Patagonia, The Towers of Paine

The massive 9,000-foot-high granite spires of Torres del Paine National Park in Chile are the ultimate reason for wilderness lovers to visit Chilean Patagonia. Not only do these peaks dominate the skyline, this immense granitic uplift cluster also provides access to many treks with great beauty and interest. Spectacular views invite foot travel through the beech forests and along the many lakes of the area. There is no altitude to speak off, the terrain is mostly flat except for the pass, the trails are in good shape, and you can enjoy alpine vistas for miles. 

Before my first visit in the early 1970s, this area was almost unknown to adventure travelers, given the lack of maps, inaccessible rough and wild terrain, impassable vegetation, raging rivers, and large lakes. The weather is unpredictable, with frequent storms and strong katabatic winds and snow in winter.  

Uncharted Patagonia

Known as the “End of a Continent,” Patagonia was made famous by the Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan who more than 500 years ago navigated the strait that now carries his name. He was the first European to enter the Pacific Ocean, and called the indigenous Tehuelche people “Patagons.” According to Magellan’s scribe, Antonio Pigafetta, the people were tall, perhaps seven feet, with large feet, leaving deeper and larger footprints. The land of pata (foot) gons (large) became known as Patagonia.

Patagonia is divided geographically by the 5,500-mile-long Andes, South America’s longest mountain range.  Argentina is to the east side with the larger expanse of territory, most of it vast pampas grass steppe, grazed by millions of sheep. On the west, the Chilean side, there is just wilderness within a narrow landmass, squeezed by the Pacific Ocean and the great Andean Cordillera. This is a land of impenetrable beech forests, and glaciers tumbling into the ocean. The coast is steep, dramatic and wild, and not lacking in scenery. 

The Meeting of Two Adventurers

In 1964, I read a terrific book Conquistadors of the Useless by Lionel Terray, a famous French alpinist and explorer. He recounts his various climbs in the Alps, in the Himalaya, and South America, including his amazing first ascent of the grand and epic peak of 11,000-foot Fitzroy in Argentina in 1952.

After reading his book, and on a lark, I wrote to his French publisher congratulating him on a fine English translation. Amazingly, Lionel himself replied that he was happy to learn the translation was fine, and said he was coming to the USA to climb in Alaska and that he was interested in visiting Yosemite. So, I wrote back suggesting a stop in San Francisco and offering to take him there to see the big walls. I also mentioned that I was a Yosemite climber. He agreed by return mail and we became fast friends on his visit and on further encounters in the Alps.  

The Idea Takes Shape

Lionel asked if I knew about trekking in Latin America to which I replied No, but I had been to Machu Picchu, so he began to fill me in with his extensive knowledge of the region, and in fact urged me to go visit the Andes and introduced me to his contacts.  

Soon after, I led a group of trekkers into the Nepalese Himalayas, another place that had captured my attention, and came back with an idea for adventure travel—a new concept! This coalesced into Mountain Travel, and I spent much of my time scouting and organizing trips to the world’s hidden corners. We went camel trekking in the Algerian Sahara, summited Tanzania’s Mt. Kilimanjaro, and made the first circular trek around the Cordillera Blanca in Peru.     

Pioneering in Patagonia

At Lionel’s advice, in the early 1970s I rented a pickup truck in Bariloche, Argentina, and drove a thousand miles south to explore Patagonia to find the big lakes, glaciers, and peaks of the Andes. Stopping first in the Chalten-Fitzroy mountains of Argentina, I continued south and then crossed back west into Chile to explore Torres del Paine National Park, my ultimate destination, and a place so special that, in 1978, it was recognized as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.  

I was the first adventure travel operator, American scout and mountaineer to visit and explore the southernmost Chilean province of Magallanes. I found that the area of the Towers of Paine offered a wide selection of activities including the exciting possibility to hike around the entire rocky uplift.  

Later, in 1985, together with Pepe Alarcon—the park ranger who pioneered the route with English mountaineer John Gardner and ranger Oscar Guineo in 1976—we trekked a circular route around the Paine towers, reaching the highest point at the non-technical crossing of Gardner Pass (3,950′). From the pass you can enjoy dramatic views of the sweeping glaciers descending from the enormous Patagonian icecap. The descent from the pass was another story! We had to work our way through deep ravines, thick understory, and a jungle of fallen beech trees to allow us progress. We were the second party to cross this pass after the Gardener expedition. Today there are trails around the towers and this trek is known as the O Route.  

I visited Chilean Patagonia at least six more times, always with the object of scouting new routes and developing trekking itineraries, taking along small groups of eager friends and would-be explorers.  

The “Wondrous Towers of Paine”

In 1987, as soon as I had worked out the company’s first trekking and logistical travel plans with the help of the park rangers, Mountain Travel began to operate trips in Patagonia. I gave training classes to the rangers who would guide our groups including Pepe Alarcon, the chief ranger, with whom I had made that first circuit of the towers.  

Our trip was called “The Wondrous Towers of Paine” and was instant success, becoming a classic Mountain Travel trekking adventure! 

Life in “The Land of the Giants”

In September 1990 I had the opportunity to rent one of the rangers’ basic cottages with a wood stove for an entire month for my family and my 5-year-old son Alex, and this turned out to be one of our best family adventures. Yes, this is a great area for adventurous families!  

With park rangers and friends, we spent the time hiking, trekking, scouting by horseback, and bushwacking unknown ravines looking for trail options, while we observed herds of guanacos, birds and geese, including the magnificent condor, whom we found had a nest way up a cliff above the stunning turquoise lake of Nordenskjold. The first morning after we settled in that ranger cottage I woke up early and ran out to a clear azure blue sky and an amazing unforgettable sunrise of the towers! 

The Towers of Paine Today

While circumnavigating the towers is still the ultimate Patagonia adventure, there are now many choices for hiking and trekking in the park. A classic one or two-day hike to a prominent outcrop at the foot of the towers from the north side is very popular and offers the ultimate views.  

Now, some 30 years later, the park has refuges and lodges, so there is no longer a need to camp every night. There are many new campgrounds with tents and facilities and ranger stations along some of the trekking routes. Torres del Paine National Park will always be a great destination for MT Sobek trekkers, who will experience the thrill of adventure themselves!  

The age of exploration isn’t over—discover Torres del Paine for yourself! If you would like to follow in Leo Le Bon’s footsteps to explore these timeless places yourself, check out our Patagonia hiking trips here.

For more from Leo Le Bon on adventure travel, order a copy of his legacy memoir Trail Blazing the Unknown at www.wanderlustconsulting.com

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