A tour guide and his assistant hiked with us (a total of 13 people). After paying the entrance fee, toilet visit, and a short drive to the startpoint of the trek, the tour guide passed us each a day-pack to put our lunch box, water and handy stuff. Our backpacks would be left on the van such that we could trek without the burden. As it kept on raining, we put on water-proof jacket, rain coat etc.
The first bridge to cross Rio Ascensio, only 2 persons on the bridge at one time
It is the split (at the right bottom of "W"). We took the right to go to the Torres, we would then turn to the left on the next day to Cuernos
Chilly day that I put on gloves but they got wet very soon
Thanks the Lord that I could have the chance to buy the clothing (due to baggage delay) which best fit the weather:
1) functional thermal wear - t-shirt from Lasting Sport
2) base layer top and tight from Marmot (girl's midweight)
3) water proof overtrouser from Mac in a Sac
4) hiking socks (but I forgot thin plastic bags for water resistance)
5) small-size gloves from Montane
+ fleece jacket + water proof jacket from Bigpack + Gotex hiking boots (from HK)
I took a pair of trekking poles and this turned out to be a wise choice (good to share the stress at my knees and ankles). There were snow-covered mountains around
We needed to cross a few strong water by stepping on the big rocks
Abundance water around as they are the melting water from glaciers around
After around 2 hours, we reached Refugio de acampar Chileno for an early lunch. As the rain got heavier, the tour guide planned to have us stayed longer inside to keep ourselves warm and dry.
As the rain kept on, we decided to continue our trek towards Mirador Las Torres.
Fresh water from the rivers are drinkable and taste good
Along the trek, we passed through a wood. The guide started to tell us stories - there was once a fugitive ran into this national park and the government tried to locate and arrest him. Each time they got a report of his trace, they could not get to the place place in time to catch him and let him flee. Finally, they knew that he had a twin brother and they ran in different ways that those who wanted to catch him spent most of the time just running around inside this national park in vain.
It looks just like a Chinese ink painting
There were big boulders on the way leading to the mirador (view point). However, the last mile got snowing and became slippery. The tour guide recommended us not to go up but turn back down.
Snow rain along our way down
Rio Ascencio
They said that there could be four seasons within a few hours. It stopped raining, the sky turned blue and bright just after an hour as we were getting down.
Notro - red flowers added some colour to the scene
Hosteria Las Torres Patagonia - our 6 team members were arranged to stay there for that night
The remaining 5 of us were then led to Refugio Las Torres. We shared a dormitory room of 6. I was totally soaked after staying outside in the rain for about 5 hours. That's why I desperately took off all my wet clothes and got a hot shower. I needed to hang over my wet clothes near the furnace for dry, like the others did.
Last sun lit behind the mountain (taken inside the refugio)
My hiking boots were soaked and I put them near the furnace for drying and I needed to stay indoor. It's noted that the supper would be served in another block and I still needed to put on the wet boots again and go outside.
A clear sky on one side and ...
it was still misty on the side of the Torres that I could hardly figure its shape
The sun sunk slowly at around 9:00 p.m.
As I missed the sight of the Mirador del Torres, I would like to share Henry's pictures with you -
http://www.onlyadayaway.com/torres-del-paine-circuit-trek-day-9-hiking-up-to-las-torres/
I image that the sight will definitely like this if we proceeded to the place on 20-Nov. [Copied from Google Street View]
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