2019 Wilderness Travel Catalog of Adventures

This is the ultimate journey to both the Argentine and Chilean sides of Patagonia, with incredible hikes and fantastic lodges. PHOTO: SALIM MADJD

In Patagonia TIERRA DEL FUEGO, CHILE, AND ARGENTINA

Estancia Helsingfors, we’ll have the trail to ourselves as we hike through alpine terrain to Lago Azul. You’ll have the option to be a gaucho and ride the estancia’s horses part way up to the lake, then hop off and hike just the top portion of the trail. Day 10 Perito Moreno Glacier / Lago Argentino / El Calafate Crossing the pampas to turquoise Lago Argentino, we keep a lookout for Patagonia’s wildlife, which includes guanacos, rheas, flamingos, and condors. At spectacular Perito Moreno Glacier, we’ll walk a boardwalk for views of the 200-foot-high wall of ice, listening to the creaking ice and watching icebergs calve into the lake. Days 11-16 Paine National Park, Chile Crossing from Argentina into Chile, we enter Torres del Paine National Park, selected as one of the five most beautiful places in the world by National Geographic magazine. Here a host of spires soar 6,500 feet straight up from the Patagonian steppe. Our days are spent hiking along Lago Nordenskjold, along the iceberg-strewn shores of Lago Grey, and up the Valle Ascencio to the lake at the base of the Paine “towers.” Our lodges give us great access, with several hikes starting right outside our front door. Depart on Day 16 from Punta Arenas.

We’ve been exploring Patagonia for 40 years, honing this journey to both the Argentine and Chilean sides of the region to absolute perfection. You’ll have the right number of hiking days (ten!) to enjoy all the region’s classic

Days 1-3 Buenos Aires, Argentina / Ushuaia / Tierra del Fuego After exploring Buenos Aires, a flight 1,500 miles south brings us to the southernmost city in the world, Ushuaia, set between the sea and the Cordillera Darwin (and only 600 miles from Antarctica). Here we hike lenga forests alive with birdsong, explore by Zodiac on the Beagle Channel, and walk among thousands of penguins at Martillo Island. Days 4-7 Los Glaciares National Park This realm of rock and ice is home to 47 major glaciers and crowned by the seven-summited Fitz Roy massif (11,703'). We hike below the towering spires of Fitz Roy, and to Laguna Torre, set below the monolith of Cerro Torre (10,280'), which soars over a vertical mile out of an ice sheet. Our hike on the Pliegue Tumbado trail brings us unconventional views of both the Cerro Torre and Fitz Roy massifs.

“A fabulous itinerary with spectacular scenery and hiking, amazing wildlife, lodges, and dining, all with no altitude—wow!”

hikes plus our secret, off-the-beaten-path routes in both Los Glaciares National Park in Argentina and

Karen G., New York NY

Torres del Paine National Park in Chile. And we take you to otherworldly Tierra del Fuego, with its penguins and legendary Beagle Channel. Our Trip Leaders have a great gift for making you feel at home in this spectacular and distant land, and historic estancias and lodges welcome you along the way.

Days 8-9 Estancia Helsingfors / Los Glaciares National Park From remote

SEE WHY WT’S PATAGONIA TRIPS ARE TEH BEST: WILDTRAV.COM/WT/PATAGONIA 128