Guest
The Torres del Paine “O“ Circuit is the full loop around the Cordillera del Paine—the “W“ plus the more remote backside that gets fewer trekkers. All told, the total distance of the “O“ is approximately 136 kilometers depending on whether you decide to do the W hikes and will take 8 days. The route can be walked in either direction but the majority of trekkers go counterclockwise and finish at the Laguna Amarga ranger station or Refugio Lago Pehoe. If you have the time and motivation, this is one of the premier hikes in Patagonia and will help you beat the Torres del Paine crowds. I took a flight from London Heathrow which was about 14 hours to Santiago where i spend 12 hours to visit the historical town and climb up the Castillo Hidalgo castle, this Iconic castle built in 1816 on Santa Lucía Hill to protect the city. After surviving a 5.4 magnitude earthquake i got back to the airport in time to cat 3 hour flight to Puerto Natales which is a port city on the Señoret Channel in Chile’s southern Patagonia. from there a short bus journey the the gates of the Torres Del Paine national park i took and ocean taxi Salto Grande across Lake Pehoe to the beginning of the O Circuit starting at Refugio Paine Grande. In this episode i trekked along the first southern part of the O Circuit to from Paine Grande to the Frances Valley and climbed to the Brintanico view point which overlooked the summit of Cumbre Principle (3050m). from Britanico i continued to Refugio Cuernos. Day 2 i continued along the southern part of the Circuit to Refugio Las Torres following the northern shores of Lago Nordenskjold. Day 3 i trekked up the Rio Ascencio to the Mirador De Las Torres to the popular view point of the three tower, Torre Sur De Agostini, Torres, Torre Norte Monzino and Co. Nido do Condor making up the torre Central.
