Getting There and Preparation

We got to Navarino by taking a ferry from Ushuaia and did grocery shopping and all our preparation here, one day before setting out on the trail. There is a large supermarket with a wide variety of products. We were very surprised by this and the prices are very good. If you are coming from Argentina I would strongly recommend buying everything here, especially since you cannot take many products when you cross the border from Argentina to Chile in this region.

Be Prepared for Mud

Without any doubt, the worst aspect of the circuit is the mud. The island is a very wet place with a lot of precipitation year round. Sections of the trail cross grasslands and forests which are quite boggy and the vegetation here is very vulnerable.

Due to the increase in numbers of hikers, the natural vegetation in some spots has largely eroded and the trail has become extremely muddy. I am talking ankle-deep mud for up to half an hour in some spots. I think the local government will have to intervene in the near future by placing wooden planks, otherwise the problem will continue to worsen. It was quite frustrating at some sections and we had no idea it was this bad when we started the trail.

Take Your Time

With 34 km the trail is not long and yet you will find that most guidebooks recommend anywhere from 4 to 7 days for it. We did it in 5 and would recommend that timeframe. Days are not that long - between 4 to 6 hours - but they can be strenuous. There is light scrambling on most days, very steep sections and loose terrain.

On top of that, the weather is extremely unpredictable. Two weeks before we started there was a thick layer of snow on the trail. When we did it, most of the snow was gone. On our first day the weather was perfect - blue skies and the sun at our backs. Yet on day 2, we ended up in a pretty bad hail storm which left us soaked. Needless to say, we were very happy to be in the tent after five hours.

Stunning Camping Spots

The short hiking days left us a lot of time in camp. This was not a bad thing since they were very beautiful. One of my favorite memories from the trail was on our final night, camping just above the final lagoon. We had a view of the Beagle Channel with the Darwin Range behind it, while the sunset turned the sky into deep shades of purple and orange.

The Trail is Quiet But You Won't Be Alone

Beforehand, we read some blogs saying you will not run into anyone on the trail. This was not our experience. I think around seven others started the circuit on the same day as us.

The first campsite at the lagoon is also a popular destination for people who do an overnight hike, so this was quite crowded, but the other campsites we had largely to ourselves. Since you can wild camp wherever you want, camping spots are quite spread out.