Explore Northern Patagonia
The sheltered, sandy cove of La Arena lies 13km south of the turn-off to Parque Nacional Alerce Andino; it’s the departure point of a ferry. After the thirty-minute crossing, the ferry lands at tiny Caleta Puelche, from where the road winds through 58km of thickly forested hills, before arriving at the village of HORNOPIRÉN. Here you catch a Naviera Austral ferry to Caleta Gonzalo, where the Carretera continues.
Perched on the northern shore of a wide fjord, at the foot of Volcán Hornopirén, the village enjoys a spectacular location and makes a good stop en route to the rest of the Carretera Austral.
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Parque Nacional Volcán Hornopirén
Parque Nacional Volcán Hornopirén
To the east of Hornopirén unfold the 500 square kilometres of protected wilderness that make up PARQUE NACIONAL VOLCÁN HORNOPIRÉN. The park’s namesake and centrepiece, 16km along a muddy track from the village, is the perfectly conical Volcán Hornopirén. Five kilometres further along the track lies the seldom-visited Lago General Pinto Concha, with excellent fishing and stunning views onto the 2111m Volcán Yate (1hr hike one-way). From Lago General Pinto Concha, another track leads to the base of Volcán Yate (2hr hike one-way).
Back towards the village, a turn-off from the track leads south around the end of the fjord to a modern bridge over the Río Blanco, with a short trail to your left leading up to the impressive Salto del Río Blanco waterfall. A well-defined 8km path follows the river upstream, passing through alternating patches of pastureland and grand stands of alerce, coigüe, tepa and lenga; above the tree line, you’ll enter a landscape of ice-covered peaks and glaciers, making this a great day-hike.
