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{{Draft}}
 
[[File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354775.jpg|thumb|center|1100px|Plateau, GPT18]]
 
{{RutaForme
 
|Actividad=Trekking
 
|País=Chile
 
|CiudadesChile=Osorno
 
|BellezaEscenica=
 
|Atractivos=Vistas panorámicas
 
|Duracion=días
 
|RequiereHabilidadTrek=No requiere
 
|Sendero=Siempre Claro
 
|Señalizacion=Inexistente
 
|Infraestructura=Inexistente
 
|ComparteIdayRetorno=Cruce
 
|Distancia=70600
 
|MetrosAscenso=2986
 
|MetrosDescenso=2711
 
|AltitudMedia=
 
|Primer Autor=[[user:Jandudeck|Jan Dudeck]]
 
|Imágen Principal=Volcan_Puyehue_(19).JPG
 
|ComentariosImagen=Southern slope of Volcán Puyehue, Feb. 2018
 
|KMLZ=GPT19 - Volcán Puyehue.kmz
 
|TipoDeMap=HYBRID
 
|ComentariosMapa=
 
{{GPT KMZ}}
 
}}
 
 
{{Table all GPTs}}
 
{{Table all GPTs}}
  
==Recent Alerts and Suggestions==
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==Season Section Log==
+
 
 +
Add a new log entry always on top in the appropriate season sub-chapter and use format:
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''*'' Start Date to Finish Date (use Format YYYY-MMM-DD) / Duration in Days / Hiking or Packrafting / Travel Direction (SOBO for Southbound or NOBO Northbound) / Chosen Route and/or Option Name (RR for Regular Route) / Names or Alias
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Summary with remarks to route that are considered useful for other hikers and packrafters. Include alerts, suggestions and personal perception of attractiveness and difficulties.
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Add a sub-chapter by placing two "=" before and after the new sub-chapter heading ('==Sub-Chapter Heading==').
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=Section Log, Alerts and Suggestions=
 +
 
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==Season 2025/26==
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==Season 2024/25==
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==Season 2023/24==
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* Recommendation Jan Dudeck in November 2023: Based on the STRAVA Global Heatmap (https://www.strava.com/heatmap#12.18/-72.09488/-40.50378/hot/all) the Route GPT19 Option 3 is open and used again (we got severely stuck in bamboo in November 2013). This route might be slightly faster but makes access to the hot spings "Hot Spring {19-01} [6.8/1415]" a big detour. Due to the river crossing this route is only recommended northbound in December while the snow on the plateau is melting. This places the river crossing at the beginning so it's easy to return to the regular route if the river ford is not manageable. This Route GPT19 Option 3 might be beneficial when the weather window of decent weather for crossing the plateau is rather short.
 +
 
 +
==Season 2022/23==
 +
 
 +
*January 2023 Frank
 +
Option OH-001 crossing Rio Corrigue: this section barely exists as large parts have been taken back by bamboo. It is now a severe & sustained bamboo bash requiring huge effort to crawl, break & climb through at about 1 kilometre per hour. Try RR or other options instead
 +
 
 +
 
 +
* 10/02/2023 - 13/02/2023 / RR + volcan summit + termas - round trip from south / Louis, Rémi & Noé :
 +
 
 +
I wanted to precise one thing that I haven't understand : Santiago has a restaurant, near the road and a refuge (waypoint refuge no water). You have to check in at the restaurant to pay the 15k CLP /pers. This price includes a night in the refuge (there is nobody in there), access to volcano and a night at the camping near the restaurant (with cold shower for free).
 +
 
 +
Day 1 - Refugio El Caulle - 8km - +1000m/-0m
 +
First day going up to the refuge. We took the bus from Osorno, the only one going to Anticura leaves at 6pm but you have plenty of others going to Termas de Puyehue (going to Aguas Calientes). From there, 15km of hitchike, very easy. Then, the rise until the refuge in a beautiful and green forest. There is water upward the refuge, 15min walk.
 +
 
 +
Day 2 - Volcan Puyehue + camp El Domo - 13km - +1300m/-1100m
 +
The caldeira of the volcano is superb ! the path is well traced until the summit. Then, we did the round of it and went down on the opposite side. We camped at the "El Domo" camp, located on Santiago's map, around km XX. Water is available just before it.
 +
 
 +
Day 3 - Termas - 17km - +700m/-900m
 +
Under the rain, it's not easy to navigate on the volcanic plateau. I would say that a navigation device is mandatory. Hot springs are very enjoyable after such a day under the rain. There is drinkable water before the hot springs (1km).
 +
 
