{"id":199949,"date":"2026-03-17T11:16:15","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T11:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swoop-patagonia.com\/blog\/?p=199949"},"modified":"2026-03-17T16:54:34","modified_gmt":"2026-03-17T16:54:34","slug":"tracking-pumas-in-torres-del-paine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swoop-patagonia.com\/blog\/tracking-pumas-in-torres-del-paine\/","title":{"rendered":"Puma tracking in Torres del Paine"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park<\/a> has the largest concentration of pumas anywhere on earth. For many people they’re as much of a draw as the towering granite peaks that give the park its name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pumas are the most widely distributed large predators in the Americas. Their range covers large chunks of Canada and the USA (where they’re better known as mountain lions or cougars), all the way down to the southernmost regions of Patagonia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Patagonia’s pumas<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I’d done more than my share of hiking in Torres del Paine<\/a> when I worked there as a guide, but my most recent trip was the first opportunity I’d had to go puma tracking<\/a> there. In recent years, they’ve become s much the stars of the show as the W Trek<\/a>. The pumas here have taken leading roles in the BBC wildlife series Dynasties <\/em>as well the Netflix series Our Great National Parks<\/em>, where their activities were narrated by no less a figure than Barack Obama.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The pumas of Torres del Paine have been made famous by BBC and Netflix documentaries<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Torres del Paine’s abundance of guanacos<\/a>, the puma’s llama-like prey, is one reason why the wildlife filmmakers have been flocking here in recent years. Less competition for food means that pumas here are less territorial and even partial to sharing their meals. Throw in the wide-open spaces and you’re faced with a wildlife experience more akin to the African savannah than anywhere else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With a reputation like this, my expectations going to a three-day puma tracking expedition were very high. I joined a small group staying at the Cerro Guido Estancia<\/a>, a working ranch offering luxury accommodation the eastern edge of Torres del Paine. This area is less visited by hikers, a fact that also makes it perfect for puma tracking. Cerro Guido has been working on a pioneering puma conservation project<\/a>, that’s helping ranchers and their sheep coexist with pumas \u2013 a project that’s the subject of Swoop’s latest documentary, The Puma Hunter<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n

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