Trekking in Torres del Paine

Map key

Overview map

Torres del Paine National Park

Location of routes

Introduction

Geography and geology

Climate

Wildlife and plants

History and culture

Early exploration and mountaineering

Getting to Chile

Transport within Chile

Agencies and tour operators

Visas and arrival

Accommodation

Language

Food and drink

Money and costs

Keeping in touch

Safety

About this guide

Trekking in Torres del Paine National Park

Refugios, campsites and hotels

Booking ahead

Transport to and around the park

Maps

Equipment

Low-impact trekking

What to do in an emergency

Torres del Paine National Park, Chile

Walk 1 Torres del Paine circuit (the ‘O’)

Stage 1 Refugio Paine Grande–Campamento Italiano

Stage 2 Campamento Italiano–Valle Francés (return)

Stage 3 Campamento Italiano–Refugio Las Torres

Stage 4 Refugio Las Torres–El Chileno

Stage 5 El Chileno–Mirador Las Torres (return)

Stage 6 El Chileno–Campamento Japonés (return)

Stage 7 El Chileno–Refugio Las Torres

Stage 8 Refugio Las Torres–Campamento Serón

Stage 9 Campamento Serón–Refugio Dickson

Stage 10 Refugio Dickson–Campamento Los Perros

Stage 11 Campamento Los Perros–Campamento Paso

Stage 12 Campamento Paso–Refugio Grey

Stage 13 Refugio Grey–Refugio Paine Grande

Stage 14 Refugio Paine Grande–CONAF Administración (the ‘Q’, optional)

Walk 2 Torres del Paine Half-Circuit (the ‘W’)

Stage 1 Refugio Las Torres–Mirador Las Torres (return)

Stage 2 Refugio Las Torres–Campamento Italiano

Stage 3 Campamento Italiano–Valle Francés (return)

Stage 4 Campamento Italiano–Refugio Grey

Stage 5 Refugio Grey–Refugio Paine Grande

Walk 3 Salto Grande and Mirador Los Cuernos

Walk 4 Puente Weber

Walk 5 Mirador Lago Toro and Laguna Verde

Walk 6 Mirador Cóndor

Walk 7 Río Pingo and Mirador Zapata

Stage 1 Guardería Lago Grey–Campamento Zapata

Stage 2 Campamento Zapata–Mirador Zapata (return)

Stage 3 Campamento Zapata–Guardería Lago Grey

Other walks within the national park

Laguna Amarga–Portería Sarmiento

Laguna Azul and trail to Lago Dickson

Excursions from Puerto Natales

Excursion 1 Cueva del Milodón

Excursion 2 Balmaceda and Serrano glaciers (Bernardo O’Higgins National Park)

Excursion 3 Sierra Baguales

Los Glaciares National Park, Argentina

Excursion from El Calafate

Excursion 4 Perito Moreno glacier

Walk 8 Cerro Fitz Roy (El Chaltén) and Cerro Torre

Stage 1 El Chaltén–Campamento Agostini

Stage 2 Campamento Agostini–Campamento Poincenot

Stage 3 Campamento Poincenot–Laguna de los Tres (return)

Stage 4 Campamento Poincenot–Laguna Piedas Blancas (return)

Stage 5 Campamento Poincenot–El Chaltén

Appendix A Route summary table

Appendix B Gateway towns and cities

Appendix C Accommodation within Torres del Paine National Park

Appendix D Language notes and glossary

Appendix E Contacts and online resources

Appendix F Further reading

The map ‘CONAF Parque Nacional Torres del Paine’, given free when you show you’ve paid your entry fee and booked your accommodation at Laguna Amarga or the administration office (CONAF Administración) by Lago Toro, is perfectly adequate for trekking in the national park (and is the recommended map for routes in this guide within the park). There is no scale, annoyingly (although it works out at roughly 1:130,000), but it has almost as much detail as any of the slightly larger maps listed below (including 250m contour lines), and has the advantage of being smaller and lighter. The fact that it is produced by CONAF should also mean that it’s the most accurate available – although this is not always entirely so. It is worth pointing out that this is not necessarily the map you’ll see, enlarged, at the reception desk of some huts.

Also widely available is ‘Torres del Paine Trekking Map’ (Mapas sheet 13, 1:100,000, 25m contour lines), which covers a larger area than the CONAF map, from the Balmaceda glacier and the head of Seno Ultima Esperanza in the south to Lago Dickson in the north. This is on balance the best map commercially available, and if you feel the need to buy a larger and slightly more detailed map than the free CONAF one, this is the one to go for. The ‘Torres del Paine Trekking Map’ (Zagier & Urruty, 1:80,000) is simply a larger and bulkier version – in this case, a satellite view with some contour lines. A useful map for planning other excursions in the area is ‘Puerto Natales Calafate’ (Mapas sheet 21, 1:500,000), which includes the whole area from Puerto Natales to El Calafate. The Mapas sheets have various bits of fairly useful information on the back. None of these maps (including the CONAF one) is without its inaccuracies, however – including non-existent hosterías and campsites, and questionable hiking trails.

Chile is also covered by a series of military maps (IGM).

Good map shops in the UK include The Map Shop (15 High Street, Upton Upon Severn; tel 01684 593 146; www.themapshop.co.uk) and Stanfords (12–14 Long Acre, London; tel 020 7836 1321; www.stanfords.co.uk).

Flooded trail between Refugio Las Torres and Campamento Serón (Walk 1)

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