The goal of this trip is to see a new place, meet new people, work on our language skills and have a good time. It’s also an opportunity to learn about ourselves through our interactions with the other members of our community and through journaling excercises we will do throughout the tip. Working with local communities we will assist and learn from our local hosts on significant projects designed to help create sustainable solutions to local challenges. Activities will include long days of hiking, trail work, and even some ranch work on a working Patagonian sheep and cattle ranch. Significant time will be spent interacting with local people and learning about their relationship to this special place. The activities and their design will enable for everyone to participate.
Torres del Paine National Park is the location of this Patagonia Trek, and one of the most beautiful and spectacular parks in the world. We will also spend time on Estancia Rio Verde, a working Patagonian sheep, horse and cattle ranch located 100 kilometers from the town of Punta Arenas on the shores of Skyring Sound. The estancia is owned by the Santelices family and continues a 100-year tradition of ranching in the region.
4/5/08 - Fly from Jackson
4/6 – 4/7 - Arrive Santiago. Afternoon flight to Punta Arenas. Students will be picked up by their host families who will take them into town. The following day will be spent attending school with their host students.
4/8 - Six hour drive to Torres del Paine National Park. Lunch stop on the way in Puerto Natales. Once in the park we will first stop by the Administration Center then on to Lago Pehoé where we will board a catamaran. Crossing the lake, we will end up at the base of the park’s largest peak, Paine Grande, where we will lodge for the night.
4/9 - Six to eight hour round-trip hike to Glaciar Grey. We will hike above the huge Lago Grey, formed by the Grey Glacier, one of the principal wonders of the park. We will hike on a new trail that was built with volunteer labor by the Fundación Patagonia. In the evening we can look for alpine glow on Paine Grande and Lago Pehoé - watching the waning light turn turn clouds, mountain and lake salmon color.
4/10 - Ten to twelve hour hike to Albergue Los Cuernos. Leaving Pehoé we head towards the Valle Frances, similar in scale and beauty to Yosemite Valley, but without the cars and crowds! We’ll spend some time watching glaciers covering the largest peak in the park, Paine Grande, calve seracs down the 6000 foot rock face, which makes up the mountain’s southwestern wall.
4/11 – Today we will spend the day on a trail project around the Los Cuernos hut. Working with local volunteers we’ll put in water bars, and smooth out sections of trail.
4/12 - Six to eight hour hike along Lago Nordenskjold then climb into the Río Ascensio Valley and the Albergue Chileno. We will most likely see condors, Chilean flickers, and other birds along the way. Spend the night bunked in the refugio.
4/13 – 4/15 – We’ll spend the next three days doing a combination of trail work and hiking. Hikes include the trip to the Silencio Valley and the lookout to the Paine Towers. While at the hut we will cook meals together with local volunteers and out hosts, sip maté and get to know our new friends better.
4/16 – Descend out of the Rio Ascencio Valley to the trailhead where we will be picked up for the drive back to Estancia Rio Verde. We’ll stop for lunch along the way in Puerto Natales
4/17 – We’ll spend a day at the Estancia learning about ranch life. In the evening we’ll have a traditional Chilean lamb asado or bar-b-q.
4/18 - Drive to Punta Arenas Airport for the flight back home.
