dossier
The Patagonian Experience
Grade
We have given the trekking on this tour a “C” grading.To get the most out of this tour you should be in good physical condition; werecommend you prepare for the tour with regular, appropriate exercise. Bear inmind that we often walk 5 or 6 hours per day, and that the trek involvesseveral long, steep ascents and descents. Experience of hill walking in remoteplaces would be beneficial. On both treks we stay at our fixed camps. Inthe Fitzroy you will need to carry a medium size backpack with a change ofclothes, washing gear etc. to be left at the fixed camps, from which you go outand explore the area. On 3 days you will need to carry this backpack forapproximately 3 hours each of those days. Note: sleeping bags are provided; youneed only bring a liner. In the Paine area all our fixed camps are accessibleby road so you do not need to carry your equipment. You will needa daypack.
Climate
This itinerary takesplace within southern Patagonia.
November to April: Spring/summer. Average high 14degrees Celsius, 58F. Average low 5 degrees Celsius, 40F. Temperatures can dropsharply with altitude gain and with strong westerly winds, which are a typicalfeature of the spring/summer climate here. Weather changeable and localised. Ingeneral, the further west, the wetter, and the further east, the drier. Rarelysnow lying below 800 meters. Long days. Trek season.
Flights
The brochure price isbased on a land only package, however we can arrange flights, the price ofwhich will vary depending on the operator and the season involved. Pleasecontact a member of staff who will offer any assistance and advise that yourequire.
Included
Alocal guide/tour leader throughout, an experienced mountain guide on treks, alltransport while in Chile and/ Argentina, all non personal equipment and mealswhile on trek, accommodation, personal specialist equipment for glaciertrekking; crampons, harness and ice axe.
Bilingual Spanish-English guides
Perito Moreno Glacier excursion
Pehoe Lake trips
Beagle Channel trips
Transfers as listed: El Calafate Airport - ElCalafate – El Chalten – El Calafate – Torres del Paine – Puerto Natales - PuntaArenas – Rio Grande – Ushuaia- Ushuaia Airport.
13 breakfasts (B), 6 lunch boxes (L) and 5 dinners(D), as detailed above
8 nights at hostel, 3 nights at full camp, 2 nights mountain refuge and 1 night in hotel in Buenos Aires (Bed & Breakfast).
Not Included
Flights, passport, visa, insurance,immunization fees, meals when not camping, other than breakfast, (budget $20per meal without drinks), any personal spending, airport taxes and nationalpark entry fees (around USD 30-40 per person in total)
Practical Information
Our tours are designedfor small groups. Your tour leader will make travel and accommodationarrangements, and will be on hand to iron out any problems give advice andinformation.
In large towns weuse hostels, generally with quadruple rooms and sharedbathrooms. We offer the option of double or single rooms with private bathat an additional cost. Please let us know in advance if you choosethis option. When camping we use two person lightweight tents. Asleeping bag is provided at our fixed camps, you need only bring a liner. Inthe Fitzroy area you will need to carry your own backpack with spare clothesetc to and from the fixed camps, around 3 hours trek on each of 3 separatedays. We suggest a backpack of 40 liters or so for this. In Paine all ourfixed camps have vehicle access.
Altitude
This should pose noproblem on this tour, the highest point of the route being around 1600 m.
Visas
All travelers shouldcheck their visa requirements with their local Chilean and ArgentineanEmbassies. Requirements are subject to change and should be confirmed beforedeparture.
Vaccinations
In Argentina and Chile there are currently novaccination requirements for international travellers. In Argentina, Yellow fever may occur inepidemics in forested areas in the subtropical northeast (Misiones etc), but isvery rare. Anti-malarialprotection(chloroquine) is recommended only in risk areas. Malaria risk in Chile is niland in Argentina is low, and confined to northern rural areas along the borderswith Bolivia (lowlands of Jujuy and Salta provinces) and Paraguay (lowlands ofCorrientes and Misiones provinces). It is exclusively in the benign vivax form, and no risk exists in BuenosAires or Patagonia. Courses or boosters for Hepatitis A are usually advised forArgentina. The course of two ‘Havrix’ injections protects youfor ten years. Gamma globulin is cheaper but less effective. Typhoid fever isnot common in Chile or Argentina, but some doctors recommend a typhoidvaccine. Also diptheria, polio and tetanus or tetanus booster, aswell as hepatitisB and tuberculosisare recommended. A pre-exposure rabiesvaccination is worth considering if you are going to be in contact with animalsor more than 24 hours away from a reliable source of vaccine. Hikers are atsome risk from rural dogs, certain of which carry rabies.