 +
Day 4 - Back to Restaurant El Caulle on RR - 32km - +1300m/-2400m
 +
A long day, even longer under the rain but doable. The restaurant was closed when we arrived (a Monday at 7pm). Santiago selled us basic food (pasta, sauce, eggs (a bit expensive)) and he opened the doors of his barn for us to sleep dry. The only bus going down from here to Osorno leaves at 7:30am.
 +
 
 +
 
 +
* 2023-Feb-04 to 2023-Feb-07 / 3.5 days / Hiking / SOBO / RR / Martin & Helena
 +
 
 +
Great section, after a lot of forrest trails it was nice to see again something totally different and quite similiar to the landscape of GPT06. We were a little irresponsible with the water so better plan carefully.
 +
 
 +
The beginning around the lake is just road walking with quite a lot of traffic, depending on the weekday, but its better to avoid it, we didn’t feel always safe with more cars passing by. There should be ferry that goes on the other side of the lake. Good restaurant at around km 2-3, the one with empanadas to go in the house above the restaurant (reealy good). We camped behind a gate at km 5.7, below one of the miradors. At Hueinahue we went down to the beach we have seen from the road, hoping to buy some food, but nothing was there except of crowds of people. We crossed the river to get back on the road, but it would have been better to return back really. MR continues for the next almost 30km, but its quite nice walking through forrest and around settlements. Food truck with empanadas and some drinks at km 23 was a nice surprise, but might be there only in summer. Great place to camp by laguna at km 31, but its shores are all muddy.
 +
 
 +
Bridge at km 37 is the last reliable source of water so keep it in mind! When we got to the start of option 03, there was only locked gate and no one around at Hector and Neri’s place. Because of that we went with 03, and after 2 locked gates joined the CC variant and back on the RR. There is probably some tiny stream at the CC part but not easily accessible. The way up on the RR already was relatively easy with a few fallen trees that you can always walk around. We were hoping to find some water at km 53.5 or the one next to it but it was all dry already, just like many creeks that we have seen over the treeline. This became a problem for us, and the first water we found was at the big plateau you have to descent to in order to continue to the lava field and further. We didnt turn left at the beginning but continued straight to a few snowfields that are still big enough and on a hot day we could gather water from the snowmelt. From that point its about half a day to the next water (close to the start of descent down to the refugio and valley) so again good to take as much as you can. We didn’t have to pay anything at the end of the section as someone told us, this might be the case only in NOBO direction, or it was because we went there later in the evening. We camped on a yard of family living across the road for 5k CLP, they sell some basic food and its possible to have a shower there as well. Bus to Osorno and Entre Lagos as well leaves early in the morning around 7 AM we think but rather ask.
 +
 
 +
Contact: @martin_hanzelka @helenneka
 +
 
 +
 
 +
* 28.01.23 - 30.01.23 / Yannic & Mirjam/ Northbound
 +
Much has already been explained in great detail, so we will be brief:
 +
We saw no one at the entrance and therefore walked through without paying an entrance fee.
 +
The two water streams in the forest are dry and there is no water directly at the refugio. However, there are still snowfields about 1-2 km further up from the refugio which provide enough water.
 +
There was still enough water at 68.6. After that, there were still isolated snowfields, but partly further away from the trail.
 +
We spent the night between the lava rocks at S 40.53312 / W 72.16869, as there were still snowfields there, which we used for drinking water.
 +
After that, there was no more water until we reached Neri and Hector's house. The two of them were so nice and filled up our water. They charged an entrance fee of 5,000 CLP per person. Because of language barriers, we weren't sure if it was voluntary or because we couldn't show a ticket from the other entrance. Anyway, we paid and moved on.
 +
Hitchhiking to Rininahue went quite well once you are on the bigger Minor Road T-851.
 +
 
 +
 
 +
*26.01.23 - 29.01.23 / Anna & Christopher / SOBO, Riñinahue (option 2) - Volcán Puyehue (option 4B) - Licán
 +
 
 +
From Panguipulli we took a bus at 8:40 am to Los Lagos (on a thursday). From there we took another bus to Paillaco at 11:30 am and got off at the cruce Reumén/Futrono. The connecting bus to Futrono passed there around 12:20 pm. From Futrono we took a bus to Llifén at 13:15 pm. From there we hitchhiked until the junction of Option 2 with the RR at km 37 approx. and arrived there around 17:00 pm.
 +
On the way up to Los Venados there is one accessible creek approx. 2,5 km before Los Venados. When we arrived there the gate following the RR was locked. As we didn't wanted to dry camp (we didn't fill up our bottles at the creek) we tried to get access to the river following variant D. It's definitely not possible to get water there, the forest is too dense and its getting too steep to climb down. So we went back and luckily after a while Hector and Neri arrived. They offered us to stay at their Refugio the night as it was already quite late.
 +
 
