Wilderness Education, Adventure, and Conservation

Patagonia Frontiers is a locally owned adventure tour operator and conservancy ranch that offers multi-day trekking, horseback trips, mountaineering, and education programs in the heart of Chilean Patagonia. We bring over 30 years of teaching and guiding expertise, along with intimate local knowledge, to provide wilderness journeys for adventure-seekers with purpose. 

Since 1999 we have designed and led trips of varying skill levels that connect students, explorers, families, and leaders to the vast wilderness of Patagonia, in alignment with our values around conservation and community. This includes honoring the traditional culture and livelihood of our gaucho neighbors, locals working remote ranches who accompany our expeditions as guides and horse packers.

We believe in the power of wilderness experiences to awaken and transform, reconnecting us with nature and ourselves while inspiring a devotion to what matters most. Learn more about our Philosophy or read on for our story.

OUR STORY

John Hauf, our founder, came to this region in 1986.  John had been traveling and guiding all over the world with National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), a non-profit corporation, and during that time fell in love with the wild nature of Patagonia. He proposed to NOLS to set up a new branch. His proposal was granted and he founded and directed the NOLS Patagonia branch for fourteen years. During his tenure as the director, NOLS Patagonia came to serve three hundred students annually from around the world. 

John discovered the ranch as he looked for areas that could be used for educational mountaineering purposes. As time went by he became friends with families living in the valley. In 1999, John had the opportunity to purchase the ranch from don Anselmo Soto and his wife Guillermina who approached John with the idea, somehow knowing that this would be the place that he would call home. 

While John had always been a nomad due to his guiding, the land and region seemed to be a natural fit for him and his way of life. It seemed like a place where the natural world still reigned supreme in people's minds. He had fallen in love with the way the locals were at ease with what may seem like a challenging environment. They had found a way to adapt, find a niche, be happy and thrive. Ultimately, he had found a place in the world where the ways of nature fulfilled him. 

In 1999, he founded Patagonia Frontiers with the intent to make it his home and conserve the land.  He has intentionally built a community where people are drawn to come and immerse themselves in the natural wonder of Patagonia. All with the intent that it energizes and inspires each visitor to make the world a better place. 

Many of us have come to or joined Patagonia Frontiers for that very reason.

View our recommended itineraries or contact us to customize your own adventure.