Torres del Paine Full-Day Small-Group Tour with Milodon Cave

Lake Sarmiento and Laguna Amarga: first sight of the Towers

After about 50 minutes on the road from Puerto Natales, with a short break at a village on the way, the vehicle reaches Lake Sarmiento, a large closed lake with no outlet whose shores are rimmed with white calcium carbonate formations called thrombolites, built up by microorganisms over thousands of years. Guanacos graze on the surrounding steppe, and this is where the Paine massif first fills the windscreen, with the three Towers standing to the right of the Cuernos.

A little further on, Laguna Amarga marks the eastern entrance of Torres del Paine National Park, created in 1959 and a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve since 1978. The salt lagoon often has Chilean flamingos wading in its shallows, and the viewpoint above it gives the classic photograph of Torre Sur, Torre Central and Torre Norte rising to about 2,500 metres. Our guide allows about 20 minutes here, long enough for photos and a look for condors over the ridge.

Nordenskjöld Lake and Lake Pehoé

The park road then climbs to the viewpoint over Nordenskjöld Lake, a long turquoise glacial lake backed by the Cuernos del Paine, whose dark sedimentary caps over pale granite give the Horns their striking two-tone look. The lake colour comes from rock flour suspended in the glacial meltwater, and it shifts from milky green to deep blue depending on the light. A 20-minute photo stop here is one of the most rewarding of the whole circuit.

Another 50 minutes along the road brings you to Lake Pehoé, the central lake of the park, with the Cuernos and Cerro Paine Grande, the massif's highest summit at about 2,884 metres, rising from its far shore. The viewpoint on the eastern bank is where the full panorama of the Paine massif opens out, and the guide explains how granite that rose beneath older sediments some 12 million years ago was carved by ice into the towers, horns and valleys you see.

Salto Grande waterfall

The first walk of the day is to Salto Grande, the waterfall through which Nordenskjöld Lake drains into Lake Pehoé. A flat trail of about 20 minutes each way, 40 minutes round trip, leads from the car park to the lip of the fall, where the entire outflow of the lake thunders through a narrow rock channel with the Cuernos del Paine rising directly behind the white water. It is one of the easiest and most photogenic short walks in the park.

The path is exposed to the wind that sweeps across Pehoé, so a windproof jacket and sunglasses are useful, and the spray can be strong at the edge. The walk is manageable for children and for most ages, and the guide adapts the pace to the group. This is often where the group takes a snack break with food from their own supplies, since no meals are included on the tour.

Grey Lake beach and the icebergs

The second walk is the highlight for many: about an hour round trip from the Grey Lake sector car park, across a footbridge over the Pingo River, through a strip of forest and out onto Grey beach, a wide gravel spit at the southern end of Grey Lake. Icebergs that have calved from Grey Glacier at the far end of the lake drift the whole way down and ground here, so you can walk right up to blocks of blue ice on the shore.

From the beach you look up the length of the lake to the distant front of Grey Glacier, which flows from the Southern Patagonian Ice Field, and to the right the flank of Paine Grande. The beach is windy and open, and the walk back can feel longer in strong gusts, but it is on flat ground. Together with the Salto Grande trail, this is as much walking as the tour includes, which keeps the day comfortable for mixed groups.

Cuernos del Paine viewpoint

On the return road the vehicle stops at the Cuernos viewpoint, a 20-minute photo stop with the Horns at their closest and most dramatic. The Cuernos del Paine are twin peaks of around 2,600 metres whose dark summits of sedimentary rock sit on pale granite bodies, the two layers separated by a line that looks drawn with a ruler. Seen from here across the water they are the signature image of Torres del Paine and of Chilean Patagonia.

The afternoon light from the west picks out the layers of the Horns and the textures of the glaciers on Paine Grande, which is why the guide saves this stop for the way out. Wildlife is often active at this hour, with guanacos on the slopes, rheas on the steppe and occasionally a Patagonian fox near the road. From here the road leaves the park and heads back toward the cave and Puerto Natales.

Milodón Cave Natural Monument

About 24 kilometres before Puerto Natales the tour ends with a guided visit of around 45 minutes to an hour at the Milodón Cave, a natural monument built around an enormous cavern some 200 metres deep, 80 metres wide and 30 metres high, hollowed out of a hillside by the waves of an ancient glacial lake. In 1895 settlers found pieces of thick, hairy skin and bones of the mylodon, a giant ground sloth that lived here until about 10,000 years ago.

Our guide walks you into the main cavern, past the life-size model of the mylodon at the entrance, and explains the finds, the ice age geology and the early humans who sheltered here. A paved trail makes the visit suitable for most mobility levels. The cave entrance fee is paid on the spot and not included. From here it is a 25-minute drive back to Puerto Natales, with drop-off at your accommodation around 17:30 to 19:00 depending on the day.