 +
The way up to the plateau is a good path. We collected some water from the northern "water?" waypoint around km 53,5. As Véronica mentioned there are only some shallow pools, but with clear water.
 +
On the plateau there are still some creeks from the snowmelt, but not that many so better carry some water.
 +
Around km 65 we saw in the valley on the left hand side a nicely flowing creek (off the RR) and decided to camp there. Its a detour of about 15-20min.
 +
 
 +
The next day we woke up to a clear blue sky and therefore decided to climb the volcano and to take the surrounding variant. On the ascent we didn't follow the GPS, which was a bad idea, as we ended up in a steep scree traverse/sketchy rock climbing. So it took us a lot of time to reach the ridge. Once there we enjoyed the amazing views! Walking around the crater got more and more tiring with all the ups and downs, but it's worth it! It was our favorite section so far.
 +
We collected some snowmelt water on the descent and camped at the Refugio (no water there).
 +
 
 +
The path down from the Refugio is in good conditions. From Licán we got a ride directly to Puerto Montt.
 +
 
 +
*2023-Jan-5 Frank 4 days RR SOBO
 +
 
 +
I came from GPT18.  Before Lago Maihue there are a couple of small shops & a restaurant.  As you go around Lago Maihue on the road there are a lot of $ campsites, then the road climbs high above the lake before dropping to Rio Hueinahue.  I forded the river easily & went down to Camping Rupimeca at the lake, about 1KM off route.  Good cheap campsite, no electricity but they will charge your phone at the house.  Next day I continued to Hector & Neri's house but they weren't around.  I went in on the alternative route which goes right on a road just before Hector & Niri's place.  It's marked private with two locked gates but there was no one there.  Stream near the road but difficult to access - running in a gully & blocked by vegetation.  After several attempts I was able to access the stream higher up & camped nearby.  Just before the alternative route rejoins the RR from Hector & Niri's house there is a stream, if you drop down right a few hundred metres from RR onto the alternative route here you can get water.  The water sources marked near the treeline were tiny stagnant pools & they are a bit off trail.  However, in early January there was plenty of water above treeline from snowmelt.  Did the spectacular traverse in one long day.  The snowfields could be traversed or avoided fairly easily.  Fill up with water before you descend to the hut.  There was no water at the hut & on the trail out to the road the marked water sources were only tiny trickles.  Carry a few litres of water up to the hut if you are NOBO.  There was no one at the entrance & I hitched out to Entre Lagos.     
 +
 
 +
*6 to 8 of January 2023 / Véronica / GPT19 RR SOBO / via GPT19-02 / 2.5 days
 +
 
 +
Route: Riñinahue - Los Venados - Refugio El Caulle - summit of Volcán Puyehue - Anticura
 +
 
 +
I loved seeing the drastic change in landscape and ecosystems on this section, from the life-filled rainforest to the stark desert-like altiplano.
 +
 
 +
From Panguipulli, I took the first bus to Los Lagos, which left at 8:40 a.m. There was no bus from Los Lagos to Futrono, so I hitchhiked instead. Then from Futrono I took a bus to Llifen, then hitched the rest of the way to Riñinahue. I wanted to start this section from Riñinahue (Option 2) in order to shave off some of the road walking on the Regular Route. I was lucky and caught a ride all the way to the bridge at km 37.3 over Río Nilahue. Getting to the trail took most of the day. I began to hike south on the regular route around 5 p.m.
 +
 
 +
I met Neri and Hector, very kind people. At first Hector was apprehensive about letting me hike onward because I was alone. But after explaining how far I'd walked and showing him my GPS and SPOT device, he agreed to let me through the park. I wrote down my name and contact info in the book/registry he keeps with Neri. I dry camped about a kilometer beyond their house.
 +
 
 +
After Hector and Neri's place, the path stops being MR and becomes TR through the lush Valdivian rainforest. Trail is in good condition. There are a few blowdowns, but they are relatively easy to go around, climb over, or crawl under.
 +
 
 +
The "water ?" waypoint north of the trail before the treeline is just a few shallow pools of stagnant water. It was cold and clear though, so I collected 2 litres for the upcoming Puyehue plateau. I didn't investigate the other "water ?" to the south. I definetly didn't have to carry that much, because I soon discovered the plateau still has many snow patches, and so there are lots of little snowmelt trickles pretty regularly. This may no longer be the case in a few weeks though.
 +
 
 +
The altiplano is desolate and beautiful, very reminiscent of Section 6. I found there was a decent path and footprints to follow up until the junction at km 56.1. There are impressive azufreras there! Afterwards it's all cross-country. I had no navigation issues. I found the terrain got more physically demanding the closer I got to the volcano, and climbing in and out of steep-walled dry arroyos was tiring.
 +
 