Personal Expenses
For bothArgentina and Chile you are advised to take funds in US dollars tochange into local currencies; Argentine and Chilean pesos. Take mostly cashdollars, in medium to high denomination bank notes (dollar bills have to beunmarked and undamaged, otherwise they may well not be accepted). US dollartraveler’s cheques are less useful. They can be changed in most large towns,but typically incur a 2-5% commission. Travelers are strongly advised to carry an ATM cash card to make cash withdrawals from ATM machines. (Until theArgentine banking system has fully stabilised following the Jan 2002 financialcrisis, using ATMs in Argentina is better than over-the-counter banktransactions). Also take a credit card: Major credit cards are often accepted in large towns, but there’s often a high surcharge ontransactions.
The tour cost includesall meals while on the trek, but you will need money to cover: other meals,snacks and drinks (approximately the same price as US), handicrafts, airporttaxes ($31 international, $7/national flight), optional excursions, entrancefees, tips, laundry etc.
Insurance
You must haveinsurance to cover you against medical expenses and repatriation. Please ensurethat it covers all the activities you will be participating in, includingtrekking. Please send us a copy of your policy as soon as possible if you arenot taking our insurance.
Luggage
Bring a main piece oflockable luggage, to be left for storage in the hotel while trekking. On trekyou will need a daypack (minimum 40/45 liters) to carry the personal items youmay need during the day. Remember that on 3 days you will need to carry yourpersonal overnight kit, so make sure that you can fit all that kit into thepack that you will be using before you go.
Books
Of the many guidebooks available,the Footprint Argentina Handbook and Chile Handbook areamong the best all-round guides. Trekking in the Patagonian Andes(Lonely Planet) is a good trekking guide, with good background info and maps,while the Insight Guide: Argentina and Insight Guide: Chileprovide excellent insight into both countries, with well-researched features oncultural, political, social issues etc.
In Patagonia by Bruce Chatwin is a classic of travel literature.This, his first book, is about wandering and exile. As he travels, he describesencounters with Patagonians, and in so doing, tells the fascinating humanhistory of the region’s settlement. Uttermost Part of the Earth by ELucas Bridges is about the early colonization of Tierra del Fuego, by the firstEuropean colonist. Travels in a Thin Country by Sara Wheeler recounts aChilean journey, from Arica to Tierra del Fuego. Fiction: Martin Fierroby Jose Hernandez is an epic poem about the destruction of communities byprogress. The Gaucho Martin Fierro became the symbol of Argentine nationhood. Ficciones(Fictions) and El Aleph by the avant-garde Jorge Luis Borges,Argentina’s most famous 20th Century writer, are both collections of shortstories. The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende is the best-knownnovel by the magical realist Chilean writer. Antonio Skármeta is anothercelebrated 20th Century Chilean novelist, but Chile’s most celebrated writers,both poets, are Pablo Neruda and Gabriela Mistral. Both were Nobel Laureates.
Outline Itinerary
The following itineraryis intended as a working guide only and is subject to variation as a result oflocal conditions, weather and government restrictions.
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We reserve the right to alter (lengthen orshorten) the trek at any time if necessary.
1000m = 3281ft. 1km =0.62 miles
Day1 or 2: Depart US
Day 2: Arrive El Calafate. Wemeet you at El Calafate Airport and from there you are transferred to ElCalafate City. At 7 pm you meet up with the rest of your group and the guidefor a briefing meeting and a welcome dinner. El Calafate is a small town of some four thousand inhabitants; ElCalafate was for several decades a tiny staging post for the wagonstransporting wool between remote estancias (sheep stations) and the coast. Itlies near the shore of the vast, turquoise lake Argentino and is today agateway to the natural wonders of the Los Glaciares national park.
Hostel accommodation
Day 3: Bus to El Chalten – CapriLagoon.
After breakfast we travel by bus to ElChalten, a small remote mountain town close to the Fitzroy peaks. We travelalong 190 km of gravel road through the Patagonia steppe with a short stop atLa Leona, a picturesque inn, where you can enjoy homemade cakes – highlyrecommended is the lemon meringue pie!. From here, the views of the Viedma lakeare superb. When we arrive in El Chalten we set off along the river Las Vueltasand head up into the foothills. We get our first panoramic views of MountFitzroy after a couple of hours. We continue walking past Laguna de los Patosand arrive at our fully equipped campsite next to the Capri lake. (3 hoursapprox.). Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Day 4: Mount Fitzroy and Laguna delos Tres.
