Map is from here http://www.torresdelpaine.com/
We decided to challenge ourselves with the "O", 10 day trek which would easily be the longest that either of us has ever done. The days sounded short enough though and the trek would mostly be done in quite low altitudes, unlike e.g. Inka-trail which goes up to 4200 meter or so. The highest point, and the most challenging ascend (~700 m) would be the John Gardner pass up to 1241 meters...it sounded very doable after climbing up mountains like Kinabalu or Rinjani. Still, 10 days of trekking is a lot, 130 km is a long way and carrying a full pack with food, camping equipment and clothing for all kinds of weather (Patagonian weather is very unpredictable, in one day one can experience snow, rain, sunshine and all kinds of temperatures from minus degrees to plus ~30c) can be strenous. Also, we heard that the John Gardner pass, eventhough not so high, is very difficult because of the winds and other weather related issues: the pass had just been closed last week for two days because of snow that made it unpassable without proper gear.
We were also wondering about the route, where to start and how many days should we count. First plan was to start with the W and then finish with the backside and the pass and glacier Grey. Pros for this plan was that one could still back out before the backside if there was any problem with physical/mental conditions of the hiker. Also, first one would hike with the masses and then move on to more peaceful areas and not the other way around. However, at a free information event (held everyday at 3pm in Basecamp in Puerto Natales) the suggestion was to start off with the backside, do the pass after 3 days of warm up hiking (when one still has proper strenght and not after 6-7 days), and the finish the trek with the "highlights" like the Torres.
We were very undecided what to do and it took a lot of pro-con consideration to choose. Still, I think we chose wisely by doing as the suggested in the infoevent. We started with the backside, without so many people and enjoying the solitude. We brought our own food, enough for ~10 days, and we thought that if the pass would be closed, then we would at least not run out of food there on the backside with this plan. Also, mentally, I thought it would be better for me to start with the backside and then do the exciting pass first and leave the "easier" stuff for last, this way I couldn't back out either before finishing ;)
About the equipment: we had our tent, sleeping bags and mats, raingear and some changing clothes and the cooking equipment (trangia). We had collected all kinds of handy food on our trip for the trek (gluten free pasta, dry sauces, instant rice, powdered milk and peanut butter etc.) and of course we bought LOADS of chocolate and nuts and raisins. Pheww. It looked like a years worth. One fantastic thing was that there would be water everywhere and all the time! The water in all the rivers and streams was supposedly potable so we wouldn't have to carry much with us. Also, most of the campsites and refugios had fantastic facilities: some had even warm showers! (like a cold shower wouldn't already be a luxury). Some refugios (mountain huts) offered dinners, lunches and breakfast and of course accommodation as well. Most of the places, at least on the W trek, were completely fully booked though. The refugios and campsites also often had a small kiosco where one can stock up with pasta/biscuits/tomato sauce/tuna or buy such necessary items as beer or wine (yep...) When hearing all this, the trek sounded like a piece of cake. With such facilities and services, you didn't really have much to worry about.
So we spent a couple of days in Puerto Natales, organizing and planning, and then finally on February 5th we hopped in a morning bus from PN to the NP and Laguna Amarga (first entry point, where everyone has to hop out, pay the park entrance and see a video about the park conservation - afterwards one can continue onwards). I have to warn you that this description of our route consists of many superlatives and big words like amazing, magnificient etc. But it's truly hard to describe these views and places without them. I hope the pictures will explain better why and you can see this for yourself :)
Day 1: Laguna Amarga - Campamento Seron, 20 km, 3 h 15 min, 5.2.
First day started with a beautiful sunshine and we were excited and motivated! We left all the crowds of people behind us and headed towards the far away mountais through dry meadows. After maybe 10 minutes we saw a massive condors flying above us, really close! It felt like a good sign, bringing us luck. The day was pretty much just walking on a very flat terrain near a pretty river, views were really nice but as we later found out, they would only get better.
We came to Seron so quickly that I was really surprised, here we are already!? The campsite had a small refugio but brand new showers and toilets, nice spots for tents and all surrounded with fields of flowers and some horses chilling around. And some caracaras!? These big and quite impressive birds were hanging next to the refugio tame as the seagulls in Helsinki. We soon found out why: the chef of the refugio came out and the birds started screaming and running to him. Awkwardly the chef smiled at me when I pointed at him saying "haa, so it's YOU!" The chef was feeding them in a very relaxed manner - right next to the sign with a warning about giving food to wild fauna.