 +
The "water ?" at 68.6 km was flowing nicely. The next "water ?" at 69.2 km was non-accessible, because the ravine where it is located is currently covered by a giant snowfield. You'd have to go down quite a bit to get to where the water trickles out. There will be water there a long time, I'd say.
 +
 
 +
The "pass" waypoint was confusing to me, because I saw nothing there that looked like a pass. It's just a long traverse on the mountainside. About a kilometer south of this "pass" though, a trail reappears and it lasts all the way to the refugio El Caulle.
 +
 
 +
The weather was looking a bit unsettled, cloudy and windy, and I didn't know if it would rain or not, so I did a long day and camped at the refugio (the volcanic flank is quite exposed). I collected lots of water at the waypoint at km 71.8, so I didn't check to see if the spring below the refugio was running or not.
 +
 
 +
Early the next morning, the weather looked good, so I left most of my gear at camp and climbed Puyehue following Option 4. There are cairns most of the way up, and other footsteps/tracks to follow. It gets a bit steep in some places, but nothing too crazy. Poles definitely helped and having a light backpack too. The 800-m climb is definitely worth it! Amazing to see the surrounding mountains and valley clouds in the early morning light. Like Quetrupillan, the crater of Puyehue is filled with snow and ice. The climb from the refugio to the summit took me 1h45 min, including a short water/breakfast break on the way up. Downhill was easier and less sketchy than I expected, and that took an hour.
 +
 
 +
From El Caulle down to the road is a clear path, sometimes steep, down through the forest. The two water sources there were pretty much dry, just a bit of stagnant and muddy water. It has been very dry this past month, almost no rain. I crossed the gates at Santiago's house at the end, I didn't see anyone and no one charged me entry for the park. I hitched easily to Entre Lagos and will be skipping down to GPT22.
 +
* 10/02/2023 - 13/02/2023 / RR + volcan summit + termas - round trip from south / Louis, Rémi & Noé :
 +
 
 +
I wanted to precise one thing that I haven't understand : Santiago has a restaurant, near the road and a refuge (waypoint refuge no water). You have to check in at the restaurant to pay the 15k CLP /pers. This price includes a night in the refuge (there is nobody in there), access to volcano and a night at the camping near the restaurant (with cold shower for free).
 +
 
 +
Day 1 - Refugio El Caulle - 8km - +1000m/-0m
 +
First day going up to the refuge. We took the bus from Osorno, the only one going to Anticura leaves at 6pm but you have plenty of others going to Termas de Puyehue (going to Aguas Calientes). From there, 15km of hitchike, very easy. Then, the rise until the refuge in a beautiful and green forest. There is water upward the refuge, 15min walk.
 +
 
 +
Day 2 - Volcan Puyehue + camp El Domo - 13km - +1300m/-1100m
 +
The caldeira of the volcano is superb ! the path is well traced until the summit. Then, we did the round of it and went down on the opposite side. We camped at the "El Domo" camp, located on Santiago's map, around km XX. Water is available just before it.
 +
 
 +
Day 3 - Termas - 17km - +700m/-900m
 +
Under the rain, it's not easy to navigate on the volcanic plateau. I would say that a navigation device is mandatory. Hot springs are very enjoyable after such a day under the rain. There is drinkable water before the hot springs (1km).
 +
 
 +
Day 4 - Back to Restaurant El Caulle on RR - 32km - +1300m/-2400m
 +
A long day, even longer under the rain but doable. The restaurant was closed when we arrived (a Monday at 7pm). Santiago selled us basic food (pasta, sauce, eggs (a bit expensive)) and he opened the doors of his barn for us to sleep dry. The only bus going down from here to Osorno leaves at 7:30am.
 +
 
 +
 
 +
* 2023-Feb-04 to 2023-Feb-07 / 3.5 days / Hiking / SOBO / RR / Martin & Helena
 +
 
 +
Great section, after a lot of forrest trails it was nice to see again something totally different and quite similiar to the landscape of GPT06. We were a little irresponsible with the water so better plan carefully.
 +
 
 +
The beginning around the lake is just road walking with quite a lot of traffic, depending on the weekday, but its better to avoid it, we didn’t feel always safe with more cars passing by. There should be ferry that goes on the other side of the lake. Good restaurant at around km 2-3, the one with empanadas to go in the house above the restaurant (reealy good). We camped behind a gate at km 5.7, below one of the miradors. At Hueinahue we went down to the beach we have seen from the road, hoping to buy some food, but nothing was there except of crowds of people. We crossed the river to get back on the road, but it would have been better to return back really. MR continues for the next almost 30km, but its quite nice walking through forrest and around settlements. Food truck with empanadas and some drinks at km 23 was a nice surprise, but might be there only in summer. Great place to camp by laguna at km 31, but its shores are all muddy.
 +
 
