This morning, we leave everything behind and we only pack up our backpacks with some food, rain gear, camera, and just a few basics, and head up into Valle Frances light. It’s a steep hike, so going light is nice. The valley offers natural lookouts; ice falls, avalanches, condors… impressive. A true highlight of Torres del Paine National Park. And after a day exploring Valle Frances, we head down again and pack up our camp and progress another 1.5 hours to Camping Frances. A great camp site, located directly under the Cuernos and a stone’s throw from the beach. We retire to our tents that night for a well deserved night’s sleep.

Today, after a big breakfast we take on our longest day yet. Our trek takes us around the base of Mount Almirante Nieto (2500m), up into Valle Asencio, to our camp at Campamento Las Torres. This is a long day and we take many breaks for viewpoints and photo stops. Here again we make camp in a thick Lenga forest which protects us from harsh winds.

On this morning we get up and ready before dawn. This is our big chance to see the three famous Towers of Paine (2800m) get hit by the first morning rays of sun, which can turn the towers bright red. We again leave our camp behind and only bring our packs loaded with our warm layers. We head up the steep trail for 1 hour to the Towers viewpoint, and some of the moast amazing photos ever. We get warm, have some hot drinks at the base of the Towers and do this morning right! We pack up and head downhill to our next campsite next to Refugio Las Torres. It’s been a long day. We close the book on the first half of our trek, and take a long afternoon to repack and call it a day.

Today, we start the backside of the circuit, early and refreshed. And it’s a good thing because we have an 5 hour trek to Camping Seron. The terrain is milder then the ‘W’ and you cover a lot of ground fast. This is a much different experience than the front side of the W trek.

This is the day we trek to Refugio Dickson. The view and wind on Paso del Viento is unforgettable and literally breathtaking. From this high mountain pass we descend into the wetlands, passing near Rio Paine until we arrive at Refugio Dickson, which is one of the most remote refugios in Torres del Paine National Park. We camp this night at camping Dickson, next to the beautiful Lago Dickson.

Today we have a shorter 4 hour trek to camping Los Perros. This is a beautiful trek and a very remote area of the National park. Here we have good meal and plan out nexts days trek over The John Garner Pass.

This is the day of the famous John Garner Pass. The hardest thing about the Paso John Gardner is the wind. The terrain is manageable, and the view from the top of the pass is breathtaking. The view below of Glacier Grey (and the Patagonian Ice Field on a clear day) is one of the most amazing moments you’ll experience in Patagonia, hands down. We push on and make camp at the Campamento Paso campsite.

After a good breakfast we trek 4 hours to Refugio Grey. A beautiful stretch of trail with views of Lago Grey and the icebergs that break from the glacier and float slowly to the southern beach where they come to the end of their journey. In the afternoon we board our ship, the Grey III, which takes us across Glacier Grey, alongside the massive cliffs of Glacier Grey for an up close and personal look at the ice. This is a great climax to your long trek. On the Southern end of the lake we disembark and catch our private transfer back to Puerto Natales. This is the official end of the program. Groups return to Puerto Natales at 9pm on the final day of the program.

Today is either a day of rest or you will be making your way back to the airport for your flight home. You will either be flying out of Punta Arenas or Puerto Natales. There are lots of other day excursions you could do in the region so consider staying on for more adventures in this majestic part of the world.