Backpacking Patagonia with a baby and a toddler (austral summer 2019)

“Life itself is the most wonderful fairy tale.” – Hans Christen Andersen

Peek-a-boo…. Is blogging still a thing in 2023-2024? This old adventure was in my concept folder, so why not releasing it after 4 years of empty silence on these pages?

So what’s up?

Our adventures have been far from idle, as little guy Pelle joined our journey in the summer of 2021, expanding our family to five members. For the latest updates on our recent escapades, check out our Instagram profile. Additionally, I’m currently in the process of editing a YouTube report documenting our three-month Patagonia adventure from the early months of 2022. Stay tuned for more!

Mama cooking dinner with a little help from the happy bunch. August 2022. Abisko National Park. Swedish Lapland.

Bivaouc on the Marsfjället last summer. July 2023. Southern Lapland. Sweden.

Breakfast on a sunny morning on the Marsfjället. July 2023. Southern Lapland. Sweden.

Patagonia 2019 report

Ok. Time to go back almost 5 years. Explore a visual chronicle capturing Bosse’s six-week birth journey in the picturesque landscapes of Patagonian Chile and Argentina during the months of March and April 2019. Bosse was 6 months old at the start of the trip. Lotta was 3 and a half. It was a trip with ups and downs, because Bosse got sick 2 times. But the weather was great, and we had a wonderfull time!

For those who prefer to see a short aftermovie, we like to recommend:

Climbing towards the Refugio Cerro Lopez, PN Nahuel Huapi, Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina

Native lenga forrest on the climb towards the Refugio Cerro Lopez, PN Nahuel Huapi, Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina

Refugio Cerro Lopez at sunrise, high above the Lago Nahuel Huapi, PN Nahuel Huapi, Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina

Camping on the shores of Lago Gutiérrez, within the grounds of Los Baqueanos, Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina , Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina

Camping on the shores of Lago Gutiérrez, within the grounds of Los Baqueanos, Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina , Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina<

Lunch stop on the 12k trek towards Refugio Encanto Blanco, Comarca andina del Paralelo 42, Patagonia, Argentina

Crossing the suspension bridge near Refugio Encanto Blanco, Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina

Arrived save and sound at Refugio Encanto Blanco, Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina

Dusk near the Refugio Encanto Blanco, Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina

Riding the old Patagonian Express through the steppes of Chubut, Patagonia, Argentina

The Cueva de las Manos is an archaeological site with 10.000 years old cave paintings, located in the deep canyon of the Pinturas River, northwest of the Province of Santa Cruz, Patagonia, Argentina. There are hundreds of images of hands in collages on the walls. There are also images of animals that can still be found in the area. Furthermore, there are many images of the hunt.

It’s a small hike from the information centre to reach the Cueva de las Manos. Santa Cruz, Patagonia, Argentina.

The Ruta 40 runs parallel to the Andes Mountains and extends along or through several national parks. It is the longest backroad in Argentina, crossing from south to north and passing through several tourist regions and the main attractions of its territory. We drove the Patagonian stretch for hours without crossing any oncoming traffic. We stayed overnight in the hamlet of Baja Caracoles on our way to the remote PN Perito Moreno. Local farmers gather in the café of the roadstop hotel, which is the only one in a 150km radius.

The Parque Nacional Perito Moreno is a national park of Argentina, located in the center-west of the province of Santa Cruz in Southern Patagonia, on the border with Chile. It is very remote. The closest resuply town is a 4 hours drive away of which 2 hours on a bad gravel road.

“We initially planned a 5-day trek to the base of Cerro San Lorenzo, but after just 3 days, we had to leave the park. Baby Bosse developed a high fever, prompting our early departure. However, we promised to return, and we fulfilled that promise in February 2022 (trip report in the next blog update).

The Parque Nacional Perito Moreno got recent funds from the Butler Conservation fund to build a netwerk of shelters throughout the eastern side of the park. The connection trailnetwork have the potential to become world-class trekking grounds, but for now, the park stays very remote and out of reach of most visitors to Patagonia. We stayed the night in the Gilberto shelter at the San Lorenzo trailhead.

The Lagos Escondidos website has all necessary information for a wonderfull multiday adventure in the park.

Cerro León (1405m) offers beautiful views both to the north – Río Lácteo Valley and Cerro Volcán and to the south – the turquoise colored Lago Belgrano and Peninsula Belgrano (on which we would do a 4 day trek during our 3 month trip in 2022, see report in future blog post).