 +
Bridge at km 37 is the last reliable source of water so keep it in mind! When we got to the start of option 03, there was only locked gate and no one around at Hector and Neri’s place. Because of that we went with 03, and after 2 locked gates joined the CC variant and back on the RR. There is probably some tiny stream at the CC part but not easily accessible. The way up on the RR already was relatively easy with a few fallen trees that you can always walk around. We were hoping to find some water at km 53.5 or the one next to it but it was all dry already, just like many creeks that we have seen over the treeline. This became a problem for us, and the first water we found was at the big plateau you have to descent to in order to continue to the lava field and further. We didnt turn left at the beginning but continued straight to a few snowfields that are still big enough and on a hot day we could gather water from the snowmelt. From that point its about half a day to the next water (close to the start of descent down to the refugio and valley) so again good to take as much as you can. We didn’t have to pay anything at the end of the section as someone told us, this might be the case only in NOBO direction, or it was because we went there later in the evening. We camped on a yard of family living across the road for 5k CLP, they sell some basic food and its possible to have a shower there as well. Bus to Osorno and Entre Lagos as well leaves early in the morning around 7 AM we think but rather ask.
 +
 
 +
Contact: @martin_hanzelka @helenneka
 +
 
 +
 
 +
* 28.01.23 - 30.01.23 / Yannic & Mirjam/ Northbound
 +
Much has already been explained in great detail, so we will be brief:
 +
We saw no one at the entrance and therefore walked through without paying an entrance fee.
 +
The two water streams in the forest are dry and there is no water directly at the refugio. However, there are still snowfields about 1-2 km further up from the refugio which provide enough water.
 +
There was still enough water at 68.6. After that, there were still isolated snowfields, but partly further away from the trail.
 +
We spent the night between the lava rocks at S 40.53312 / W 72.16869, as there were still snowfields there, which we used for drinking water.
 +
After that, there was no more water until we reached Neri and Hector's house. The two of them were so nice and filled up our water. They charged an entrance fee of 5,000 CLP per person. Because of language barriers, we weren't sure if it was voluntary or because we couldn't show a ticket from the other entrance. Anyway, we paid and moved on.
 +
Hitchhiking to Rininahue went quite well once you are on the bigger Minor Road T-851.
 +
 
 +
 
 +
*26.01.23 - 29.01.23 / Anna & Christopher / SOBO, Riñinahue (option 2) - Volcán Puyehue (option 4B) - Licán
 +
 
 +
From Panguipulli we took a bus at 8:40 am to Los Lagos (on a thursday). From there we took another bus to Paillaco at 11:30 am and got off at the cruce Reumén/Futrono. The connecting bus to Futrono passed there around 12:20 pm. From Futrono we took a bus to Llifén at 13:15 pm. From there we hitchhiked until the junction of Option 2 with the RR at km 37 approx. and arrived there around 17:00 pm.
 +
On the way up to Los Venados there is one accessible creek approx. 2,5 km before Los Venados. When we arrived there the gate following the RR was locked. As we didn't wanted to dry camp (we didn't fill up our bottles at the creek) we tried to get access to the river following variant D. It's definitely not possible to get water there, the forest is too dense and its getting too steep to climb down. So we went back and luckily after a while Hector and Neri arrived. They offered us to stay at their Refugio the night as it was already quite late.
 +
 
 +
The way up to the plateau is a good path. We collected some water from the northern "water?" waypoint around km 53,5. As Véronica mentioned there are only some shallow pools, but with clear water.
 +
On the plateau there are still some creeks from the snowmelt, but not that many so better carry some water.
 +
Around km 65 we saw in the valley on the left hand side a nicely flowing creek (off the RR) and decided to camp there. Its a detour of about 15-20min.
 +
 
 +
The next day we woke up to a clear blue sky and therefore decided to climb the volcano and to take the surrounding variant. On the ascent we didn't follow the GPS, which was a bad idea, as we ended up in a steep scree traverse/sketchy rock climbing. So it took us a lot of time to reach the ridge. Once there we enjoyed the amazing views! Walking around the crater got more and more tiring with all the ups and downs, but it's worth it! It was our favorite section so far.
 +
We collected some snowmelt water on the descent and camped at the Refugio (no water there).
 +
 
 +
The path down from the Refugio is in good conditions. From Licán we got a ride directly to Puerto Montt.
 +
 
