Torres del Paine National Park is a national park encompassing ancient forests, glaciers, lakes, rivers and fjords.
Torres del Paine National Park was founded in 1959 and is located in the southernmost and largest region of Chile called Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica.
Torres del Paine National Park covers approximately 242,242 hectares. It is one of the largest and most visited parks in Chile.
The main attractions are Cordillera Paine, Los Cuernos, French Valley and Grey Glacier.
Cordillera Paine is a small but spectacular set of mountains. Referred to as the Torres del Paine (Towers of Paine), the three massive summits photographed above are gigantic granite monoliths that are UNESCO-declared biosphere reserves.The highest summit of the range is Cerro Paine Grande, at 2,884 meters.
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The landscape of the park is dominated by the Paine massif, which is an eastern spur of the Andes located on the east side of the Grey Glacier, rising dramatically above the Patagonian steppe.Small valleys separate the spectacular granite spires and mountains of the massif.These are:French Valley (Valle del Francés), Valle Bader, Valle Ascencio, and Valle del Silencio (Silence Valley).
The well-known lakes include Grey, Pehoé, Nordenskiöld, and Sarmiento.
The most highly trekked route in Torres del Paine National Park is called the ‘W’.Total length of the circuit is
4 to 6 days and total distance is approximately 70 kilometers.The "W" circuit often gets mentioned among the world’s top trails.
The Torres del Paine "O" Circuit (6–10 days) is the full loop around the Cordillera del Paine—the "W" plus the more remote backside that gets fewer trekkers. All told, the total distance of the "O" is approximately
110 kilometers depending on side hikes.
Not only does Torres del Paine boast several distinct ecosystems; each ecosystem contains a wealth of landscapes, flora, and fauna found nowhere else in