Hiking to Mirador Base de Las Torres
On Tuesday, January 10 we hiked up to Mirador Base de Las Torres along Rio Ascensio – an 18 kilometer hike that took us nine hours. Sunny and warm when we left at 9:00am. Windy, cold, rain, snow and fog when we reached the Mirador Base de Las Torres at 2:00pm. Here is a photograph of Torres del Paine at the Mirador in the fog.
Torres del Paine from Laguna Amarga
On Wednesday, January 11th we took a morning tour to the Laguna Azul (Blue Lagoon) and went Horseback riding for 2.5 hours in the afternoon along Lago Nordenskjold. Here is a photograph of the clouds clearing over the Torres del Paine peaks from Laguna Amarga.
Torres del Paine from Laguna Azul
Here is a photograph from Laguna Azul of the clearing peaks of Torres del Paine.
Three Guanaco Chulengos
Here is a photograph of three Guanaco Chulengos. Chulengo is the name of the offspring of the Guanaco.
Lesser Rhea
Here is a photograph of a Lesser Rhea.
Cascada Rio Paine
Here is a photograph of the Cascada Rio Paine on our way back from Laguna Azul. Notice the Torres del Paine Mountains in the background.
Andean Fox
Here is a photograph of an Andean Fox that hung around the Hosteria Las Torres.
Two Guanacos Fighting
On Thursday, January 12th, because the Western part of the park was still closed, we went again on the Laguna Azul tour to see what wildlife we could find. We were able to get some great photographs of two Guanacos fighting.
Torres del Paine from Laguna Amarga
Here is a view of the Torres del Paine peaks from Laguna Amarga.
Rainbow and Return Home
On Friday, January 13 we returned by private shuttle back to El Calafate and the Edenia Hotel. On the way out, we had a rainbow over the Torres del Paine National Park.
We stayed in El Calafate one night and then on Saturday, January 14th caught a taxi to the El Calafate Airport and flew Aerolineas Argentinas flight # 1693 at 1:20pm back to Jorge Newbery Airport in Buenos Aires, arriving at 5:50pm.
We caught a taxi back to the Marriott Plaza Hotel in downtown Buenos Aires to spend one night. We did some quick shopping and had a final great dinner in Argentina.
Shopping again the next morning, Sunday, January 15th, and with a late 4pm checkout at the Marriott Plaza, we headed to the Ezeiza International Airport to catch United # 846 at 10:05pm to Washington Dulles, arriving at 6:41am on Monday, January 16th.
It was a great trip that met our plans and expectations. We were disappointed that we could not make it into western Torres del Paine National Park because of the fires, however we at least we were able to get into the eastern part of the park and participate in the hikes and activities we had planned.
Visit the three Patagonia Trip galleries for more photographs.