We got super tired from the days effort so around 20.00, after a lovely and nutritious meal of rice with spices, we fell asleep and slept happily the next 12 hours. Okay, it was pretty cold and the sleep wasn't very good, but at least it was plenty.
First view of the Torres del Paine from the bus
Start of the trek, from Laguna Amarga to Seron
Bridgecrossing
Yep, Torres del Paine
CONDOR! 
First day views
Happy trekker
And another one
Caballos at Seron
Local seagull aka caracara
Dinner preparationsDay 2: Seron - Lago Dickson, 19 km, 4,5 h, 6.2.
We had breakfast at the small refugio of Seron: of course it consisted mostly of bread so that didn't help me much, but Chris was so generous that he would give his eggs to me. We ended up pretty full and so the first couple of hours of walking went easily with so much energy in our bodies. The day started with an ascend to a small hill with beautiful views to nearby lakes and mountains and new valleys. Otherwise the day was very flat, like the first one, and quite an easy walk. I of course had managed to develop quite some blisters in the soles of my feet which made the walk somewhat painful. Still, a short day and soon we were already on a hill top overlooking an inexplicably beautiful view over the Lago Dickson, mountains and the campsite far below us. We ran down the steep rocky path and went to take a shower first thing.
We decided to have dinner at the refugio for saving our own meals for later and what a massive dinner it was! After a big bowl of soup and a huge salad there was even a bigger plate full of pure de papas (mashed potatoes) and chicken breast. The dessert peaches felt a bit too much but truly it was all very delicious.
Leaving Seron
Fetching water from a waterfall can make your shoes pretty wet
Lakes and mountains
Rainbows too
Pretty path
Impressive
Tired but happy
Lago and refugio Dickson! 
Chilling at the campsite
Not a bad place to set up one’s tentDay 3: Lago Dickson - Los Perros, 9 km, 3h 45 min, 7.2.
After yet a great breakfast at the refugio we headed towards campamento Los Perros. This time the trekking happened mostly in a forest, in the one forest that the tourists hadn't burned down yet! Slowly the path took us upwards but yet again the whole walk felt really flat and soon it was over again. We arrived to Los Perros campsite around 13.00 and were wondering what to do next?
After showering (FREEZING), slacklining and setting up the tent we decided to go for a little walk around the area and checking out the nice views of the surrounding two glaciers! Everywhere we could see new snowy mountain peaks, one more impressive than the other. My blisters were surprisingly fine and nothing really hurt, muscles felt fine and we were in good spirits! We cooked some delicious pasta with tomato sauce and tuna. After spotting some mice, Chris built a very cool storage construction for our foods - it would've made even MacGyver proud. Our food was hanging from a rope between two trees with a complicated looking balancing system and a branch and whatnot. I pimped it with my backpack raincover and I'm sure our food was supersafe (although some hungry trekkers were a true threat).
Leaving Dickson to Los Perros
Pretty flora…La Paloma maybe? 
Rivers
And glaciers
Flipflops and all the warm stuff, seems legit no? 
MacGyver style mice safety device
So cute
Yes, there are many more pics of mountains to come
Tattooed stones
My effortDay 4: Los Perros - Campamento Paso - Refugio Grey, 22 km, 6 h, 8.2.
So this was the infamous John Gardner pass day. One could tell: most people had already headed off early morning to tackle the pass and the campsite was half empty by 7.30. This made me feel very uncomfortable...was there something I didn't know of? Well, we had a great breakfast of our own with a lot of coffee after a really bad nite's sleep.
The first part of the day was FULL of mud. We had good vibes though, we were basically running up the muddy paths, balancing on tree trunks and finally using our brand new walking sticks (excellent these sticks btw!). We were excited and happy, no more boring flat paths! Already during the first hour we had overtaken most of our fellow campers. The rest we overtook during the steep ascend over the pass. It was crazy: we didn't have a single break during the start of the day, the 700 meter ascend and the 800 meter descend, we just kept on walking and walking all the way up to the pass and beyond it, in the rocky bare terrain! The wind grew stronger the higher we got and then we entered the highest point at 1241 meters. A gust of wind almost blew me off my feet. The wind kept blowing and blowing and it felt like the mountain was trying to get rid of us, we were in the wrong place, on an alien ground somehow. Hail and water hit our face so hard that we tried to get lower fast, out of the pass, where it would be a bit more easier. I had never experienced such wind, we were practically crawling to get forward (yet again buying the walking sticks really paid off, such an aid they were).