Early in the morning and carrying onlywaterproofs, some water and a camera we walk towards Fitzroy. We have the impressivespires of the Fitzroy mountains above us. The first 2 hours are mainly flat,through forest and open grassland and bog areas, with diverse bird life; thisleads us to Fitzroy Roy base camp. From here it is a 400-meter/1,300 ft climbto Laguna De los Tres up a steep trail that takes around an hour and a half ata gentle pace. This walk is one of the highlights in the Los Glaciares nationalpark; the views of Cerro Poincenot, Monte Fitz Roy and the other peakssurrounding these are splendid. We return to Capri Lagoon Full Camp. (5 hsapprox). Breakfast, lunch, dinner.
Day 5: Mount Torre.
This morning we hike around Capri Lagoon,down a trail to Madre and Hija Lagoons, then through a dense forest followingthe Fitz Roy River. We reach the Mount Torre Valley and continue to theglacier-fed Laguna Torre where the Fitzroy River begins. Full camp, TorreLagoon. Breakfast, lunch, dinner.
Day 6: Torre Glacier and Lagoon – ElChalten.
In the morning we explore the area close toLaguna Torre, with very good views of the Mount Solo and the Adela Glacier.Optionally (extra cost), you can choose to do a trek on the Torre Glacier. Wedon crampons (provided) and trek on the glacier’s surface and develop our iceclimbing skills (harness and ice axes provided). We return to El Chaltén to ourhostel. Breakfast, lunch, dinner.
Day 7: El Chalten - El Calafate
In the morning there is free time. Optionsinclude: exploring the town of El Chalten, visiting the Climbers Chapel; or theMazden family country house, one of the pioneering families in the area; theDel Desierto Lake located 45 Km out of town or the vistors center of thenational park. Around 5 pm we head for El Calafate by bus, arriving around21.00 and transferring to the hostel. Breakfast.
Day 8: El Calafate – Perito MorenoGlacier.
Vast in scale (over four miles wide and 60meters high at its face!), this almost surreal spectacle is set amid alabyrinthine system of iceberg-filled waterways, and backed by deciduous beechforests and snow peaks. Spectacular even by the standards of the Los GlaciaresNational Park, this glacier also represents an anomaly: The Perito Moreno,unlike the other glaciers of the region, is still growing. Periodically (everyso many years) its advancing edge reaches the near shore, cutting off anddamming up the Brazo Sur iceberg channel. When this occurs, the steadilybuilding water pressure forces a breach in the ice and eventually a huge volumeof water bursts forth and surges through to Lake Argentino. A feature of the glacier is the frequent,ear-splitting calving of icebergs. After breakfast we depart by bus to theMagallanes peninsula, the entrance of The Glaciers national park. Itscenterpiece is the Perito Moreno Glacier, which, because of unusually favorablelocal conditions, is one of the world’s few advancing glaciers. We go down tothe lakeside to board a boat that takes us on a spectacular short cruise alongthe front of the glacier. We return to El Calafate. Hostel. Accommodation - Breakfast.
Day 9: El Calafate – Torres del Paine
We depart early in the morning (around 7 am)from El Calafate to Torres del Paine through a spectacular landscape of thePatagonia steppe. Choiques and flamingos are very common in this area. Almost 4hours later, we arrive at the border crossing between Chile and Argentinacalled Paso Cancha Carrera. We continue until we reach the Torres del PaineNational Park. UNESCO has awarded the park World Heritage status because of itsunique wildlife and magnificent scenery. In the afternoon, we visit several panoramic viewpoints of theNordenskjöld Lake and the Cuernos del Paine” (Paine Horns), and finally arriveat our full camp at Pehoe. Breakfast, dinner.
Day 10: Las Torres – Ascensio RiverValley.
After breakfast, we transfer by bus to thetrail head at Las Torres hosteria. We cross a suspension bridge and head up theslopes of the Almirante Nieto Mountain, alongside the gushing Ascencio River.After one hour of climbing the trail flattens out, and we reach the ChilenoRefuge. From there the trail leads us through the forest, through beautiful oldsouthern beech forests, to Las Torres base camp. This is where climbers waitfor good weather conditions for climbing the granite spires of Las Torres. Wetrek for one more hour up rocky morraine - a bit of a scramble in places - andreach the Las Torres viewpoint, an amazing natural amphitheatre at the bottomof the vertical granite towers. We return the same way - a 7/8-hour trek intotal. Full camp at Pehoe. Breakfast, lunch, dinner.
