I booked the trip about 3 weeks out from actually undertaking it in December 2018. To do the trek you have to pre book each campsite well in advance. It's a bit tricky as they're not run by the same organisation but 3 different mobs with limited spots. It was a bit stressful finding campsites only 3 weeks out as many people tend to book months in advance. If you don't have campsites booked the park rangers will turn you around on the trek. Being only one path you can't evade the checkpoints. There is no camping outside of the campsites either. I recommend booking campsites before flights and at least 3 months beforehand. I got lucky with the 3 weeks
Having left the flights so late due to work I had to fly the long way round the globe from Adelaide-Dubai-Santiago-Punto Arenas. I then immediately bussed it from there to Puerto Natales. (Bus rides were booked online and very easy to do. Buses are often late). I then stayed at the Hostel Camino. Highly recommend doing so as great service and close to the town centre and bus station. The owner has walked the camino de Santiago a few times so we had stuff in common and he speaks a little English.
While in Puerto Natales all the shopping needs can be done here. Plenty of groceries in little stores where I discovered that kiwi fruit can be dried. Who would've thought. I highly recommend going to "Base camp" for one of their free information seminars which are held daily. Very good information to be had.
After 2 nights in Puerto Natales it was time to go. I caught the bus (2hrs) to the park entrance. Its very bleak and not much to see on the bus ride. At the park entrance everyone pays a small fee and you get the park entry visa as well as a very useful map detailing gradients. From the entrance you can for about 15 dollars taxi it the 8 or so kms to the beginning, or walk it. I chose to walk this as I had plenty of daylight. The walk in is pretty bare and much of it is along the dirt road.
The o trek itself must be conducted counter clockwise. My itinerary is as follows:
Night one Serron (20kms including walk in)
Night two Los Perros (30kms)
Night three Glacier Gray (I had originally bought accommodation at Paine grande but staff were fine with it. $10 for a site)
Night four Paine Grande (only a few hours and the windiest portion)
Night five Torres central (30ish kms)
Night six Torres central (summit day! well up to the lake)
The entire trek is simply breathtaking I thought. I was very fortunate with the weather only experiencing a few hours rain in that week. From Serron to Glacier Gray the path is very quiet with few people. From Gray to Torres it then quickly escalates in numbers due to those doing day trips and the W track. Is it worth doing the o over the w? I think so as the backside of the mountain and the climb up the pass after los Perros is rather beautiful (see attached pics). The only thing I can complain about with the experience would be the wind. I have never come across wind like that. I was picked up at some stages when it gusted. I'm talking 200kms per hour. The reason for the high winds the rangers said was because the wind goes all the way around the globe but because it's so far south it doesn't hit anything to slow it down except the park. People's tents tore at the Paine grande site. I did not manage to go up Valley Francais as it was rather foggy so didn't bother.
Each campsite had toilets and cooking areas (bring your own gas). Some even sold food but at rather expensive prices due to the isolation.
The climb up to see the famed towers and lake that represent Torres Del Paine is achievable in 4-5hours return. The trek is rather steep but worth it. Some people recommend going early in the morning to watch it as the sun rises but personally I wouldn't after going up that. The track becomes very ruggard and falls are steep.
The return journey from Torres to the park entrance I decided to taxi it. I saw very little in the way of wildlife and certainly no Pumas. When I got back to the hostel a chick there saw 5 on the taxi from the entrance to torres. 2 adults and 3 cubs. I was amazed. Don't expect to get the lucky
Trip overall. It was worth it. I was after a quick 2 week holiday on short notice and managed to make it fit the bill. It didn't feel overly rushed and the kms per day were manageable with an average of bit over 20. Water was plentiful as drinking from streams so packweight was around 13kgs max. I highly recommend doing it and hopefully the below pictures (taken with mobile) will convince you to. Happy to answer any questions
- First night at Serron
- The backside of the O trek
- Glacier Gray and one of 3 rope bridges
- Myself on the way to camp central
- The main attraction
