by One can travel to the Torres Del Paine from a number of points such as Punta Arenas, Buenos Aires, Ushuaia, El Calafate, El Chalten and Puerto Natales. The last is the first choice for people who contemplate and exciting tour of the Torres Del Paine. It is the closest as well and one has to travel for about 3 hours to reach the park entrance. Once here you have options for various trekking tours such as the famous and most popular W circuit or the extended O circuit around the Park.
Most tourists arriving from places as far apart as Australia, New Zealand and Canada opt to explore the W circuit over several days. It is a challenging but blissful experience interspersed with walks along nature trails, kayaking and riding horses. Covering the entire ground on foot is a good idea but of the best Torres del Paine trekking tours experience is to enjoy kayaking for a half day at Glacier Grey starting at Refugio Grey and going on to the Grey Glacier’s face. Another exciting option is to pick the kayaking trip from Rio Grey to the Rio Serrano. This kayaking tour can be as short as one day or, if one is so inclined it is possible to spend days exploring the various tributaries of the Rio Serrano and then arrive at Last Hope Sound. The Geike and Tyndall tributaries are quite touching, challenging and exhilarating.
Covering the W Circuit on foot is a good idea but if this is challenging then one of the best experiences of the Torres Del Paine can be on horseback. One can hire horses and go explore the Fjord Trail for three days that takes the route of the wetlands and the Paine Massif. Another option is the Glacier Ride to Glacier Dickson, camp at nights and have a wonderful time on horseback. Equally enticing is the Gauchos trail that takes you to the Glaciers across beautiful wooded areas, a trip to remember. If one wishes to mix luxury with horseback riding then there is the option to cover stretches on one day and the rest your sore body in a spa and bed down comfortably for the night in hotels.
An alternative way to go about exploring Torres Del Paine is to hire a mountain bike and explore the Carretas trail and pedal past the Laguna Azul, explore Milodon cave and traverse the Oggioni Pass.
One of the better and most favored ways to enjoy Torres Del Paine is on foot and to places less explored. Trekking in the Bader Valley is a different experience as the route takes one to the back of the Towers and one can view it from a different angle. This and the Forgotten Valleys trek should be on the short list of trekkers who wish to do more than just follow the beaten track.
The route is more or less the same. How one chooses to explore it makes it different and exciting.
