10
A trail of this magnitude does not appear out
of thin, high-altitude air. Its roots can be traced
back to 1976, when Chilean dictator Augusto
Pinochet ordered the construction of a road
to reach the unpopulated southern lands of
Patagonia. Taking the better part of a decade
to construct, the dirt road became known as
Carretera Austral, a.k.a. the Southern Highway.
To complete the Route of Parks, though,
needed a forward-thinking act. Thankfully,
this is where Tompkins Conservation
stepped in to make the biggest private land
donation in history. Created by the former
CEO of Patagonia clothing company Kristine
McDivitt Tompkins and her late husband
Douglas Tompkins, the founder of North Face,
Tompkins Conservation has been safeguarding
pristine land in Chile and Argentina to
strengthen the original ecosystem and support
sustainable tourism.
In March of 2017, the company donated
10 million acres to the Chilean government
to create five new national parks and expand
three others. The Route of Parks veins through
this land, connecting Carretera Austral
with other existing trails to take travelers
on an unprecedented journey through the
most stunning, most remote parts of Chile,
connecting 60 communities, 24 distinct
ecosystems and the feature parks on the
following pages along the way.
WINTER | 2019
C O N TACT YO U R T R AV E L A DV I S O R TO DAY