)
Wild landscapes. Fearless women.
Lady Florence Dixie pioneered Patagonian tourism in 1879, defying Victorian norms. Meet the fearless women—past and present—who've shaped this wild region's history.
Patagonia—an untamed wilderness at the ends of the Earth, whose place names are etched with tales of the great explorers; from the Strait of Magellan to the Drake Passage, and the mountain peaks of (Captain Robert) Fitz Roy. But look beyond the male dominated names on the map and you’ll discover stories of the heroic women who shaped the area's past and its future. From the region's first inhabitants—the Mapuche, who’s gender-equal culture put women in instrumental roles as community leaders, shaman, and teachers. To the region's first western female visitor—Lady Florence Dixie.
Considered the pioneer of Patagonian tourism. In 1879, Lady Florence Dixie rejected the female stereotype put upon her by Victorian society and ventured by horseback into the wild landscape of Southern Patagonia. During a 60-day trip she documented her journey through the region's wild beauty in art and stories. Considered controversial at the time for her unladylike behavior as a frontierswoman, her subsequent book—Across Patagonia, was the first English language travel book written by a woman.
Lady Florence Dixie spent the remainder of her life fighting for women’s rights in her native England, including the right to play football (soccer). And since her first trip, thousands of fearless women continue to follow the trails she once blazed through Torres del Paine and Southern Patagonia. Many of which you’ll find leading our Southern Patagonia Hiking tours as Tour Directors and guides or enjoying the breathtaking region as fellow adventurers. As for the Mapuche women? They continue to take leading roles in the preservation of their culture and environment, even re-writing the Chilean Constitution.
)
)
)
)