that the bug that Emily had at the start of the trip was starting to make its way through the group and hit Jeff next. That was horrible for him, of course, but great for me as it meant we all took a taxi back to the hotel instead of walking. We had dinner at the hotel, salmon carpaccio, calafate sours, and squid ink pasta with mussels and clams. I think it’s safe to say that all six of us slept like babies that night.

It sure didn’t go as planned with the camp closure half way through, but we made the most of it and managed to get 6 days in the park, which was pretty good. We had a mix of weather but overall felt like we were really lucky as the wind was only crazy for a few of the days. Our family Patagonian adventure was not over yet, though.