Pingo Valley & Zapata Peak Trek

Day 1: Transfer from Puerto Natales; Trek through Zapata Valley; Zapata camp

An early morning transfer will collect you from your hotel in Puerto Natales and drive you to Torres del Paine National Park. After entering the National Park, we’ll continue our drive to Lake Grey from where we begin our 6hr hike to the Zapata Valley, the most ancient valley of Torres del Paine.

This is an extremely quiet place and our group will experience the tranquility of trekking alone, accompanied only by stunning scenery, and perhaps the watchful gaze of foxes, woodpeckers and huemuls (Andean deer) that live here.

We'll share the weight of our shared equipment, carrying food and tents between us. A group porter and cook will carry the portable toilet and cook meals while we're at Zapata camp. This is a remote camping experience – a basic camp with no hot water – but the reward is the views of Torres del Paine’s wild landscapes on all sides. Upon arrival, we set up camp, settle in and relax with a hearty evening meal.

Length of transfer: 2hrs 

Length of hike: 6hrs, 14km

Meals: Picnic lunch, dinner

Accommodation: Zapata camp

Day 2: Explore Ichthyosaurus fossil graveyard; Zapata camp

Today we'll trek to rocky slopes near Glacier Tyndall, the site of a valuable paleontological discovery – 46 ichthyosaurus fossils. An ichthyosaurus was dolphin-like 'fish lizard' that lived between 245 million and 90 million years ago in the Mesozoic Era. Adult and embryo specimens are visible, and there are the likely remains of a 'pack' that was entombed by a catastrophic mudflow that rushed into the underwater areas where they hunted. A variety of fossilised remains can be uncovered in this region, which used to form the sea-bed before the upthrust of the Andes moutnains.

We'll make our way back to Zapata camp via the same route and share a meal. Tonight we'll take it easy as tomorrow’s hike will be the most challenging of the trip.

Length of hike: 12hrs, 8km

Meals: Breakfast, picnic lunch, dinner

Accommodation: Zapata camp

Day 3: Trek to Cerro Zapata summit; Zapata camp

Our day begins at around 4am and our destination is the summit of Cerro Zapata (1,590m/5,220ft). This is not a technical hike, but it is long and it requires trekkers to interact closely with the landscape: navigating through forests of native trees, crossing snowy terrain and bouldering across giant rocks carved out by glaciers.

The summit of Cerro Zapata has superb 360° views of Patagonian scenery. It's surrounded by lakes, glaciers, mountain ranges and the Southern Patagonian Icefield. The peak is an excellent viewpoint for glaciers and the lakes they flow into. From here we can see Glaciers Grey, Tyndall, Geikie, Pingo, Olguín (and others still unexplored) laid out below us.

We'll take the same route on our return to Zapata camp.

Length of hike: 12-14hrs, 26km

Meals: Breakfast, picnic lunch, dinner

Accommodation: Zapata camp

Day 4: Trek to Lake Grey; Transfer to Puerto Natales

This morning we'll pack up our camp and start our return hike to Lake Grey. This takes us across the grassy steppe and undulating slopes of the valley and takes in energy-boosting views of the Paine Massif. You might be lucky enough to spot some of the region's characteristic wildlife such as the Huemul deer or Magellanic woodpecker as you hike in solitude through this area. At the end of our hike we’ll meet our driver, who will transfer us back to Puerto Natales.

Length of hike: 6hrs, 14km

Length of transfer: 2hrs

Meals: Breakfast