Living the Dream!

Walking the winding trails of Torres del Paine and Mount Fitz Roy, hearing the ice crack and groan at the iconic Perito Moreno Glacier, and a few days later, flying a drone over killer whales off the Valdés Peninsula. What more could you ask for from Patagonia as a traveler?

by Akis Temperidis
Photography: A.T., Voula Netou

When you reach Tierra del Fuego, spend a few days around Ushuaia, and then check Google Maps to see the miles stretching ahead until Buenos Aires, it hits you like a punch to the gut. This is the end of a road you never wanted to stop traveling. Ushuaia isn’t quite the end of the world — Antarctica, that icy abyss, is just a cruise ticket away — but for most, it’s the last frontier of South America. I felt it back in 2010. I felt it again now. You stand at the continent’s southernmost point, knowing it’s the beginning of the end.

That’s why we’d saved the crème de la crème of Patagonia for the return leg: a trio of holy grail destinations, and one wild card on the Atlantic, where rain and mud promised their own off-road baptism.

Postcard from the Edge of the World

Eighty kilometers northwest of Puerto Natales sprawls Torres del Paine National Park — “Paine” means “blue” in the language of the Tehuelche, the indigenous people Magellan dubbed Patagones. Protected since 1959, Torres del Paine is Chile’s pride, a natural masterpiece. Granite spires, glinting blue under the sheer weight of the sky, while sunlight pierces swirling clouds and reflects off crystal-clear lakes.

We were here in 2010, one lonely, rain-drenched winter night with only the Land Rover for company. This time, autumn brought crowds and new trails. We hiked the eight-and-a-half-hour grind to the lake beneath the famed towers. The path climbs, dips, and punishes you — 700 meters of elevation gain — but no pain, no Paine, they say.

When we finally reached the lake, those three granite titans rising like skyscrapers from a forgotten era, I bowed to this Earth we call home. How the hell did nature carve such beauty over millions of years? But here’s the kicker: in today’s hyper-connected world, peace is a myth. Whether at Torres del Paine or sunset in Santorini, you’ll find that same gaggle of selfie-stick-wielding pilgrims, hunting for Instagram glory.