In Los Antiguos we let the baby sweat out the bronchitis. The oasis is located near the border with Chile and on the shores of Lago Buenos Aires, where the economic activity par excellence is fruit and vegetable farming.

We cross into Chile to travel back northward on the Carretera Austral (Austral Highway). More than 1,200 kilometers of natural beauty await you on this scenic Patagonian Route. Adventures we had on that stretch you will find in previous blog posts from 2013 and 2016. Chilean government promotes the region through the Ruta de los Parques website .

Close to Chile Chico (just across the border from Los Antiguos) you can walk the Circuito Cueva de las Manos, Piedra Clavada y Valle Lunar in the new Patagonia National Park. It allows to appreciate very special rock formations of 350 million years, older than the Andes self.

Lunch break in the Valle Lunar, near some ancient rock cave paintings.

After crossing the the Lago Gen. Carrera by ferry the majestic Cerro Castillo range never fails to dissapoint.

In the Cerro Castillo National Park we did a 3-day overnight trek into the valley Neozelandes. Here we set up the tent at camp porteadores.

In the Cerro Castillo National Park we hiked up Morro Negro during our 3-day overnight trek into the valley Neozelandes.

In the Cerro Castillo National Park we hiked up Morro Negro, high above the Rio Ibanez valley, during our 3-day overnight trek into the valley Neozelandes.

Coming down in windy conditions from the Cerro Castillo National Park.

Picnic stop in Reserva Nacional Lago Las Torres. Carretera Austral (Ruta 7). Aysén, Chile.

chaiten — Delicious food at comedor el muñeco. Chaitén, Los Lagos, Chile.

osorno — Along the Mirador Cerro La Picada trail, at the foot of Volcán Osorno.
Vicente Pérez Rosales National Park , Los Lagos, Chile.

Twinkle, twinkle, little milky way. Lago Llanquihue. Los Lagos. Chile.

Pozones thermales in the shallows of Río Chanleufú. Puyehue National Park. Los Lagos. Chile.

garganta — Garganta del diablo, amphitiator at the foot of the Cerro Tronador. Nahuel Huapi National Park. Río Negro and Neuquén provinces, Argentina.

The hike from Pampa Linda to Refugio Otto Meiling is well-marked, winding through the lenga forest and gradually ascending towards the iconic Cerro Tronador. The final stretch becomes rocky and more exposed, with trail markings painted on stones. This challenging hike covers approximately 12 km and boasts an ascent of nearly 1100 m, so be prepared! Refugio Otto Meiling. is situated between the Castaña Overa and Alerce glaciers on Cerro Tronador and offers some of the best panoramic views in Patagonia. Refugio Otto Meiling. Nahuel Huapi National Park. Río Negro and Neuquén provinces, Argentina.

All of history in one picture! This historic mountain hut was built in 1950 and named after the German mountaineer Otto Meiling. who is known for having explored the far corners of the Nahuel Huapi National Park. Río Negro, Argentina.

ottmeiling — Cerro Tronador at dusk! With Refugio Otto Meiling getting it’s morning sun. The mountain’s name comes from the Spanish word for thunder, a reference to the sound that the breaking ice glaciers make. It is 3,554 metres (11,660 feet) above sea level , towering over the surrounding Nahuel Huapi Park mountains. Mount Tronador has seven glaciers which are melting because of global warming.

Glaciar castaño overo spilling of the flanks of Cerro Tronador, PN Nahuel Huapi, Río Negro, Patagonia, Argentina

2024 holds big plans for us. Next summer, we’re gearing up for a gap year (!) of family adventures. Stay tuned!

Baby Lotta goes backpacking in Patagonia – video

Everything you can imagine is real. – Picasso

It’s been a while. Parenting. Time consuming. Free moments are spend together and outdoors. Our girl is 7 months young now. She grows on sight. We’re enjoying the best times of our lives so far. When she was 20 weeks old, we took her on a extremely rewarding backcountry backpacking trip into Chilean and Argentine Patagonia. 45 days. Ice-caked mountains, evergreen virgin rainforrests, eye-blurring blue and green rivers, golden rolling pampa, abundant wildlife, rare humans, vitamin D spitting sun, howling wind, freshes ever air and senses running overtime. Contrary to gut feeling, it turned our baby way more relaxed then when put between four walls.

This is the video impression which will consume 6 minutes of your life.

