My brother Rick and I are on a multiple week journey through Patagonia, starting off in Santiago, then onto the lakes region and ending our time in Chile in Torres del Paine (Blue Towers) National Park. This is the area of Patagonia that I imagined in my head before coming here. Sharp edged rocks soaring towards the heavens with pristine glaciers. It absolutely did not disappoint although it took three days for the weather to permit a stunning view of what are called “The Horns”.

We flew into the tiny airport of Puerto Natales. The airport is so small that there are no jet bridges and you exit from the front and back of the airplane directly onto the tarmac. It isn’t possible for more than one plane to be on the tarmac so they must turn around the same plane before the next plane can arrive. One gate, one baggage claim and no services other than a small booth selling sodas; just check-in and bathrooms. We knew that our transfer to Patagonia Camp (our next destination) would be delayed but luckily Max from Patagonia Camp met us and put us in a taxi to the small town of Puerto Natales where we grabbed some lunch. From there our transport picked us up along with some American folks coming from Argentina and headed to the same location. It’s a 90-minute drive on a very dusty, potholed road to get from Puerto Natales to Patagonia Camp. After about 30 minutes there was no more pavement; most of the roads while we were in Torres del Paine National Park were gravel and barely two lanes. It’s intimidating watching buses and large vans coming from the opposite direction but our driver was fortunately unflappable.

We arrived at Patagonia Camp at about 6 PM and were immediately ushered into an orientation about the property. They took our luggage to our yurt as we sat in the reception area where we were greeted with a welcome drink and appetizers. From there we went onto a different meeting room to select our excursions for the next three days. This is the first time I have stayed at an all-inclusive resort and both Rick and I felt like it had a White Lotus vibe (an HBO show) where everyone on the staff is so friendly and eager to make you comfortable. We had a lake front yurt with a hot tub. When I think “yurt”, I think of a tent in the middle of the dessert and a shared bathroom. That was not even close to the luxury of Patagonia Camp. The yurts are framed with wood and covered with tarp but also have a plastic top at the peak which gives a clear view of the starlit skies. There is a private bath off the side of the yurt which is a wooden structure. It’s really quite remarkable with natural formed wooden tables, comfortable beds and a fridge stocked with food and drinks. All we had to do was call the front desk to have the hot tub uncovered. The best aspect of the camp was the terrific food. The desserts and appetizers were works of art and there were new choices at each meal. The restaurant and bar had a beautiful view of Lago Toro and the spires of Torres del Paine in the distance.

Our first hike was the next day and we went for a hike within the National Park then to a rock outcropping that had cave paintings on the Aonikenk Trail. The trail is in puma (mountain lion) country and children under the age of fifteen are not allowed to hike since they are the main target of pumas. That’s a scary piece of information! You also have to hike with a guide in case you run into a puma. We did not have any puma encounters. We were able to see the handprints and figures on the rock from 11,000 BC. It rained, it was windy (gusts to 40 miles an hour) and the spires of the Torres del Paine were obscured for most of the day.

The next day my brother was able to check off a bucket list item for him; doing the 12-hour trip of hiking to the base of the horns in Torres del Paine. He hiked with the folks that we picked up on our transport from Puerto Natales on our arrival date which were two guys in their 60’s and their twenty something daughters from Michigan. It was a tough hike through windy canyons, intermittent frozen rain and a boulder field with many bottle necks. It is the most popular hike in the national park and that Saturday during high season there were several hundred hikers on the trail. He never saw the horns due to the low hanging fog but he was happy to complete the hike. I didn’t accompany him on this adventure.

Our final excursion was on our last full day at Patagonia Camp and it was amazing. We took the Miradores (viewpoint trail) which had an overview of the Salto Grande (Big Jump Falls) and a spectacular view of the Los Cuernos (The Horns), Paine Grande (the highest peak) Cerro Almirante Nieto, Valle del Frances and the turquoise Lake Nordenskjold in the foreground. The view is spectacular; after days of waiting to see the craggy tops, the shades of blue between the lakes, rivers, skies and rock along with shades of gray from the glaciers and granite is spectacular Perhaps it was the anticipation of hoping to see the elusive mountain tops but it was worth every minute of effort to see this spellbinding sight. One of our companions on the hike kept saying,” It’s not AI, it’s real”. It was appropriate because the colors were so vivid it felt like it must have been airbrushed or a simulation.

I can’t say enough about Patagonia Camp and its impeccable staff. The drivers, the servers, the housekeepers and guides were all terrific. On our last excursion, there were 8 of us, all in our 50’s and 60’s and the music on the van sound system was all obscure songs from the eighties from the Police to Talking Heads to Billie Joel. It’s hard not to believe that it was selected especially for us. If you ever venture to Patagonia, be sure to stay at this incredible oasis.