Torres del Paine

We finally got to day eight of the O-trek, our last day. We were tired, but very happy we did it. It was the first time we had hiked for so long and so far: 130 km over 8 days.
Unlike most of our hikes in the Dolomites, this hadn't just been 100% fun. There were ups and downs, we had been happy, uncomfortable, scared and excited. It had been a real adventure, and we were simultaneously happy it was coming to an end (which meant we could take a decent shower!), and sad we were going to step back into the real world (albeit less of a transition compared to most of the friends we had made, since we were going back to our sabbatical rather than "real" real life!). We had felt like we had been transported into a parallel universe, disconnected from the usual worries and priorities of regular life, where all we were focused on is the weather, the path, and the next step.
The last hike was to see the famous towers at sunrise, followed by the downhill route all the way back to the park entrance (13km in total). We (I) chose to go up at sunrise, as many people had said that the views were magnificent, and that the way was not too hard. It was going to be well trafficked, and would give us ample time to get to our 3pm bus back to Puerto Natales.
We got up thinking that we had a packed breakfast that we could just grab and take with us, only to find out they had literally just wrapped a normal breakfast in cling film. We decided to pack the bread and hard-boiled eggs, and eat the rest quickly before hiking. We ended up taking longer than expected (classic) and only left Camp Chileno around 6:20am.
The hike was meant to take 1.5 hours, as it ascends quite steeply by almost 600m. As the first light started to appear, and after getting lost at our first turn, we decided to bomb it up so we wouldn't miss the sunrise. We got to the towers in just over 1 hour, really sweaty but happy to catch the towers in the full glory of the red sunrise. We knew it would get cold quickly, so we packed extra layers and we bundled up as we sat on a big rock and stared at the mountains in awe.
We saw a few friendly faces, but the icy snow and slippery frozen rocks made it hard to move around and greet everyone. We had our bread and enjoyed the view, which felt like an amazing reward for such a long adventure.
We stayed for over an hour, walking down to the lake and managing to take some great photos where you can see the full reflection of the towers in the still water.
The hike back felt easy, it was all downhill and the weather was glorious. We ran into Galina, who couldn't find space at Chileno, and had to stay at a camp further away, adding about 3 hours to her journey. I gave back the lifesaving water bottle she had lent me, and we shared contacts and hugged goodbye. She was very sweet and we hope we'll see her again someday!
We met Katie and Fred from Islington again and, similarly, traded contacts, to see them in London when we're back.
On our way down, we saw the big day hiker crowd going up to the towers, and were glad we had the chance to go at sunrise. We also saw a few slow coaches who we feared may not make it up. The rangers don't allow people up the final steep stretch after 3pm - as they'd end up being too late to catch the last bus home!
We hopped on our 3pm bus and made it back to our lovely Hacienda right outside Puerto Natales. We had the nicest shower, and finally changed into clean, non-damp clothes: what a treat!Read more