A more extensive report in word and photos might follow somewhere in time.

Scree descent after summiting active volcano Chaitén, Parque Pumalin, Palena province, Patagonia, Chile. March 10th, 2016.

This is your life! Do what you love and do it often.

Patagonia – Torres del Paine National Park in winter (Chile)

The jewel of South America, the unmatched Torres del Paine National Park in Chilean Patagonia, attracts an ever rising number of backpackers, crowding camp sites and trails, which will lead them around the knife-bladed granite towers, over the golden steppe, along multicolored, fjord-a-like lakes fed by deepblue glaciers. The park has almost all Patagonian fauna at dislpay: guanacos, foxes, condors, endagered huemules and pumas. Torres del Paine summaries every eco-system which you will find in the immense Patagonian landscape.

Torres del Paine Massif cliffs out of the Patagonian steppe (april 2010)

Famous for it’s 4-seasons-in-1-day and fierce winds in spring and summer, people tend to avoid the park completely during the winter months of june, july and august, which is totally unjustified in our opinion! Hikers with winter experience, will be overwhelmed with the silence on the empty trails and vast beauty of the Patagonian nature. We hiked the famous W-trail at the end of july in 2006 and met nobody! We had the park completely for ourselves! This hike changed our hiking hearts from hobby to passion and will always be marked as our complete switch to unsuported “wilderness” (winter) hiking. We came back to the park in autumn 2008 and autumn 2010, but never experienced the same feeling we had back in the Patagonian winter.

Herds of guanacos at the Lago Sarmiento (july 2006)

So what’s about the park in winter (May trough September)?

– During the winter , high pressures, coming in from Antartica, stabilize themselves over southern Patagonia providing long spells of clear, cold and windless (yes, you are reading well!) weather. Cold fronts from the pacific will eventually come in, interupting the silence and bringing the sequacious winter dusting! When we were hiking the W at the end of july we had one cloudy day and four days of crisp clear weather, resulting in expansive views over the Patagonian ice field.
– Torres Del Paine enjoys sort of a microclimate, which provoces slightly warmer than the rest of southern Patagonia. During the day in july 2006, we had temperatures of 12 ° C in the Sun, but of course at night the temperature dropped to around -10 ° C.
– Most part of the the W-circuit is at sea level, so snow accumulation is very low to non-existant.

Lago and Glaciar Grey, fed by the Southern Patagonian Ice Cap (july 2006)

– No tourists, nor the swarming groups of backpackers, crowding the camp sites to extravaganza, for which the park is famous in summer months.
– Wildlife descends from the mountains to the valleys. So far more likely to spot wildlife. We have noticed fresh tracks of cougar’s.
– No annoying insects. Nor mice or rats stealing your food and biting your shelter to rubbish.

What to keep in mind for winter visits to the park?

– It’s colder than in summer. Although the difference is minimal.
– Rangers will only let you walk the W circuit, because the John Gardner pass along the world classic “Circuito” is blocked by snow and ice (but doable with mountaineering equipment).

Patagonian Horses at the trailhead of the W-circuit (april 2010)

– Mountain huts are closed, except for the Lodge Paine Grande “(the only non-private operated refugio), but be aware that the building is not heated, so you have to bring a warm sleeping bag. Multiple day hikes can be done from this hut!
– Subsequent thaw and freeze cycles, can cause a layer of ice in shady parts of the trails. So this will require more concentration then during other seasons. Light crampons can be helpfull. The upper trail in the Frances Valley and the higher trail to the lookout of the towers will be snow/ice covered.

Lago Sarmiento and Cordillera del Paine, as seen from the steppe (july 2006)

– No ferry boats sailing on the lakes (Grey/Pehoe), so for walking the W-trail you will have to start/end at the administration building.
– The bus between Laguna Amarga and Hosteria Las Torres does not operate.
– Short days. Late July: sunrise around 8:00 and sunset around 17:30.

Lago Nordenskjöld in autumn (april 2010)

Full photoset on our flickr page for more pics on this 5-day winter hike into Torres del Paine National Park (2006).

Another photoset on our flickr page from an 9-day autumn hike into Torres del Paine National Park (2010).

Valle del Francés, Parque Nacional Torres del Paine

Pricking the balloon, Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park: A Park in Need => Sustainability of the park, is a big issue for the Chilean government!

Torres del Paine official website
How to organise a visit to Torres del Paine?