Torres del Payne – goodbye reflections

The national park is truly impressive, even for a nature spoiled Norwegian like me. The views are spectacular, and the hiking opportunities are fantastic. And Chilean authorities deserve credit for how the park is managed – with ranger-stations and controls on certain hikes. For instance, on some of the hikes we had to leave our names when starting the hike and checking out when returning. Also, information about tracks are easily available and the various hikes are “graded” so that one knows what to expect of physical effort. Also both hiking and camping options are soundly regulated, with access only by foot to many camping areas. All of this is very good.

However, we already saw tendencies to too many tourists (of course we know it’s peak season) on narrow tracks – and exactly this was the reason for our early starts some days. Even though these are vast areas, international tourism is encroaching, and nature shared by huge groups of selfie-motivated tourists (sometimes noisy) in all shapes and forms are  not the same as when enjoyed in solitary or at least by a limited number of people. This is my opinion, others may differ, but some kind of regulation of tourism and its impact are still something we might have to consider some time in the future. However, for now Torres del Payne national park is a fantastic visit and it is highly recommended – just be prepared to share it with others.