Soon it got better. And then we could finally focus on the incredible view ahead of us, in this new valley. The huge glacier Grey was right there, even bigger than I could've imagined! On top of this, like it wasn't impressive enough, there was a rainbow crossing the whole glacier. My god. We were happy!
We continued without a break just running down the looong descend of 800 meters. In the end of the descend we realised we hadn't really eaten anything in three hours nor had a break so finally we stopped, ate nuts and chocolate and then continued to Campamento Paso. Our first plan was to spend the night there, but with all the adrenaline and excellent feeling we got from our superb start of the day, we decided only to cook lunch there and continue to Refugio Grey!
During the first four days we got to know some of our fellow hikers, a mixed group of older hiking enthusiasts from Australia, England and Holland, a couple from Germany as well as four young and cute girls from Santiago. All were having more or less the same plan as we and we kept meeting at the campsites and on the paths. All of them were also continuing to Grey, so the decision was not difficult. After 1,5h lunch break we continued to yet another adventurous path! This part from Paso to Grey went in the woods next to the glacier's edge with grand views all the time over the ice and snow. Also, it included some ladder climbing! Two times the route would come to a steep and deep "crevice" where one would have to first climb down a metal ladder and then walk to the other side to climb up. The ladders were so scetchy that it was better not to think about the safety and just go, climb. With the slight rain and mud, it was also quite slippery but everything went fine and we were excited. The rest of the day's walk was over fast and there we were, at refugio Grey!
One could really tell that this was now part of the W. The huge camping area was full of tents and there was a massive queue to the showers! I was lucky though, the warm water would only start running in 20 minutes and since I had no problem with taking a cold shower, the queuers would let me take my freezing shower while they wated for their warm water.
We cooked our dinner in a too full of a cooking area and admired the impressive peaks, the lago Grey with the floating glacier blocks and chatted with a very nice English man from this mixed walking group. The lucky guy had seen a woodpecker on the way to Grey! We heard it knocking somewhere close but couldn't see it. Still, the day 4, with the pass, the glacier and all the mud and the ladders had easily been the most strenous but definitely also the best day so far!
During the night a powerful wind was ripping our tent back and forth with such a force that for the first time I wasn't sure if it would really hold. It did. Thank you Fjallraven for creating such a solid tent.
Leaving for the infamous pass
Up we went 
More glaciers (and soon many more pics of glaciers)
Valley was left behind
Almost at the pass
This picture does not represent well the amount of wind there was, but I can tell you, it was loads
Our German friends trying to get forward
Happy trekking fans! 
Rainbow over the glacier Grey
Cooking at Paso
Leaving Paso
Chris and Grey
Ladder crossing
A bit foggy pic but it’s Chris coming up
On the way to refugio Grey
More ladders
Down
And up
More pics of Grey
And Inka
And Grey
Bridges
And mountains
And glaciers
Finally at Grey
Paine Grande massif
Icebergs from glacier GreyDay 5: Refugio Grey - Paine Grande Lodge - Campamento Italiano, 19 km, 5 h, 9.2.
It was our 4th "anniversary" which Chris had of course forgotten (men...). Fortunately one of us remembered so we could celebrate a bit with some extra chocolate I had carried for Chris. I also gave him a gift for when we come back to Natales: a massage in a massage center! It sounded like a welcomed thing after hiking 10 days ;) We decided to have breakfast at the refugio, which was a bit of a disappointment though. They promised all kinds of things like yoghurt (which I was happy about since I couldn't eat the bread) but didn't have that after all, nor could Chris get more bread and blaah, just bad service...for that price we expected more.
The walk to Paine Grande Lodge was very easy and it only took us ~ 3 hours. It also felt very boring after yesterday's exciting route. The weather had stayed beautiful and we felt very lucky about that. A bit too early though since in the evening the rain started. We had planned only to have a very short day and spend the night in Paine Grande but since we were there already at 13.00 and we still had energy, we decided to continue to campamento Italiano, a free campsite with no services. Before that we had a lunch break in the amazing views of Paine Grande Lodge. This deep turquoise lake, the multiple and highrising mountains with snow and the multicoloured meadows below them really created a nice spot to have lunch. Paine Grande also had a shop with some fruits and eggs which we happily bought for later consumption.
