Torres Del Paine - Towers of Pain (literally!) - Patagonia

'WOW' is all I can say about Patagonia. The size, the vast open space, the changeable weather.... and the lack of people is quite astounding. We're close to 'el fin del mundo'- the end of the world and you can really feel it. We arrived in El Calafate last week and headed straight to Puerto Natales in Chile to do a trek in Torres Del Paine, a massive National Park famed for its beauty and challenging treks. And believe me, this was the most challenging thing that either of us has ever attempted. With ridiculously heavy backpacks - carrying our tent, sleeping bags, mats, cooking stove, food etc, we trekked through howling knock over winds, (gusts of 100km that literally picked you up and throw you) across cliff faces for many many KM's. In fact over 2 days we walked over 40kms, and then slept in the tent in zero degrees. If this does not test your physical strength and endurance I don't know what will as it was just the two of us, a map and our backpacks. Unfortunately Claire got a big blister on the first day, so with the constant water seaping into her trainers, and the feeling that it was getting infected we had to cut our trek short. However, we would truly recommend this to anyone who wants a challenge, though it is certainly not for the faint hearted! I hope that the pics speak for themselves.......