 +
*2023-Jan-5 Frank 4 days RR SOBO
 +
 
 +
I came from GPT18.  Before Lago Maihue there are a couple of small shops & a restaurant.  As you go around Lago Maihue on the road there are a lot of $ campsites, then the road climbs high above the lake before dropping to Rio Hueinahue.  I forded the river easily & went down to Camping Rupimeca at the lake, about 1KM off route.  Good cheap campsite, no electricity but they will charge your phone at the house.  Next day I continued to Hector & Neri's house but they weren't around.  I went in on the alternative route which goes right on a road just before Hector & Niri's place.  It's marked private with two locked gates but there was no one there.  Stream near the road but difficult to access - running in a gully & blocked by vegetation.  After several attempts I was able to access the stream higher up & camped nearby.  Just before the alternative route rejoins the RR from Hector & Niri's house there is a stream, if you drop down right a few hundred metres from RR onto the alternative route here you can get water.  The water sources marked near the treeline were tiny stagnant pools & they are a bit off trail.  However, in early January there was plenty of water above treeline from snowmelt.  Did the spectacular traverse in one long day.  The snowfields could be traversed or avoided fairly easily.  Fill up with water before you descend to the hut.  There was no water at the hut & on the trail out to the road the marked water sources were only tiny trickles.  Carry a few litres of water up to the hut if you are NOBO.  There was no one at the entrance & I hitched out to Entre Lagos.     
 +
 
 +
*6 to 8 of January 2023 / Véronica / GPT19 RR SOBO / via GPT19-02 / 2.5 days
 +
 
 +
Route: Riñinahue - Los Venados - Refugio El Caulle - summit of Volcán Puyehue - Anticura
 +
 
 +
I loved seeing the drastic change in landscape and ecosystems on this section, from the life-filled rainforest to the stark desert-like altiplano.
 +
 
 +
From Panguipulli, I took the first bus to Los Lagos, which left at 8:40 a.m. There was no bus from Los Lagos to Futrono, so I hitchhiked instead. Then from Futrono I took a bus to Llifen, then hitched the rest of the way to Riñinahue. I wanted to start this section from Riñinahue (Option 2) in order to shave off some of the road walking on the Regular Route. I was lucky and caught a ride all the way to the bridge at km 37.3 over Río Nilahue. Getting to the trail took most of the day. I began to hike south on the regular route around 5 p.m.
 +
 
 +
I met Neri and Hector, very kind people. At first Hector was apprehensive about letting me hike onward because I was alone. But after explaining how far I'd walked and showing him my GPS and SPOT device, he agreed to let me through the park. I wrote down my name and contact info in the book/registry he keeps with Neri. I dry camped about a kilometer beyond their house.
 +
 
 +
After Hector and Neri's place, the path stops being MR and becomes TR through the lush Valdivian rainforest. Trail is in good condition. There are a few blowdowns, but they are relatively easy to go around, climb over, or crawl under.
 +
 
 +
The "water ?" waypoint north of the trail before the treeline is just a few shallow pools of stagnant water. It was cold and clear though, so I collected 2 litres for the upcoming Puyehue plateau. I didn't investigate the other "water ?" to the south. I definetly didn't have to carry that much, because I soon discovered the plateau still has many snow patches, and so there are lots of little snowmelt trickles pretty regularly. This may no longer be the case in a few weeks though.
 +
 
 +
The altiplano is desolate and beautiful, very reminiscent of Section 6. I found there was a decent path and footprints to follow up until the junction at km 56.1. There are impressive azufreras there! Afterwards it's all cross-country. I had no navigation issues. I found the terrain got more physically demanding the closer I got to the volcano, and climbing in and out of steep-walled dry arroyos was tiring.
 +
 
 +
The "water ?" at 68.6 km was flowing nicely. The next "water ?" at 69.2 km was non-accessible, because the ravine where it is located is currently covered by a giant snowfield. You'd have to go down quite a bit to get to where the water trickles out. There will be water there a long time, I'd say.
 +
 
 +
The "pass" waypoint was confusing to me, because I saw nothing there that looked like a pass. It's just a long traverse on the mountainside. About a kilometer south of this "pass" though, a trail reappears and it lasts all the way to the refugio El Caulle.
 +
 
 +
The weather was looking a bit unsettled, cloudy and windy, and I didn't know if it would rain or not, so I did a long day and camped at the refugio (the volcanic flank is quite exposed). I collected lots of water at the waypoint at km 71.8, so I didn't check to see if the spring below the refugio was running or not.
 +
 
