Patagonia by Raft and Foot
10 days / Almost Year Round - Call us for an explanation
Pricing: Pricing is based on group size and seasonality, please check with us to secure the best pricing.
Highlights:
• Get a ground-level view of the desolate landscapes Southern Chile with treks through the Torres del Paine National Park, from granite peaks to the dense trails in the forest.
• Discover the stunning glacial waters of Rio Serrano via kayak, including an up-close-and-personal encounter with the immense and awe-inspiring Serrano glacier.
Start Map
DAY 1: SANTIAGO
Your guide will meet you at the airport and bring you to your hotel. Once you have freshened up, your guide will brief you on the wonderful journey you have in store and answer any questions you may have. Following your briefing, we'll embark on a city tour highlighting the historic aspects of the Chilean culture. This is a walking tour to get our legs moving after a long flight as well as provide a chance to see the amazing cultural sights Santiago has to offer. The tour will stop in the fertile valley for a rest and insight from our bilingual historical expert. The tour will also visit the Santa Lucia Hill where the Spanish Conquistador, Pedro de Valdivia, founded the city of Santiago on February 12, 1541. Following the tour we will enjoy a welcome dinner at an authentic restaurant to experience the Chilean cuisine.
DAY 2: PATAGONIA
In the morning, we’ll catch a flight to Punta Arenas. Upon landing in Punta Arenas, we’ll drive to the Hosteria La Torres. The park covers over 2,400 square kilometres and was founded in 1959. In 1978, UNESCO established the park as one of the few world biospheres. We’ll have time to take in the breathtaking views the park has to offer as the sun dips below the mountains. We also have the opportunity to stop and see the local ‘guanacos’, a member of the camel family, and the ‘nandu’, a member of the ostrich family.
DAY 3: TORRES DEL PAINE
This morning we head up to view the Torres. After breakfast and a gear check, we will hike up 5.5 miles to Refugio Chileno crossing at the Rio Ascensio before we unload our gear, have lunch, and prepare for our afternoon trek up to view the Torres. After our viewing we will make our way back down to Hosteria Las Torres for a well-deserved hot dinner.
DAY 4: REFUGIO CHILENO
In the morning, we’ll set out along Lago Nordenskjold, heading for Refugio Chileno. We will make our way to Albergue Los Cuernos where will have a nice relaxing evening with spectacular view of the imposing Cuernos del Paine. This is a great easy warm up for tomorrow’s expedition.
DAY 5: HIKE / VALLE DEL FRANCES
After breakfast we will trek to Campamento Italiano where we will leave our packs behind to climb up the Valle de Frances, AKA “French Valley.” The trail hugs the Rio del Frances with great views of Cerro Principal. This peak is the largest in the park rising just over 10,000ft (3,048m). The afternoon will consist of a climb up through the Valle del Frances with views of Los Cuernos and an awe-inspiring 360-degree panorama. After spending some time in the valley we make our way back down to Campamento Italiano for lunch and to collect our gear. After lunch we'll hike beside Lago Pehoe and its intense blue glacial waters. We'll conclude the day at Refugio Pehoe.
DAY 6: LAGO GREY
After breakfast, we head out over the back of Cerro Paine Grande on our way to the massive Glacier Grey. Glacier Grey is more than 2 miles wide and has an ice field that covers more than 11 miles. After lunch we will have time to explore the glacier before we board a ferry for a scenic ride down Lago Grey. Our ferry will take us up close to the glacier for amazing photo opportunities. When we return to shore, we’ll drive back to Hosteria Grey for dinner.
DAY 7: RIO SERRANO
After breakfast, we’ll meet our kayak guide and drive to the Rio Serrano. We begin our kayak adventure paddling through the glacial waters and seeing the unique wildlife as well as views of the park in the distance. We’ll stick to the first section of Rio Serrano, a calm area of the river that allows us to become comfortable with our kayaks and paddling. When we reach a small waterfall in the river, we will work as a team to portage our kayaks 100m down to calmer waters before continuing on to camp.
DAY 8: GLACIERS
After breakfast, we’ll collect our gear, pack the kayaks, and embark on our longest day down the river. We’ll paddle through the National Park and privately owned lands where we will see the typical cold-forest flora and fauna of Magallanes and the distant glaciers of the Southern Patagonian ice field. Finally we’ll arrive at Bernardo O’Higgins National Park. This is the largest protected area in Chile. Time and weather permitting we will paddle up close to the Serrano glacier to truly experience the sheer size of these massive walls of ice.
DAY 9: PUERTO NATALES
For our final day in the park, we will paddle for approximately two hours before we pack up our gear and catch a boat to Puerto Natales. On the return journey we stop off at the Estancia Perales to enjoy a barbecue at a traditional Chilean Ranch. Once we reach Puerto Natales, we’ll check into our hotel for a well-deserved night in luxury and a chance to reflect back on our adventure.
DAY 10: PATAGONIA
Following breakfast at the Hotel, we say farewell to Patagonia. We’ll drive you to Punta Arenas airport to catch your flight to Santiago where you will meet your connecting flight home.
Our guides receive extensive training about topics such as botany and zoology and are able to make our guests aware of interesting flora and fauna. We also encourage our guides to avoid careless off-road driving or hiking and we ask that our guests respect the same. We provide fair wages, a dedication to training, and a career path for all employees, casual or full time.