On the way to Italiano it started raining. Slowly but steadily. Gladly the wind was pushing from behind so the rain wasn't hitting our faces...I felt bad though for the people who were walking the otherway. After a couple of hours we reached Italiano, found a reasonably good spot for our big tent and started preparing dinner aka rice with eggs, what a treat. All the evenings went pretty much the same way: setting up the tent, showering if possible, then dinner and early bed. This time the local seagulls weren't the caracaras but some small species of falcons. They were jumping around the cooking shelter, eating everything that was left behind. Even their sound reminded that of the seagulls, strange.
The night was yet again quite bad. This time because of some unwelcome visitors. We didn't fix our foods MacGyver style up in the tree and yes, mistake it was. I woke up many times to check if I heard correctly but everytime it seemed as if my mind was playing tricks on me. In the morning we saw the bite marks on the peanut bag, then on the other plastic bag the peanut bag had been in and last in the brand new backpack of Chris'. Damn mice.
Strange flora
To Paine Grande Lodge
Amazing colors
Paine Grande
More colors
Crossing a river to campamento Italiano
Cooking in the rain
Local seagullDay 6: Italiano - Mirador Britannico - Italiano - refugio Los Cuernos, ~ 4,5 h, 16,5 km, 10.2.
I ate porridge for breakfast and remembered again how much I hate porridge. After the unpleasant BF we packed our daypacks and started climbing up the riverside towards the mirador Britannico - a view point to the Valle Frances. It was a nice route in the forrest, next to the pretty river and with magnificent views over the lakes behind. The mountains surrounding us had insanely big glaciers that made thunderous sounds every now and then.
Yet again we felt like we had just started: walking seemed to just get easier every day. No muscle pain, blisters didn't bother anymore and even the occasional knee pain seemed to be under control. Only thing that I noticed was that some times I felt very bored with the walking: if there was no ascending or descending, ladders, mud or other obstacles, I just got veery bored and hoped to be at the next destination already.
Fortunately the trip to the mirador was quite interesting, and soon we reached the campamento Britannico and from there it was only a 15 minute hike to the viewpoint. Sadly it started getting quite misty. We ran up as fast as possible and got to see the peaks but only for a few minutes, then the fog sneaked upon the mountains and not much was visible anymore. On the way down we met many people who then decided to turn back: no point going to a mirador if there's no view.
Back at the camp we made some lunch and packed our stuff, then started a very boresome walk to refugio Los Cuernos. For celebrating the anniversary we had asked the guy at the Paine Grande Lodge to reserve us a dinner at the Cuernos which turned out to be a superb timing: on our way to Cuernos it started pouring! Rain rain rain and mud and everything was wet. This also meant that all the inside places (like the cooking area of the campsite) was PACKED with shivering and wet W-trekkers who hadn't brought any necessary gear to stay warm and dry. But since we were gonna have dinner, we didn't have to fight over the kitchen space. Showers were a catastrophe though and the campsite was at its limits. We found a free platform that said "reservado" on it...technically we didn't have a reservation, maybe, but we had reserved a dinner and the guy at Paine Grande did mention while calling Cuernos that we'd be camping....so we went for it: while we paid for the dinner and camping, we just claimed to have a reservation and said that we set our tent on the platform. It seemed to work, no one complained. We didn't either!
Dinner was excellent, it had even gluten free bread! Unfortunately the size wasn't quite like at Dickson and our appetite was big. Chris ended up cleaning all the other tables of leftover breads, even after eating dessert.
At los Cuernos we heard a rumor that Campamento Torres (the last camping before the famous towers and the one we were heading) was closed - apparently the toilets were full. This meant that the refugio El Chileno (another camping area before the Campamento Torres) would be packed. We asked the guy in Los Cuernos to call El Chileno for us to make a booking for a campsite but he said it wasn't possible, our best option would be just to go there early. Unfortunately we had already paid for a breakfast next morning at 8.30 which would mean that we'd be leaving quite late. Well, we're fast, we figured.
The rain really makes one quite demotivated, especially when camping even with good gear. I guess we kind of felt a bit tired of it all, walking, camping and moving all the time. Also, if it was raining and foggy, there would be nothing to see up there and it would be pointless to go to the Torres. Let's see tomorrow, we thought.
Up to the mirador we go
Mountains
Happy trekking fans 
Nice view over the lake 
Next: a million more pics of mountains 
Conquerer
Chrisu
At the Los Cuernos
Peaks
Celebrating the anniversaryDay 7: Los Cuernos - El Chileno, 11 km, 3 hours, 11.2.
