My paddle slices by the water, which grows choppier by the second, propelling me ahead, the nostril of my Gatorade-orange kayak gliding towards the distant mountain vary that hugs the far rim of the lake. The deep blue water splashes over my legs, however the rain pants layered over my wetsuit maintain me cozy and principally dry.
Round me, a surging flotilla of kayaks strikes in rhythm, every stroke drawing us nearer to a cathedral of rock rising from Normal Carrera Lake—the second-largest lake in South America—stretching almost 2,000 kilometers throughout Chilean Patagonia’s Aysén area.
Our vacation spot: the Marble Caves. After a number of rain-soaked days, we’re basking in daylight spilling from a flawless sky, ingesting within the kaleidoscope of color earlier than us. The rock face shimmers in swirls of luminous blue, glinting silver and comfortable cream, a pure masterpiece carved over 1000’s of years because the lake’s waves patiently sculpted calcium carbonate into clean, rippling patterns.
This residing canvas embodies the explanation I’ve travelled three days from my residence in Calgary, Alberta to achieve this place. The soul of the water and the spirit of the land are current right here. They pulse by the motion of the lake, flicker within the altering colors of the caves and mirror within the faces round me: journey travellers certain by a shared, profound connection that may solely be present in moments like these.
In a time when the world feels more and more divided, journey affords a uncommon type of readability, an opportunity to rediscover what unites us. Journey journey, specifically, nurtures a way of energy and connection that always feels out of attain amid the noise of as we speak’s fast-paced world.
But right here, I haven’t slowed down in any respect. Nonetheless, nothing at residence compares to the frenzy of browsing a Class III speedy on the Baker River, skidding down the gravel roads of the Carretera Austral on a mountain bike, or standing earlier than a waterfall so highly effective its spray soaks me in seconds. Maybe the one factor that rivals these moments is sharing a chilly maqui beer with new pals, forging bonds by the heat and hospitality of Pared Sur Camp.
Later, ensconced in a comfy cabin overlooking the huge expanse of the lake under, I do lastly loosen up. I draw consolation from the crackling hearth within the wooden range behind me, its heat avoiding the early spring chill that drifts by the camp. It’s my first time in Patagonia, and I can’t fairly wrap my head round how rugged and distant the Aysen area feels. A way of full solitude engulfs me, padding in softly, just like the puma I’m hoping to get a glimpse of on an early morning hunt.
It is a sharp distinction to the bustle that greets me once I arrive in Puerto Natales for the Journey Journey World Summit, the place I hear tales of puma sightings, of cocktails garnished with ice chipped straight from the icebergs floating close to Gray Glacier and the wild winds that Patagonia is understood for whipping down the well-known Base Torres climbing path.
The energetic hum of a whole bunch of like-minded journey travellers fills the Polideportivo Municipal, the place the opening plenary and welcome orientation is going down, the thrill of patrons, suppliers and media making a hive of exercise the place connection is discovered by the cosplay of water and air, and continues to develop by the opening keynote, specializing in the longer term outlook of the journey business, and a wide range of periods that vary from the bridging of sustainability, parks and tourism and the way AI is impacting the journey business.
Within the afternoon a convoy of busses winds its solution to the Las Torres Lodge the place the opening reception unfolds over an interactive pathway from the Welcome Middle of Torres del Paine Nationwide Park to the resort itself. I watch conventional Chilean dancers stomp and leap throughout a wood stage whereas sipping a Calafate bitter, and my ft faucet an unfamiliar beat to the folks music that flows amidst the raised tents of the mid-way campground.
In true Patagonian style, the mountains are veiled in a lightweight mist, but the glow of a bonfire and the scent of roasting lamb wrap us in a heat welcome. Then, the thunder of hooves cuts by the hum of celebration. A herd of horses, ridden with easy ability by the resort’s baqueanos, prices previous. They carry blazing torches that ignite letters and numbers in hearth, spelling out ATWS 2025. With that, the summit has formally begun.
The following day, I discover myself on a ship slicing by the unusually calm waters of Lago Gray, marveling at a towering iceberg that floats precariously near the shore the place the Gray III docks. Together with a dozen different intrepid vacationers, I’m dropped off a couple of kilometers from the immense wall of the Gray Glacier—a part of the Southern Patagonian Icefield—its jagged face rising 30 meters excessive and stretching six kilometers large.
As we speak’s day of journey is twofold: half of us will squeeze into wetsuits and paddle sea kayaks to inside two kilometers of the tumbling ice, weaving by floating ‘bergs and uneven whitecaps. The remaining will strap on crampons and discover the glacier’s frozen floor on foot.
BigFoot Patagonia, the one firm licensed to run ice-trekking and kayaking excursions within the Gray Glacier and Lake Sector of Torres del Paine Nationwide Park, has perfected the expertise. The kayaks are sturdy, the gear watertight, and the guides pleasant, humorous, and impressively educated.
We glide previous ice formations of all sizes and shapes, their hues shifting from pearly white to deep, wintry blue. Waterfalls tumble from the rugged peaks that body the lake, and when the Patagonian wind picks up, waves surge over the bow of my kayak, buffeting the edges with the fierce vitality this wild land is legendary for.