Day 11: Pehoe Lake Navigation, FrenchValley.
Early in the morning we take a 45-mn crossingover the Pehoe Lake, embarking at Puerto Pudeto and arriving at the PehoeRefuge area. We walk from there to the French Valley. It’s a beautiful mountainvalley descending from the middle of the massif toward the Nordenskjold Lake,flanked by the Horns to the east and by the impressive Paine Grande (3050meters/10006 ft) to the west. View fromFrench Valley. We ascend the valley until the upper viewpoints located in anatural amphitheatre surrounded by some of needles and walls most wonderful ofthe massif: Cuernos, Espada, Mascara, Hoja, Aleta de Tiburon, Catedral, andPaine Grande. The forest and the suspended glaciers that cause continuous iceand snow fallings provide a stunning view and feel to this walk. We descend thesame trail and turn west, rounding Skottberg Lake until we arrive at the Pehoecamp. Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
Day 12: Grey Glacier viewpoints.Another unforgettable day dedicated to the Grey Glacier, an impressive glacierof 300 square kilometers of surface area, some 115 square miles and 25 kilometerslong (16 miles). The glacier produces and enormous amount of blue icebergs thatfloat around the lake, pushed by the wind toward the south. Our trail leads usto a wonderful viewpoint where we can appreciate the whole lake, the glacierand the mountains that emerge from the west of the ice field. Two more hourswalking and we get to another viewpoint just in front of the glacier. At theend of the day we sail down the Pehoe Lake again to the south shore to returnto our Full Camp at Pehoe. Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
Day13: Torres del Paine – Puerto Natales – Rio Grande
We leave Paine National park at first light(6am) and go southbound to Puerto Natales. This is a picturesque fishing townlocated on the shores of the Ultima Esperanza (Last Hope) fiord.
This remote town of 15,000 inhabitants standson Ultima Esperanza (Last Hope) Sound at the center of an intricate network offjords and snow-capped islands. The gulf is home to a variety of rare birdspecies, including the black-necked swan. We continue south to reach thelegendary Magellan Strait, which stays in view until we reach PrimeraAngostura. Here, we board a ferry in which we will cross the Strait. This Pass,discovered by Hernando de Magallanes in 1520, was the natural and logical wayfor all vessels to go around the continent until the Panama Channel was openedat the beginning of the 20th century. You will find yourselves wondering howthose brave men dare to sail those waters in such fragile boats!
Once in Tierra del Fuego (literally, Land ofFire - due to the fires seen by the first white sailors arriving on the coast.These fires were made by the local Indians to cook with and for heat) we headback into Argentina through Paso San Sebastián. After a couple more hours, wereach Estancia Las Hijas, where our Full Camp will be waiting for us, as wellas a lamb cooked in the classical Patagonian barbecue style. A dinning saloon,toilets and showers are available tonight. Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
Day 14: Rio Grande - Tierra MayorValley
In the morning we learn about the Estancia'sworking activities. At mid morning, we travel south to Solar del Bosque, asmall and cozy mountain refuge located in the Tierra Mayor valley, where we’llspend the rest of the day. After lunch, we hike to Laguna Esmeralda, abeautiful lagoon with Glacier Ojos del Albino in the background. We walk backto our lodge across terrain that has been modified by the beavers, which wereintroduced in the area from Canada in middle of the last century. Lodging inMountain Lodge with shared bedrooms and bathrooms Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 15: Ushuaia – Tierra del FuegoNational Park –Beagle Channel Navigation.
In the morning we head to Ushuaia, thesouthernmost city in the world - and the Tierra del Fuego National Park. Here,the snow-capped peaks drop dramatically into the sea and we head off for aseries of short walks through this coastal park. After having lunch, we have ashort boat trip on the Beagle Channel. The Beagle Channel forms part of theborder between Argentina and Chile. In addition to the great scenery, we shouldsee many species of marine mammals and birds before we return to our hostel orhotel. Breakfast, lunch.
Day 16: Ushuaia – Ushuaia Airport
Morning at your own leisure to visit the townwhich features some interesting museums and architecture. If you have a morningor afternoon flight, we take you to Ushuaia Airport. Breakfast. Flight back home.