[jartelt]

I figured I would share a report I wrote that some other backpackers may find useful! My wife and I traveled down to Patagonia in the second half of December and did a 9 day backpacking trip in Torres del Paine National Park. We hiked what is known as the Circuit Trek. It circumnavigates around the park and provides some really amazing views. I wrote up a full trip report with all my pictures and everything I learned, which can be accessed here: https://backpackersreview.wordpress.com/trip-reports/torres-del-paine-circuit/ The trek is 80 miles in length and has about 16,500 feet of elevation gain. We did at a fairly leisure pace and really enjoyed ourselves. Here are some of the highlights!

[RichP]

It looks like you were pretty lucky with the weather. I did essentially the same hike in Jan 1992 and had rain every day except one when it snowed. I think we saw the Torres once on the way out.

[jartelt]

Yep, we were lucky with the weather overall. We only got rained on one or twice while hiking and neither time was too bad. There were several times when it was raining hard and the wind was blowing it sideways, but we were lucky enough to be drinking beer in the refugios! It definitely helps to get started early in the morning and finish your hikes by ~1pm (and set up your tent immediately). Most of the bad rain we saw came in the late afternoon. We woke up to snow on the morning of day 7. It made for a beautiful hike up to the Mirador Britanico. We got lucky again on this day and the clouds cleared just as we arrived at the lookout!

[zephyr]

Man. That's some beautiful country! Wow. ~z

[pcg]

You are to be commended for the excellent information you have provided in the link to your trip report. It is essential for planning this trip. Readers who have not been there will not realize how complete your documentation is. This is a high value post. Thank you!

[bobbi]

fantabulous i checked out your full trip report! lots of great information. what an adventure! super photos, too! i did the W, December 2012. spent Christmas Eve at Refugio El Chileno, dinner and all! https://www.nwhikers.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=8003047&highlight=torres+del+paine

[Hutch]

Will never in my life forget camping at the head of the French Valley and listening to glaciers calving all night. One of the most amazing places on the planet.

[jartelt]

Thank you for the kind words! I am glad the pictures brought back some good memories

[seattlenativemike]

awesome report and photos

[Just_Some_Hiker]

That is probably the most extensive and detailed trip report I've ever seen!

[fourteen410]

Fantastic report. Thanks for the immensely helpful details and eye candy, too.

[MidLifeHiker]

Amazing pictures and the detail of the trip on your website was fantastic. You have me thinking of making that same trip next winter. Mark

[marta]

Thanks for the trip report and great pictures. They brought back a lot of memories. We did an abridged version of the W in 2003 by using the boat across Lago Nordenskjold. The killer for me was doing the leg between Pehoe and Grey and back in one day. You definitely did it the right way in taking your time.

[Obi Tony Kenobi]

Great trip report! We went to Torres Del Paine January 2016 and we really feel lucky. Campamento Torres was open and the Coiron Guard Station was basically abandoned. My friends just came back and were turned back at Coiron for not having reservations and I thought they were kidding till I saw this. I definitely agree about adding an extra day for going over Paso John Gardner. We ended using up our 3 extra days after we realize the hike from Campamento Torres to Seron was not going to happen and then we got snowed and the wind was knocking people down on the way up to the pass and we got send back to Los Perros. We ended up hiking a little over 22 miles to get our boat (and we missed it of course, by a mere 10 mins). I think my most memorable part of the hike was Campamento Dickson and going down to the lakeshore with 50 mph winds. The other was a tip we got at Puerto Natales to take our sleeping bag and pad with us to the Torres. People would hike up for the sunrise and leave because it would be too cold. We ended up having the whole place to ourselves for about 2 hours! This is definitely the most detailed trip report I've seen. Great job!

[chiwakum]

The full circuit was definitely one of the highlights of my hiking life. When my wife and I hiked it in late March 2009 we had a mix of very nasty and occasionally pleasant weather. But it was always stunning no matter the weather. Looking forward to following and reading the link to your full report.