All through the night it kept raining and raining. I was sure that the mice were eating Chris' food again but this time it was only in my head. Too many sleepless nights in a row, pheww..so many uncomfortable positions to sleep in trying not to be cold or to touch the wet floor or to fall of the mat... or to try to keep imaginary mice away...
But then the sun came out and with it our sprits rose again! We'll damn right go for the Torres and do the last bits of this trek proudly! So after a good breakfast we started off hiking up and down next to a beautiful Lago Nordenskiöld (yes, named after the explorer Otto Nordenskiöld, born in Finland) and its black and white rocky beaches. We came quickly to the crossing to Chileno, a shortcut, and then up up up we continued to the valley.
We were fast again, overtaking most on the way and running down all the descends. I was a bit stressed out about finding a camping spot and the hurrying felt somehow wrong - we are here to enjoy the trek and the views, not having a running competition right? Anyhow, the views were yet again excellent and actually we just went our regular pace anyway so it wasn't really that bad.
We came up to the "entrance" of the valley that would eventually lead to the Torres. Breathtaking views again and a breathtaking wind too! It blew from the end of the valley and it was hard work to get forward, but in the end we were running again, down to the excellently located refugio of El Chileno.
We were lucky to still find a spot for our big tent, the people who came later had to set up their tent far away along the riverbanks. "Accidentally" (well sort of...) I also ended up using the refugio showers after not finding the campsite ones (lucky me, the others were quite repulsive). The stress was gone after finding a campspot and having a shower. It was still early so we actually made proper lunch instead of snacks or quicksoup! Then we played games with the cute chilean girls and hackysack with some tour guides. Such an excellent day. We were also excited since next day we'd be going back to civilization - but first the most famous of the sights, the Torres!
Up to El Chileno 
Lago Nordenskiold 
Mountains again 
Happy mountain fans 
Inka is also happy about the sunshine 
Up at El Chileno 
Chileno 
Playing games at the refugio with the Chilean gals 
Playing hacky sack 
Torres in the background 
Evening at the Torres Day 8: El Chileno - Base Torres - El Chileno - Hotel Las Torres, 13,5 km, 3 h, 12.2.
At 4.00 the alarm would go off but I was up already at 3.00. We grabbed our daypacks and put on our head torches and then headed off into the darkness.
We were told that the towers are the most beautiful when the morning sun hits them, so we wanted to see that. We packed our daypacks full of warm clothes, a sleeping bag, a thermos with water and breakfast stuff to be enjoyed up by the Torres. It was exciting to walk in the dark and one of the most magical sights was when we stood on a hill and down below us all the different colored tents were lit up from the inside like lanterns glowing in the dark. I guess everyone had had their alarm at 4 but most hadn't gotten out of the tent yet.
It was quite the hike up and even with the chilly air, I was sweating. I felt that I was kind of giving my last energy for this ascend. It would be over soon, all this walking. We got out of the forest and could see a queue of lights walking up, so we continued. Soon we came to an edge where a sign would tell us not to pass but to find the right path in the dark was difficult. It's so hard to understand the dimensions or distances when it's pitch black. When we came to the lake, below the Torres, we started climbing up again to the edges of the lake and finally found a big rock to hide ourselves behind. The wind was cold but gladly not so strong. The sky was clear and it started to get brighter, the sun was rising somewhere behind us. The Torres were right there infront of us and while eating breakfast and drinking luke warm coffee we admired the lovely peaks.
It took long for the sunlight to hit the Torres. Many left already because of the cold but at 7.40 the peaks suddenly lit up with a warm orange light and truly it was a beautiful sight. After a while the sun lit up the whole area and then it was the time to hike down and actually see where we had walked up in the morning.
At El Chileno we enjoyed some well-earned snacks before heading down from the valley. Then we ran, all the way down to Hotel Las Torres. Smiling we greeted all the upcoming and sweating daytrippers and W-trekkers. We had done our trek and sweated and climbed. And then a condor was soaring above us. Ha! What a perfect finish for our trek!
On the bus we slept, in Natales we found a nice private room to stay at, took all we had to a laundry and had a massive dinner to celebrate our successful trek. Next few days we spent in Natales organizing things, of which I will tell you more later. But this has been a way too long of a post already, so next time then!
Torres towers early morning
Nearby mountains were pretty too
Coffee was welcomed
Happy Torres fans
More fan pics
Sun is coming up
And then it lit up the towers
Golden light
More light
Valley 
DONE
Last view from the bus
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