The Ultimate Patagonia Wildlife Trip: Pumas, Penguins & Whales

After meeting your guide at your hotel or at the airport, you will be transferred in a private vehicle to Torres del Paine National Park. During our journey to the park, we will try to find guanacos, southern grey foxes, and Patagonian skunks while enjoying our first contact with southern beech (Nothofagus) forests. While visiting the valleys we will be given a geological interpretation of the origins of the dramatic backdrop of Torres del Paine, one of the finest natural spectacles in Patagonia.

Overnight El Ovejero Patagonico, Cerro Castillo (Lunch, Dinner) (Guide).

We have organized a busy schedule of puma outings. We will explore puma hunting grounds in the eastern flank of the park and Estancia Laguna Amarga, where we have special access. This area, including Sarmiento Lake, Laguna Amarga, and Laguna Azul, has one of the largest wild puma concentrations. We will use a 4×4 vehicle and take easy to moderate walks, requiring a minimum degree of fitness. The topography varies, with altitude differences of 50-250m (160-1,000ft), and a maximum elevation of 300m (1,000ft). Pumas are most active at night, early mornings, and late evenings, so our activities will focus on these times with two daily sessions (morning and evening, approximately 4 hours each). During midday, we avoid disturbing resting pumas.

If time permits, we will also look for other mammals like guanaco, Andean deer (huemul), Patagonian hog-nosed skunk, and foxes.

Overnight at El Ovejero Patagonico, Cerro Castillo (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner) (Guide + Puma tracker).

We have organized a busy schedule of puma outings. We will explore puma hunting grounds in the eastern flank of the park and Estancia Laguna Amarga, where we have special access. This area, including Sarmiento Lake, Laguna Amarga, and Laguna Azul, has one of the largest wild puma concentrations. We will use a 4×4 vehicle and take easy to moderate walks, requiring a minimum degree of fitness. The topography varies, with altitude differences of 50-250m (160-1,000ft), and a maximum elevation of 300m (1,000ft). Pumas are most active at night, early mornings, and late evenings, so our activities will focus on these times with two daily sessions (morning and evening, approximately 4 hours each). During midday, we avoid disturbing resting pumas.

If time permits, we will also look for other mammals like guanaco, Andean deer (huemul), Patagonian hog-nosed skunk, and foxes.

Overnight at El Ovejero Patagonico, Cerro Castillo (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner) (Guide + Puma tracker).

We have organized a busy schedule of puma outings. We will explore puma hunting grounds in the eastern flank of the park and Estancia Laguna Amarga, where we have special access. This area, including Sarmiento Lake, Laguna Amarga, and Laguna Azul, has one of the largest wild puma concentrations. We will use a 4×4 vehicle and take easy to moderate walks, requiring a minimum degree of fitness. The topography varies, with altitude differences of 50-250m (160-1,000ft), and a maximum elevation of 300m (1,000ft). Pumas are most active at night, early mornings, and late evenings, so our activities will focus on these times with two daily sessions (morning and evening, approximately 4 hours each). During midday, we avoid disturbing resting pumas.

If time permits, we will also look for other mammals like guanaco, Andean deer (huemul), Patagonian hog-nosed skunk, and foxes.

Overnight at El Ovejero Patagonico, Cerro Castillo (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner) (Guide + Puma tracker).

During the morning we will continue our exploration in different areas of the park. A sensational vista from Laguna Azul, on the eastern side of the park, will be a superb grand finale to this part of our exciting journey of discovery. Later, we will be transferred to Punta Arenas.

Overnight Hotel Diego de Almagro or similar, Punta Arenas (Breakfast, Lunch) (Guide).

We will start with a private transfer from your hotel to the ferry docks in northern Punta Arenas. At 9 am, we’ll begin our 2.5-hour crossing of the Straits of Magellan, rich in exploration history by sailors like Magellan and Darwin. You’ll see seabirds such as Black-browed Albatross and Southern Giant Petrel, and possibly marine mammals like Peale’s Dolphin and South American Sea Lion. Upon landing, you’ll notice the flat, windswept steppes and rolling hills of Tierra del Fuego. After meeting your guide and driver, we’ll stop in Porvenir for coffee, tea, and snacks. We’ll then drive 2 hours along Bahia Inutil’s shores, spotting wildlife including Guanaco, Southern Grey Fox, Upland Goose, Chilean Flamingo, and various waterfowl. At sea, we may see albatrosses, petrels, gulls, and skuas. At Reserva Parque Pingüino Rey, we’ll observe the only known continental King Penguin colony from a respectful distance.

Overnight at Hotel Barlovento or similar in Porvenir (Breakfast, Lunch, Guide).

We will enjoy a leisure morning while exploring the surroundings of Porvenir to photograph and learn about the particular wildlife and history of this remote corner of Patagonia. We will visit its alkaline pools where there are large aggregations of migratory birds such as sandpipers and plovers, but the goal will be to photograph Chilean Flamingos. Later we will explore the coast to see some of the many shipwrecks that have occurred in these seas over the years. After lunch we will be heading back to Punta Arenas by ferry. By taking the short ferry at Punta Delgada we will have great chances of seeing the striking Commerson’s Dolphin plus other interesting wildlife.

Overnight Hotel Diego de Almagro or similar, Punta Arenas (Breakfast, Lunch) (Guide).

Early in the morning we will board the motor yacht Tanu and start our navigation towards Francisco Coloane Marine Park, which protects the marine biodiversity of the western branch of the Straits of Magellan. This magnificent area encloses Carlos III Island, which possesses a vast and unique biological diversity due, in part, to the mixing of the two oceans (Pacific and Atlantic), productive upwelling, the strong winds, the presence of glaciers and the dismembered coastline. This park hold a summer population of humpback whales (and occasionally Sei Whale and Orca), which use these waters as feeding grounds. We will spend this night in the biological station, at very comfortable twin-bedded domes. We will have shared bathroom facilities at this location.

Overnight Eco-camp Carlos III, Carlos III Island (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner) (Guide).

This morning we will have another whale-watching session aboard the zodiac boats and if we are lucky, we may see the endemic and scarce Chilean Dolphin while sailing these waters. We will also visit large breeding colonies of sea lions, fur seals and Magellanic Penguin. We will have a lecture by the scientist working on long-term population studies on these whales, and we will learn about several tagging and identification techniques. We will have the whole afternoon to see these whales at close quarters and with no other visitors. This intimate experience will be enhanced by the sight of the beautiful mountains, glaciers and pristine forests all around.

Overnight Eco-camp Carlos III, Carlos III Island (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner) (Guide).

After enjoying the diversity of marine mammals and seabirds of this park, we will make our journey back to San Isidro Lodge. Along the route we will discover the rich seabird diversity of these seaways; we will see Black-browed Albatross, Southern Giant Petrel, Chilean Skua and cormorants as well as pods of Peale’s Dolphin and the ubiquitous South American Sea Lion. If time permits, we will have a field trip, equipped with hand glasses, to discover the lichen- and moss-rich biodiversity of the sub-Antarctic forests. During the afternoon we will be transferred back to Punta Arenas for overnight.

Overnight Hotel Diego de Almagro or similar, Punta Arenas (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner) (Guide)

After breakfast, transfer to Punta Arenas airport where the trip ends. (Breakfast)