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Cambios
→Season Section Log: Added content
==Season Section Log==
* 2023-Feb-12-19 / NOBO / RR + Option 35-L / Ondrej and Bara / Cochrane - Chile Chico / 7.5 days
We really enjoyed this section! We went from Cochrane to Chile Chico. Our favourite parts were the descent through Valle Hermoso and the descent on the cross country section to Chile Chico. We spent 7.5 days on this section, taking a relaxed pace and including a half day break.
We only had to pay 9,000 CLP per person entrance fee at the Cochrane park gate (sector Tamango). We then showed the pass three days later to a ranger at Casa de Piedras and he let us go. The final checkpoint for us was the CONAF park exit/entrance at Lago Jeinemeni. The ranger there didn’t want to see our pass at all, he just asked from where we hiked (we said Casa de Piedras).
Some details:
- Starting from Cochrane, the trail is easy walking up until km 144.9. As you leave Lago Cochrane, the trail is harder to follow. Fortunately this lasts only up to km 138, where the trail becomes easy to follow again. We camped next to the refuge on km133.9. The refuge has a good roof and can serve as an emergency shelter. There is no good water next to it though - we needed to climb the hill to the laguna to refill.
- From roughly km 125 to km 99, the RR follows the old Siete Lagunas trail, which is not maintained anymore. Expect some fallen trees and slightly overgrown parts but the trail is beautiful and easy to navigate in general.
- We took Option L to cut some overgrown road walking as recommended by others. We really liked it.
- We camped next to the destroyed refuge at Laguna Guagua (km 118.3) and really loved the place - there is an amazing pebble beach at the laguna.
- If you don’t want to camp at Casa de Piedras, there is a place for a small tent and a stream at roughly km 97 (-47.07463, -72.20439). We camped there.
- The river crossings in Valle Aviles and Vale Hermoso were maximum to our knees. The deepest one was at Lago Verde (km 66.1). However, the river levels can change rapidly when it rains the days before - do check the weather.
- We camped at the eastern shore of Lago Verde (km 61.7; campsite Raleigh) and really loved it - it has picnic tables and a spacious cooking/eating shelter.
- We hitchhiked the part on the road between km 53 and 41.5. Few cars go by but the hitch was easy - we stopped the first car.
- The cross country section from km 41.5 is very different from the rest - semi-desert like and lots of animals. We saw llamas, flamimgos, condors and hares (among sheep, cows and horses).
- Between km 38 and 33 the path goes along a fence. We had to get over the fence once (we scrambled below it without problems).
- If you are going NOBO, expect stunning views of the General Carrera Lake and Torres del Avelano when coming from the last pass (km 20.8) down to Chile Chico.
*2023 last week January NoBo (6 days but could have very easily been done in less)
