Paine Grande

One of Patagonia's most mythical summits, reached only six times in history.

(By Vicente Urzúa)

Cerro Paine Grande stands at 3,050 meters and is the highest peak in Torres del Paine National Park. Since its first ascent in 1957, only five expeditions had reached its summit. On May 31, 2026, three mountaineers from Puerto Natales became the sixth. This is Vicente Urzúa's account.

The unfinished business

The idea of climbing Paine Grande didn't begin in 2026. Vicente had carried that goal for a long time, but it was a previous attempt that turned it into an obsession. A year and a half earlier, alongside his friends Felipe Aguilera and Franco Rojas — both workers at Torres del Paine National Park — they had come within just 15 meters of the summit. Fifteen meters. The final obstacle was a poorly cohesive snow mushroom that required pick axes with flukes, a shovel, and enough snow stakes to make progress. They didn't have the necessary equipment. On top of that, the accumulated effort had left them severely dehydrated. They had to turn back.

"The desire to return was always there," says Vicente.

The Preparation

This final attempt was not improvised. From mid-May, the team was already organizing the logistics. One week before the main ascent, Vicente and Ángel climbed to Cumbre Bariloche to leave part of their equipment on the plateau and lighten the load for the final ascent. Conditions required entering the plateau in the early hours of the morning and leaving before temperatures rose too high due to the elevated isotherm. Even so, they were able to observe the route conditions — especially the mixed pitch that, as they would later discover, had changed dramatically due to the heavy snowfall they would encounter on the main attempt.

Weather was the decisive factor. May 31 appeared as the only perfect window. From the beginning, that was the target date.

Day 1 — The start

The journey began at Sector Carretas, inside Torres del Paine National Park. Eleven kilometers of flat walking to the Paine Grande refuge, with packs loaded for six days of expedition. Their friend Agustín — known on social media as @energia_indomita_spa — accompanied them to the refuge, carrying part of the first day's food so they could eat well before what was coming.

Day 1 was the easiest of the six.

Day 2 — The snowfall

The plan accounted for a brief snowfall that night. What arrived was somewhat more than forecast. The team stayed at camp, ate well, and went to sleep early. The priority was to arrive the next day with maximum energy for the climb to the plateau.

Day 3 — The ascent to high camp

They set off at midday. The ascent to the plateau was a struggle from the start — heavy accumulated snow, constantly breaking trail, arriving wet at every section. The final mixed climbing pitches, which in normal conditions are technical but manageable, were covered in fresh snow that made them more demanding than usual.

Upon reaching 2,260 meters they set up high camp. They had to shovel large amounts of snow to pitch the tent. Luck was on their side in one fundamental aspect: there was no wind. In Patagonia, that changes everything. That night, the sky cleared earlier than forecast — at 9pm they could finally see their objective clearly: the main summit of Paine Grande.

Day 4 — The summit

It was the day of maximum focus and maximum emotion. Everything flowed. The team functioned as a unit — each one contributing their determination at the moments that mattered. The ascent was faster than expected.

From high camp to the summit and back took 17 hours tent to tent.

The technical route begins from the amphitheater, accessed via a large 700-meter couloir. The last 100 meters of that couloir are the most demanding — mixed climbing on ice, snow, and rock, with difficulty up to M3. From there, progress continues toward the final summit pitches.

The last two pitches are 60 meters at 90 degrees of verticality. And at the end, the obstacle Vicente already knew from his previous attempt: the snow tunnel. A poorly cohesive snow mushroom on the final pitch, the last challenge before the summit. This time they arrived prepared — shovel, flukes on the ice axes — and worked the unstable snow to enter and progress meter by meter.

The three of them led the route together. Ángel led four pitches, Vicente two, Maximiliano one. They took turns belaying: whoever had just led a pitch rested while the next one pushed forward.

The summit

"An inexplicable sense of awe and calm."

From 3,050 meters they saw the Torres del Paine, La Fortaleza, Almirante Nieto, Balmaceda, Valle Olguín, all the peaks of Valle del Francés covered in snow, and the immensity of the Southern Ice Field stretching southward. The sun was setting on the horizon at the exact moment they arrived. It was unique and unforgettable for all three.

They spent 15 minutes on the summit. The celebration was brief — from the moment they touched the top, their focus was already on descending before losing the light.

It was no coincidence that the date was May 31. From the beginning they had aimed for that date because the weather marked it as perfect. Only afterward did they grasp the gift: that day Puerto Natales was celebrating its 115th anniversary. The city that raised them received its tribute from the highest point in the park.

Day 5 — The most tense descent

Going down was harder than going up.

As they descended from the plateau they watched slabs of snow breaking off on the terraces. The wind had accumulated wind slab during the night and the snowpack was unstable. Upon reaching the top of the couloir, Ángel made a tactical decision: rappel down first with a rope and, upon reaching the final terrace of the 700-meter couloir, intentionally trigger a powder snow avalanche.

The avalanche ran the full 700 meters of the couloir.

It cleaned everything. That secured the descent for the rest of the team.

They descended one at a time, seeking protected points every 100 meters — behind a rock, waiting for a teammate to arrive before moving. Halfway down the couloir the snow conditions improved noticeably. Upon reaching the amphitheater at 1,500 meters they stopped for mate. It was the first calm pause of the day.

But the effort wasn't over. The moraine section that had been easy on the way up, with exposed rocks, was on the descent covered in verglas — transparent, treacherous ice. Maximum concentration until reaching the forest at around 600 meters altitude. Only then did the terrain forgive.

Day 6 — The return

Eleven flat kilometers back to the starting point. Tired, but knowing the hardest part was behind them. Agustín was waiting with his vehicle. From there, straight to the Torres del Paine National Park administration to officially register the ascent with the park rangers.

The rope team

Vicente and Ángel have known each other since childhood. They went to the same school in Puerto Natales. They have climbed together for several years and Vicente recognizes in Ángel a special gift for ice climbing — he moves with ease and conviction on terrain where others hesitate.

Maximiliano joined the team two years ago. The previous year, Vicente and he had shared expeditions in the Cordillera Blanca of Peru — the Esfinge, the Urus Oeste where they opened a route together. When the moment of Paine Grande arrived, the rope team was ready.

The meaning

"This is something important because it is a very difficult and reluctant mountain. I feel that it has to choose you in order to reach its summit and return safely."

Paine Grande is not just a technically demanding mountain. It is a mountain that tests physical preparation, mental strength, logistics, weather reading, risk management, and team cohesion — all at the same time, over days, in one of the most unpredictable meteorological environments on the planet.

That all three are from Puerto Natales makes this ascent special for the city. It is not just a personal achievement — it is a collective gift to the community that raised them.

Vicente's message

"Fight for your dreams, everything is possible, and work hard for them. No matter how far away they seem, if you put in the effort, your moment will come sooner or later. And the happiness and joy will be immense if there was real work and determination behind it."

Vicente Urzúa is a mountaineer, guide and porter in Torres del Paine, from Puerto Natales. He has climbed in Torres del Paine, the Cordillera Blanca of Peru, and other massifs across Patagonia. On May 31, 2026, he was part of the sixth expedition in history to reach the summit of Cerro Paine Grande.