Parque Nacional Torres del Paine: History

Pre-20th-Century History

The southern province of Última Esperanza was originally inhabited by the Kawesgar and Aonikenk peoples. In 1557, navigator Juan Fernandez Ladrillero was the first European to stumble across the region. Later, German and British immigrants moved into the area to graze sheep, which quickly became the region's principal economic activity. One can only imagine what was going through early explorers' minds when they named this remote and often forbidding land - Última Esperanza translates as 'last hope'.

Modern History

While the regional capital, Punta Arenas, was established as a military garrison and penal settlement in the mid-19th century, Puerto Natales was founded in 1911 by sheep farmers. Much of the area now covered by Parque Nacional Torres del Paine was part of a large sheep estancia (estate), and is still recovering from nearly a century of overexploitation of its pastures and forests. The national park was created in 1959 and, in 1978, it was declared a Unesco Biosphere Reserve.

Recent History

With the decline in the sheep industry, Puerto Natales now thrives on the increasing numbers of adventure seekers hopping off the Navimag ferry and heading into the national park. In 2005, a Czech camper using a gas stove accidentally started a fire which burned down a staggering 12,000 hectares (29,653 acres) of the park.

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