The ocean kayaks glide with a steadiness I don’t at all times really feel within the journey media panorama nowadays. If I’m sincere, I arrived on this journey with a quiet sense of unease, a hesitation. Is the tide shifting with regards to the worth of earned media? As a conventional freelancer writing for varied magazines and newspapers, it’s turning into tougher to seek out my footing, to really feel safe in what I do.
My experiences in Chile have been deeply transferring, but I can’t assist however surprise: do they nonetheless maintain weight in a world more and more outlined by prompt gratification, ensures and the rising presence of AI in storytelling?
Then, through the Content material Creation & Storytelling: The Nice Debate in Journey Journey session, I discover myself respiration simpler. In a spirited dialogue, it turns into clear that earned media nonetheless issues, that genuine storytelling stays important to sharing the message of sustainable journey tourism. Evergreen content material, I’m reminded, continues to carry energy, even in an age obsessive about the following new factor.
That night, the facility of storytelling takes heart stage with the premiere of GLP’s Chile movie collection. Three movies unfold, every highlighting a definite area: Araucanía, Los Ríos and Los Lagos. By way of them, we’re invited into the guts of Chile’s Indigenous traditions and communities, its native tradition and delicacies, its wild landscapes and extraordinary biodiversity, all woven collectively by tales of journey and community-led conservation.
“Neighborhood was that fixed theme between all three,” says Rob Holmes, Founder and Chief Strategist of GLP Movies. “Our tales come all the way down to the folks, they at all times do.”
Holmes’ aim was to share the message of sustainable tourism in Chile by highlighting rising locations and making certain regional variety. As these locations acquire worldwide consideration, he goals to assist shield and protect them, selling accountable journey whereas persevering with to rejoice Chile as a world-class vacation spot.
Nonetheless, the occasion additionally serves to foster additional connection between attendees. “The [other] function is to get folks collectively,” says Holmes. “To take a break, sit back, loosen up and recognize the business all of us love.”
The love for the business shines brightest on the ultimate day of ATWS throughout Media Join, the place tales are shared with the individuals who worth them most. It’s there once I study La Ruta de los Parques— “probably the most lovely scenic route on the earth”—a 2,800-kilometer journey linking 17 Chilean nationwide parks and 60 communities from Puerto Montt to Cape Horn. It’s mirrored in South Expeditions of Ecuador, the one firm providing kayaking and tenting within the Galápagos, whose dedication to sustainability runs deep. And it’s alive in Epic Patagonia Journeys, which leads highway adventures alongside the distant and rugged Carretera Austral, strengthening the native communities that give this wild land its spirit.
Within the closing keynote, Elizabeth Becker, a famend American journalist and writer, instructed a darker story of a rustic divided and “an unsettled world,” the place tourism is deeply affected by “battle, local weather disaster and political unrest.” Finally, nevertheless, her message was clear: “Every part is tourism,” after which quoting astronomer Carl Sagan, “The fervour to discover is on the coronary heart of being human.”
And it’s this humanity we are able to cling to. And it’s this sense of group we should maintain onto in instances of uncertainty, in moments once we can really feel so fortunate to be a part of one thing like this.
First-time ATWS attendee Ashlea Halpern, a contract author, editor, and content material strategist, echoes this sentiment. “Colleagues and pals had been telling me for years how particular the Journey Journey World Summit is, however till you expertise it your self, it’s arduous to wrap your head round,” she says. “Then immediately right here we’re, on the backside of the world, surrounded by a few of the most compelling folks working in journey tourism.”
She valued the various mix of patrons, suppliers and media which are current, and admired the best way the group united to completely embrace their thrilling pre-summit adventures and the thrill of the action-packed day of adventures: “I befriended people I’d by no means in any other case have the possibility to fulfill and left with at the least a dozen stable story concepts. I can’t wait to do it once more in 2026.”
Halpern isn’t alone in her enthusiasm. The vitality and heat of the host nation left a long-lasting impression on many attendees. As Holmes put it, “There’s no extra enthusiastic vacation spot than Chile…hats off for placing on an excellent occasion.” His phrases captured the collective spirit of gratitude and awe that permeated the summit, a becoming tribute to a spot that introduced such a powerful group collectively.
In the long run, that is additionally what lingers most from my time in Patagonia. Not the marble cathedrals sculpted by waves, the glaciers glowing blue underneath a stressed sky, or the limitless wind that whips by the land, however the folks drawn collectively by these very forces.
From the guides steering us safely by icy channels to the storytellers and visionaries gathered on the summit, each encounter reaffirmed a easy reality: journey is, at its core, a collective journey. We come in search of nature’s uncooked magnificence, however we keep for the connections solid in its presence: the shared laughter after an extended paddle, the unstated camaraderie of early-morning hikes, the frequent hope that journey, accomplished thoughtfully, might help shield the locations that transfer us most.
In Patagonia, surrounded by water, rock, and sky, I discovered that group isn’t constructed by proximity, it’s carved, just like the Marble Caves themselves, by time, belief and the shared pursuit of journey.