Most people think you’ve got to be an excellent kayaker to be able to kayak in Patagonia. Known for its strong winds and difficult weather, Patagonia may seem a bit too much for a novice. And, as a novice myself I was feeling more than a bit apprehensive on my way into Torres del Paine with 2 kayaks strapped in the boot..
Luke and I did a 2-day kayaking trip on the Rio Serrano and we were very impressed with our guide, Germán. He literally did everything for us including stashing our clothes in the kayaks, explaining the safetly rules, taking photos of us whilst we were kayaking, putting up our tent, making the food & drying out our gear at the end of the day. All this with his less-than fluent English, which didn’t matter at all, his friendly, can-do attitude got us through.
The kayaking itself was difficult for me, I’m not going to lie. Although one of our clients found it quite easy. I think it depends on your kayaking ability, but for beginners to medium kayakers, it’s a challenge. Luke and I shared a 2-person kayak as Germán knew beforehand that we were novices and sharing a kayak makes the work easier. Luke sat at the back and learnt to use the peddles to steer the kayak with the rudder and I sat at the front. Germán went ahead and guided us through the fast flowing waters of the Rio Serrano, as a very experienced guide (he completed a 90-day solo trip to Cape Horn), Germán is able to tell which current is best to catch and which part of the river to follow to make kayaking easier.
Unfortunately only a few hours after we started and after Germán had dragged us for an hour or so using a rope which he clipped to the front of our kayak, the wind was too strong to carry on so we had to set up camp on the river bank. At this point I was already shattered and welcomed the break, but it meant that we’d have to get up at 7am the next day in order to make up for lost time (we had to catch a boat during the afternoon of the 2nd day).
On day 2 it was too rainy and windy to set off early, Germán told me that this was a common ocurrence and that he often asks clients to allow 3 days for this trip. We set off at about 9 and sailed along the river as the wind and rain died down. After several hours of kayaking and a few stops to fill up on sugar, we arrived at Glaciar Serrano, which looked magnificent from the water, and even better close up. The boat was going to leave at roughly 12:30 so we had about an hour to kill, which meant we could do the short hike up to the face of the glacier. This quick walk was nice but full of tourists that had just come for the day.
Once on the boat we travelled for a short time until we arrived at Estancia Perales where we were going to eat a delicious asado.
I think the mixed experience of kayaking in the Patagonian wilderness, plus the hanging glacier and the asado at Estancia Perales truly make this a fantastic trip that I would recommend to anyone that’s thinking of spending a few days kayaking when they visit Torres del Paine.