The route into Torres del Paine from Puerto Natales starts on a nicely paved road for about 30 miles. The next forty miles are a mix of dirt roads and poorly maintained pavement with virtually no signs to indicate you are entering a National Park. Most of the drive is along the shores of Lago el Toro, an enormous glacial lake that averages 900 feet deep, and is a beautiful Caribbean blue color.

We stopped briefly at an archaeological site consisting of three caves where human remains over 11,000 years old have been found, along with the remains of an extinct mammal called the Mylodon which resembles a giant sloth. We then headed into the park, toward Hosteria Pehoe, our stop for the night.

The day had started with rain, and in the park had been raining for three days, but as we drove north into the mountains the sky gradually cleared, and by the time we reached the hotel there were just scattered clouds and the relentless wind.

Hosteria Pehoe was built on a small island in Lago Pehoe(payway) in the 1960’s as a fishing lodge, before there was a national park. It has a spectacular view of the Torres del Paine from the dining room and is a great stop for the night.

We’re too early for check-in, so we do a nearby hike to Mirador Cuernos. The wind is fierce, and a wind gauge on the trail reads 55 mph, well into the warning zone for hiking the trail. When the wind blows 60 mph you are in the red zone and hiking is not recommended. At one point as we round a curve the wind hits full force and nearly blows us over, but the views are incredible.

There is a waterfall along the way with icy blue water flowing powerfully through a narrow chasm.

When we reach the end of the trail the mountains rise from the blue waters in one of Earth’s most beautiful vistas.