{"id":33211,"date":"2019-02-28T14:57:38","date_gmt":"2019-02-28T03:57:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures?p=33211&preview=true&preview_id=33211"},"modified":"2024-09-20T23:56:27","modified_gmt":"2024-09-20T13:56:27","slug":"torres-del-paine-fund-patagonia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/torres-del-paine-fund-patagonia\/","title":{"rendered":"How to have a positive impact on Patagonia’s Torres del Paine"},"content":{"rendered":"

With eight hours and 18 kilometres behind you, three colossal granite spires come into view. Sitting above a lake, milky blue from rock flour, their enormity \u2013 up to 2,500 metres above sea level \u2013 is a wonder in itself. You\u2019ve forgotten the 50 kilometre per hour winds and the two and a half kilometres of continuous ascent. You\u2019ve even forgotten your feet hitting the ground before the sun did. \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

You\u2019re in Chilean Patagonia<\/a> on the Base Torres trail, a route so iconic that the campsites and <\/span>refugios <\/span><\/i>all require advance bookings. But this popularity has also made it one of the most degraded trails to date. In just one day, hundreds of trekkers can pass through all four vegetation zones: from tuft grasses of the Patagonian Steppe, through the resilient <\/span>Lenga <\/span><\/i>trees<\/span> of Magellanic subpolar forests. Trudging through these landscapes not only erodes the trails, but also disrupts already-delicate ecosystems. Whether it’s foreign soil stuck to an adventurous traveller\u2019s hiking boot or a protein bar wrapper, tourism brings in countless threats to the region\u2019s natural wonder.<\/span><\/p>\n

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT INTREPID’S SMALL GROUP ADVENTURES IN PATAGONIA HERE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\"A

Hikers on the trail.<\/p><\/div>\n

Even though these areas are part of Chile\u2019s national parks, there\u2019s still a lot of work done by organisations like Torres del Paine Legacy Fund to restore and maintain them. In recent years, they have installed new bridges and boardwalks, maintained existing trails, and constructed new routes along the \u2018W\u2019 circuit. Volunteers plod with unwieldy tools to restore these trails \u2013 at a cost of just US $2 per metre \u2013 so that future generations have the chance to revel in Chile\u2019s landscapes. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For the many local businesses and residents that depend on the park, it’s sustainability is critical. But what about the region\u2019s original peoples and residents? Even with the booming tourism industry in Torres del Paine, the indigenous peoples who first called the Patagonian fjords home remain marginalised and excluded from the local tourism economy.<\/span><\/p>\n

TREK THE INCREDIBLE TORRES DEL PAINE TRAIL ON THESE SMALL GROUP ADVENTURES<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\"Torres

The iconic granite peaks in the Torres del Paine.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Kaw\u00e9sqar people have inhabited western Patagonia, stretching from the Gulf of Penas down to the Magellan Strait\u2019s southern banks, for at least 60 centuries. Known in their language as <\/span>w\u00e6s<\/span><\/i>, the territory lent itself to nomadic movement and reliance on the sea. Familiarity with the land is so ingrained in Kaw\u00e9sqar culture that every island, fjord, hill, and channel has a name of its own. \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite being custodians of the Patagonian fjords now called Chile for so many years, the Kaw\u00e9sqar people are severely underrepresented in the local economy. Recent government initiatives, designed to give a significant part of the land to its traditional owners, have created the 2.8 million hectares of Kaw\u00e9sqar National Park. Yet, despite booming tourism, the people who first called it home are yet to reap the benefits. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

READ MORE ABOUT THE TORRES DEL PAINE LEGACY FUND HERE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\"A

The spectacular Torres del Paine National Park.<\/p><\/div>\n

RELATED: YOU SHOULD GO TO PATAGONIA IF YOU WANT TO FEEL SMALL<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Recognising the Kaw\u00e9sqar connection to Patagonia\u2019s protected areas, the Torres del Paine Legacy Fund is undertaking a project with communities in Punta Arenas and Puerto Natales to share their rich cultural heritage, with visitors and residents alike. <\/span><\/p>\n

In Puerto Natales, the gateway to Torres del Paine, <\/span>The Intrepid Foundation<\/span><\/a> is helping to fund the first <\/span>Kaw\u00e9sqar Community Tourism and Cultural Center. The hub\u2019s creation hopes to show how the traditions and stories of the region\u2019s indigenous peoples are just as incredible as its landscapes. Kaw\u00e9sqar communities are collaboratively designing, building, and managing the project so that they can sustain it and its authenticity for years to come. Plans include offering visitors a place to sample food, purchase art, hire a guide for a historical tour, or take a cultural workshop, each designed with both the Kaw\u00e9sqar people and their land in mind. Around 25 community members will receive training to build their skills and help tell Kaw\u00e9sqar stories to everyone visiting the land that is theirs. The center is due to open in late 2020, and will appear on <\/span>Intrepid itineraries<\/span><\/a> soon after.<\/span><\/p>\n

SUBSCRIBE TO INTREPID\u2019S NEWSLETTER FOR TRAVEL TIPS, COMPETITIONS, GIVEAWAYS & MORE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\"Three

Almost everything threatens the perfection of the region.<\/p><\/div>\n

There\u2019s plenty of concern and passion for looking after the world-renowned natural assets of Torres del Paine. And it\u2019s well-founded, Emily Green, Director of Torres del Paine Legacy Fund, assures us. \u201cAs an organisation dedicated to <\/span>all <\/span><\/i>components of sustainable tourism \u2013 the sociocultural in addition to the environmental \u2013 we’re privileged to be working with Kaw\u00e9sqar leaders to ensure the region’s peoples are just as celebrated as its landscapes.”<\/span><\/p>\n

To find out more about the Torres del Paine Legacy Fund, or to make a contribution, visit the Intrepid Foundation website here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You\u2019re in Chilean Patagonia on the Base Torres trail, a route so iconic that the campsites and refugios all require advance bookings. But this popularity has also made it one of the most degraded trails to date.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16146,"featured_media":33218,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[47],"tags":[97,145,263,306],"class_list":["post-33211","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-responsible-travel","tag-argentina","tag-chile","tag-responsible-travel-2","tag-the-intrepid-foundation","ipf_region-argentina","ipf_region-chile"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nTorres Del Paine: How to Make Your Impact Positive | Intrepid Travel Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The sustainability of Chilean Patagonia's Torres del Paine trail is critical, but how can you keep the track healthy when it sees so many visitors each day?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/torres-del-paine-fund-patagonia\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to have a positive impact on Patagonia's Torres del Paine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"You\u2019re in Chilean Patagonia on the Base Torres trail, a route so iconic that the campsites and refugios all require advance bookings. 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