When planning your trip to the Torres del Paine, I want to highly recommend you add a couple of days and check out the trekking and horseback activities at Estancia La Peninsula.
https://www.facebook.com/whereshegoesTODAY/videos/1636474576445797/
Let me fill you in about this place:
Located just outside of Puerto Natales, Estancia La Peninsula has been around for quite some time. This family-owned business has close to 45,000 acres of land and only use about 10,000 acres for cattle raising and tourism. Currently, they offer a variety of outdoor activities such as Horseback Riding, Sheep shearing demonstrations, and trekking. The area is so peaceful and is truly in the heart of southern Patagonia surrounded by fjords, mountains, rivers, and completely remote from civilization.
What did I do?
2 Days Estancias Trekking
Pick up time: 9 am Day 1
Drop off: 4 pm Day 2
We started our morning early with a pick up from our hotel in Puerto Natales. We arrived at a small port called Puerto Prat. From there we loaded our gear onto a boat that took us on a short ride to the Estancia. Once I saw the place, I immediately felt peace and I knew that I was going to love this place.
We met our guide, Trisha, a lovely Oregonian who has been living in the area for about 5 years. She asked us to pack a daypack with just the things we needed for our hike and that the rest of our things were going straight to where we were sleeping. La Estancia provided snacks and a packed lunch for us and I loaded my bag with my GoPro Hero 4, a water bottle, and a couple of layers in case I got cold.
We started immediately to climb to an amazing view that overlooked entire peninsula. From there I could see the Balmaceda glacier, countless mountains, and even Puerto Natales. It was a gorgeous day. At the top of the mountain, Trisha showed us some fossils, which I couldn’t believe they were so well preserved. Trisha explained to the group that this use to be the bottom of the ocean floor thousands of years ago. Isn’t it amazing to imagine that and now it’s an incredible viewpoint?
We came down the mountain to this beautiful landscape of petrified trees and rivers for lunch. We had to cross a couple of rivers to make our way to our final destination, which was Estancia La Barrosa, an additional farmhouse to the Estancia and the place that we would be sleeping that night.
Some rivers were easier than others to cross but I don’t think we were afraid to get a little messy or wet. I don’t know what it is, but I have a high tendency of falling. I’m quite clumsy and get nervous when I’m not sure how my feet are going to land. I laugh uncontrollably and second-guess my self way too much. If you want to know if I fell into one of the rivers, check out this video, I promise you won’t be disappointed.
https://www.facebook.com/whereshegoesTODAY/videos/1586527621440493/
We finally arrived at Estancia la Barrosa, named this way because it’s naturally filled with mud and marshlands. The house was warm and welcoming. The sun was shining so we decided to enjoy our prize of some craft beer from the region and delicious appetizers outside.
We spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying each other’s company and talking about our travels over an amazing dinner prepared by Trish. This girl is multi-talented!
The next morning we wake up to an amazing buffet of a breakfast to get fueled up for the day. It was time to start hike back toward the peninsula. We stop by some caves that had some special carvings and some pretty cool historical facts that I’m going to let Trish explain when you go see for yourself.
By noon we were welcomed back to the estancia with “cordero al palo” which is translated to lamb on a stick. As if breakfast wasn’t enough, they wanted to keep on feeding us. I learned that everyone in the south, of any country really, just wants to feed you until your belly button pops out.
After lunch, we visited the grounds of the estancia. There are approximately 1.000 sheep and 70 cows, 30 horses. We saw a sheep shedding demonstration and the local Gaucho (Patagonian cowboy) Marco showed us the different quality of sheep wool. Inside the Estancia, there is a small shop where you can purchase beautiful sweaters and other items made from the wool of the sheep that are in the Estancia.
And just like that, it was time to go. We returned the same way we came and arrived back to our hotel around 430 in Puerto Natales. Overall my experience with Estancia La Peninsula was spectacular and would recommend 100% to anyone who is planning on visiting Puerto Natales and surrounding areas. I truly felt like I experienced Patagonia in its most natural and unique way.
If you are planning your trip to Puerto Natales and would like to do this exact tour or any of the activities available in Estancia La Peninsula, please click here to visit their website and reserve right away!
What are you waiting for?
Remember when you give good, you get good.
