With tears in my eyes and my comfort Spotify playlist ready, I was headed to the Patagonian region to test my physical ability (enter terrified emoji), experience nature at its finest, and escape reality for a few days (this might come as a surprise but there is no wifi in the mountains hence the delay in posting this).
Quick backstory.
Several months ago, a close friend and I started discussing our shared desire to go to Patagonia. Timing worked out for both of us so in just over two weeks we planned the trip. We found Howlanders, a tour planning company, to do the heavy lifting of the hike. The next day we booked flights and hotels, planned other small logistics and started packing. I met Jewel at Amazon; she was the first person to reach out to me on LinkedIn right after I accepted the job to introduce herself as my onboarding buddy into the University Recruitment Team. She was knowledgeable, passionate, kind, and patient in training me. She asked if I wanted to go to dinner after work my first week at one of her favorite restaurants in Seattle and I obviously said YES. I knew we were going to be great friends. Fast forward three years, Jewel and her husband Ryan and I have been on countless camping trips, explored Tanzania together, laughed so hard we cry, and shared countless vegetarian meals together (they are the vegetarians, not me). I loved the idea of starting my adventures with two of my besties and easing into this whole nomad thing.
Back to chile.
I can only describe Patagonia as one of the most beautiful places I have seen this far, and I have been to some incredible places. Wikipedia refers to it as “a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and glaciers in the west and deserts, tablelands and steppes to the east”. It truly is this vast and diverse landscape made for nature lovers. It appears very untouched, likely because of the difficulty to get to (probably on purpose) and a bit more expensive than the normal weekend backpacking trip to the Cascade Mountain range an hour east of Seattle. It has been on my list for years so what better way to start my adventures than with a super intense and physically demanding hike. Especially right after I ate and drank my way through the holiday season. GREAT IDEA JENNIFER…
Our journey.
We hiked the W trek, one of the most popular treks in Patagonia’s Torres del Paine National Park. It is called the W trek because if you look at the map of the hiking, it looks like a W…clever. We chose an express trek of 4 days and 3 nights due to limited vacation time for Jewel and Ryan (they did not quit their jobs like some people I know). The excursion started in Puerto Natales, the closest town to the mountains sitting about 1.5 hours outside of the park. With clean clothes and excitement in our bones, we boarded a crowded and hot coach bus at 7am Thursday morning. Day 1 was a long hike to Base Torres, also known as the towers. If you google W trek, this is the photo that will likely show up in first in results. See photo above. The hike was hard with extended stretches in the sun, a difficult rock scramble at the end and lots of people on the trail due to high season. Day 2 we made our way through rolling hills, walked alongside blue lagoons and picturesque lakes to Refugio Frances. Day 3 we hiked to several miradors, or lookouts, to see the park from way up top. At one of the miradors you could see tons of glaciers and if you stayed long enough for the sun to melt the snow and ice you could witness baby avalanches. The hike was captivating as it wound through rocks, rivers, valleys, and forests that I swear fairies live in. Day 4 we made our way to the last leg of the hike which included hiking along Grey Lake to end at Grey Glacier. We caught the ferry back to the start of the park to head back to Puerto Natales. For my last meal in Chile and because I will try anything once, I ordered guanaco (a cousin of a llama). It tasted like pork loin; I give it a 7 out of 10. A great way to round out the Chilean adventure!
In total, we hiked 57 miles and about 9,000 feet in elevation in just over 40 hours. Yes, you read that right. My feet surely know what that distance feels like and my calves know what that elevation feels like. I only lost one toenail and got two blisters, so I consider that a win. Jewel somehow managed to get five blisters and fought through them all the entire hike – a true champ. Jewel, Ryan and I met some great people on the trail, entertained ourselves with games like “would you rather”, pondered whether or not you could die from drinking only pee and debated what merken is. I would 1,289,732,287% recommend this to anyone that likes a challenge, enjoys hiking, and wants to experience Patagonia. Each day was different and new terrain to explore. I enjoyed the second and third day the most, but the towers were incredible to see in person. We stayed mostly in refugios, aka hostels in the mountains, and one night camping (my poor back). The refugios made us hot dinners ranging from salmon and hummus to BBQ chicken and pesto rice. Packed lunches were nothing to write home about consisting of sandwiches with mayo, cucumbers, and lettuce (shouldn’t even be called a sandwich) and trail mix. The four days flew by; mentally I wanted more time in this beautiful place, but physically we were all DONE.
The Jen essentials for patagonia.
- Moleskin (avoid blisters, avoid blisters, avoid blisters)
- Icy hot backpatches and ibuprofen (I know it is two things, but they go hand in hand for my unforgiving lower back arthritis)
- Good company (AKA Jewel and Ryan – while this would still be a wonderful experience alone, it is much more enjoyable with someone to share the memories with and helpful to avoid a ridiculous amount of selfies)
- Travel towel (hostels do not offer towels…shake dry method therefore required)
- Earplugs (when you share sleeping quarters beware of snorers)
- Flexibility with food options (options are limited and you get what you get so make the most of it)
- Travel pillow (pillows are a luxury in Patagonia)
- Layers of clothing (the weather is quite unpredictable and ranges greatly)
- Sunglasses (protect the crow’s feet)
- Physical and mental endurance (there will be pain, hurt, and struggle, but I promise it’s worth it!)
Wrap it up jen.
I took over 1000 photos in four days and have memories for a lifetime. I cannot wait to share some photo highlights from the trip, which honestly don’t do it justice, to help paint the picture of this magical place. Photo gallery here: thejenessentials.com/patagonia. For anyone that is thinking about going there, GO. Don’t wait any longer, just book the flight and go. You won’t regret it.
Lastly, I want to end this post with a shout out to Jewel and Ryan. I want to thank Jewel for coming up with this blog name and supporting me however she can and Ryan for being my personal photographer and capturing many of these amazing photos photos as well as ordering a beer with me even when he doesn’t really want to. I cannot think of better people to experience this adventure with. Thank you for joining me and I cannot wait for our next one.
Next up: The Galapagos Islands for some sun, relaxation, and animals.
Signing off for now.
Jennifer