I unknowingly completed my first misogi challenge this year. After reading Micheal Easter’s book, The Comfort Crisis, which is about connecting with the wild and embracing the discomfort in life, I realized I was already doing what he preached. I had hiked on the iconic W trek to Mirador Las Torres – the base of the towers!
What is a Misogi Challenge?
You are probably wondering “what is a misogi challenge”? The word misogi translates to mean “water cleansing”. Misogi is a Japanese ritual of purifying the body typically by standing under an icy waterfall. The misogi challenge is designed to get you out of your comfort zone and do something HARD that truly challenges you.
So, what are the rules? A misogi challenge must be physically challenging – something that you do not believe your mind and body will be able to accomplish. The only catch is you can not practice or prepare for it. The idea is to do one misogi challenge per year and embrace the pain to push yourself beyond your limits.
If you are a runner and run half marathons all the time, that does not count. You are prepared for this and know you can complete the task. However, going for a full marathon would be a misogi for that individual.
My Misogi Challenge in Chilean Patagonia
To my surprise, I realized I had completed a misogi challenge already this year. This past March, I took a trip to Patagonia, Chile. Living in Charleston, South Carolina where it is completely flat, I don’t do a lot of hiking. Okay, I have never done a true hike before. I didn’t even own boots ahead of this trip, nor did I bother to break them in once I ordered some.
My expectation of Patagonia would be to do some easy, light hiking. More of a stroll without any steep inclines. However, I realized the iconic views were at Torres del Paine National Park at the base of the towers (Mirador Las Torres), a 13 mile round trip hike with 3,000ft elevation gain. I was bummed that we wouldn’t be able to see this.
However, after arriving, our guide talked me into trying it. He assured me that people of all ages did this hike from little kids to an 80-year old woman he took the week prior. (If they can do it, I can do it. I am in good shape, eat healthy, and do HIIT classes). But the best weather would be tomorrow – our very first day. No warm up hikes, we were going straight into a tough day that would take 8 hours to complete.
Hiking through Torres del Paine National Park to Mirador Las Torres (base of the towers)
So, we laced up our boots and headed into Torres del Paine National Park at 6am in the pitch black dark on the Mirador Las Torres trail. The drive in our 4×4 was about 45 minutes from our base hotel which took us through dirt roads, a stream, and finally into the park. The first light peaked through as we layered on our down-jackets and strapped on our backpacks. We were off.
Section 1
The first 30 minutes of the hike was flat as we made our way to the trailhead. We crossed a stream via a wooden bridge to approach the mountain and truly begin our ascent. The sun began to rise making the mountain ahead appear a bright shade of orange or rust. Then, it really started.
The first section of this hike is all uphill and we were thankful to have hiking poles. You are climbing up rough, rocky terrain, but we were energized, feeling excited for the day. The only way up is either to walk or on horseback so you’ll have to dodge horse droppings as you progress.
Once you are 30 minutes in, the views start getting good which is a great incentive to keep going. You’ll see the river flowing to your right and can look back toward a bright blue lake.
Then, there is a section of the hike where you are literally on the side of the mountain where the wind blows like crazy as you try not to take a wrong step. Finally, that part will be over and you’ll reach the edge of the riverbank. You’ll cross over a wooden bridge – one person at a time – to cross the strong river.
On the other side, is a campsite complete with facilities, restaurant, and beers – maybe grab one on the way back. This will be your first opportunity for a restroom, but there will be another chance.
Section 2
This starts the middle section of the hike. There are some steep parts, but it’s mostly enjoyable and you are protected from the elements as you hike through a forest and across rolling streams.
Finally, you will come to the park camp site with restrooms and open spot to take a break before climbing the most challenging part.
Section 3
After a quick break, we headed off. This part of the trail is almost completely uphill and the terrain is incredibly rocky. I was basically CLIMBING up parts of this. Talk about a misogi challenge!
There was one spot almost to the top where I was SO out of breath and had to sit for a second. We continued on over the rocks and FINALLY were rewarded with the most breathtaking view of the towers over the bright blue/green glacier water of the lake.
Our guide had packed warm soup, sandwiches, and warm peanut, chocolate chip cookies so we could relax and enjoy the views.
Back Downhill
You would think the hard parts were over. WRONG. Hiking back down was incredibly difficult. Four hours of your knees and feet headed down hill puts a lot of pressure on your body. My knees hurt so badly at times I couldn’t take another step.
We finally finished our misogi challenge and were rewarded with a truck side picnic of champagne, cheese, charcuterie, and crudites! Hey, I travel in style, okay? 10/10 recommend staying at Awasi Patagonia so you can be spoiled too!
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