 +
Early the next morning, the weather looked good, so I left most of my gear at camp and climbed Puyehue following Option 4. There are cairns most of the way up, and other footsteps/tracks to follow. It gets a bit steep in some places, but nothing too crazy. Poles definitely helped and having a light backpack too. The 800-m climb is definitely worth it! Amazing to see the surrounding mountains and valley clouds in the early morning light. Like Quetrupillan, the crater of Puyehue is filled with snow and ice. The climb from the refugio to the summit took me 1h45 min, including a short water/breakfast break on the way up. Downhill was easier and less sketchy than I expected, and that took an hour.
 +
 
 +
From El Caulle down to the road is a clear path, sometimes steep, down through the forest. The two water sources there were pretty much dry, just a bit of stagnant and muddy water. It has been very dry this past month, almost no rain. I crossed the gates at Santiago's house at the end, I didn't see anyone and no one charged me entry for the park. I hitched easily to Entre Lagos and will be skipping down to GPT22.
 +
 
 +
==Season 2021/22==
 +
 
 +
* 2021-Dec-25 / 4 days / Hiking / NOBO / Molly and Melissa
 +
 
 +
Good: You dive deep into old forests, it feels like true jungle. Many beautiful flowery meadows. Beautiful views on the last-ish part before the lake + the lake. We didn't meet anyone after crossing the gate. Nice hot springs in the beginning. The ferry trip itself
 +
Bad: Quite slow to get through a section of the forest - definitely manageable. Feels very much like breaking in as you literally climb a huge fence. Forest may be a little repetitive for some
 +
 
 +
GPT18:
 +
The first part marked as a minor road is now paved.
 +
We camped at the first hot springs without the dollar sign. It's a big field where you can camp, and the hot springs are really nice. There are several holes right next to the river, and the water has a nice temperature, not too hot, though probably still best when out of the sun. We didn't go to the other hot springs (Chihuío) where you have to pay, but it seems to be a big swimming pool of a kind. They close at 17:30.
 +
When continuing on the gravel road, several signs tell you that it's private property, and finally you get to a big gate next to a house. Maybe the guard's? No one was around when we came, though, and we climbed across the gate. From there we took the optional route along the gravel road, as you had to climb yet another gate to get to the regular route. When the gravel road split up, we picked the one closest to the river. It was nice and clear all the way, whereas the other one seemed very muddy. They met again, our route was behind a little gate that could easily be opened. From there, the optional route followed a very small trail, pretty overgrown, but still definitely doable. It seemed that someone had recently been through with a machete, we didn't need one. At one point we came to a barbed wire fence, and the trail seemed to continue along it. That was wrong, you have to cross the fence immediately, and the trail continues on the other side.
 +
We met the regular route by the river at two and decided to continue to the next spot marked as camp. That gave us a long day, the trail was still overgrown, though better than the previous, and it was slow going. When we came through it wasn't muddy though. There was nowhere to camp before the bridge. Right after, there is an abandoned field to the right of the route, the grass is quite long, but it's an okay camping site.
 +
The plant with bright orange flowers and white spots on the leaves hurt to the touch, like a stinging nettle.
 +
We saw strawberry plants everywhere, a nice section when they are in season!
 +
 +
From there, the rest of the way is on an abandoned 4x4 track, it's never difficult to see, but a little overgrown in places. It climbs above the treeline where the view is very nice, but we were attacked by hordes of flies that went away as we walked back into the forest. We camped on the lake shore, it's a great place to swim.
 +
Puerto Pirihueico has several restaurants, we had empanadas at Donde Mané, they were great.
 +
 
 +
The boat leaves everyday at 4 pm from Puerto Pirihueico and arrives at Puerto Fuy around 5 - too late for any busses. It seems you should buy tickets in the big building next to the lake? bus leaves for Panguipulli the next day around 7 am and 9 am - I think the last is at around 4 pm, and from there there are many busses to Valdivia. There are a ton of accomodation options and restaurants in Puerto Fuy.
 +
 
 +
 
 +
==Season 2020/21==
 +
 
 +
* 2021-Dec-19 / Molly and Melissa / GPT21 Northbound - RR + ascent of summit:
 +
 
 +
4 days - skipping some of the gravel road along the lake
 +
 
 +
We went from Osorno to Puyehue, as the bus driver said that no buses went any further. From there we were quickly able to hitch a ride to Lican which is the start of the minor road. It's a couple of kilometres before Anticura. It would also be possible to walk, from Puyehue to Lican is about 10 km. We walked up to the restaurant and met a man who lives close by, he told us Santiago wasn't home, but he could take our payment. As others have written, Santiago wants to know the names and approximate schedule of everyone going towards the volcano.
 +
We slept at his camp site as well, it has flushing toilets and showers in a shed, it doesn't cost extra.
 +
 
 +
Volcán Puyehue:
 +
 
 +
In short: Snow is no longer a problem, but there is still enough to create little streams, so carrying 1-1,5 L of water each was fine for us. Beautiful but tough. Navigation is okay when using the GPS.
 +
 
 +
The first of the little streams marked as water on the GPS while climbing up through the forest was dry, the other was still running. We passed the refugio, which has quite a few bunk beds without mattresses. From there the path towards the volcano is quite clear through the grass, and is marked with frequent cairns further up so the navigation here is quite easy all the way to the top. We left our bags on the main route which was a good decision, it was very steep with very loose small volcanic rocks. The view from up there was amazing.
 +
When continuing past the volcano, there is a trail for about three kilometres more, but after that it's pure cross country. With the GPS it's not that hard to navigate, but clear weather is necessary and the terrain is tough, especially when passing between the lava fields. We found that the Locus Maps showed a different route than the GPS. We still found quite a few streams, especially when still near the volcano, if there's snow there's probably still some water. The snow is no problem for walking though. The first water? was pretty big and will probably last some time, but the second was really small, but there are several other streams as well. There's also more water in the afternoon when more snow has melted. All in all climbing from the camping, climbing the volcano and traversing the plateau took us two days of walking. It could be done in less, but would be tough. We got quite sunburned even though we used sunscreen, it's very exposed!
 +
 
 +
We had no trouble with finding the trail on the other side, it already starts being clear before reaching the forest. After that it's mostly just easy walking on gravel roads. When going northbound there is an alternative route around Hector and Neri's place that seems easier, we opted for the overgrown route to their house because we wanted to see if we could buy some bread, they didn't sell any though, but we had a nice chat with Hector as he let us through their locked gate. They later drove us about a kilometre when they passed us. The gravel road was a bit tedious and very hot, and hard to find good camping spots. The one marked on the GPS was behind a fence and some dense vegetation, but a little earlier it was possible to go through a gate to a little lake. We were told that there were many pumas and that we couldn't drink the water from the lake, we drank from a little stream going to the lake instead, and we didn't see any pumas.
 +
 
 +
Rio Hueinahue:
 +
 
 +
We were able to cross the river without problems, it went to mid- thigh height and we are both around 160 cm tall. The current wasn't too strong either. We have had quite a few warm, dry days before.
 +
 
 +
On the road along the lake we were passed by a bus going to Valdivia which we jumped on happily, so coming off the trail could not have been easier. It passed through Maihue and Futrono as well.
 +
 
 +
* 2021-Dec-03 / Alex Abramov / GPT19: Volcán Puyehue. Northbound.
 +
The "Plateau" still has a LOT of snow.
 +
 
 +
 
 +
==Season 2019/20==
 +
 
 +
* Feb 2020 / Matthieu / RR + ascent of the summit + OH to the Hot Springs, Northbound
 +
Great section, amazing views, no technical difficulties with the trails and cross country..
 +
 
 +
 
 +
==Season 2018/19==
 +
 
 +
==Season 2017/18==
 +
 
 +
==Season 2016/17==
 +
 
 +
=Resupply and Accommodation=
 +
Nothing in Rupumeica. Little shops in Maqueo and Maihue. A lot of camping sites, free and payable, along the Lago Maihue.
 +
 
 +
*2020-Feb-19 / Martina & Ivo / Regular route southbound (start: km 37, end: Anticura)
 +
 
 +
2.5 days. Actually we wanted to hike from Riñinahue, so we took a random Bus in Osorno (09:20) to Río Bueno, where there was a connecting Bus to Lago Ranco, where there was another connecting Bus to Riñinahue, and this one continued - to our astonishment - to the bridge over Río Nilahue, where the optional route meets the regular route. We found water in the forest at both waypoints "water?", but we went after a period of heavy rain. The "water?" before the pass is still flowing and there is a lot of snow left to keep it flowing. The section was unexpectedly physically demanding but extremely beautiful! In Anticura we found accommodation, but we didn't look for resupply, which is probably not so easy...
  
 
10-02-2020 / Ty/ RR SOBO/ 3 Days
 
10-02-2020 / Ty/ RR SOBO/ 3 Days
Línea 51: Línea 282:
 
It was for us the most wonderful section we have had until today.
 
It was for us the most wonderful section we have had until today.
  
 +
NO WATER at the first refuge down the volcano, you got to go a little bit further up and west.
 +
All the west flank of the volcano is full of little stream coming from the snow. On this part no difficulties. "Water 12?" wasnt working when I was though, but there was a last stream after before going west to the desert ( at the div 128).You have a good half day of walking without water, so take some supply with you. The water comes back just before the div 126, on a place which looks like a dry lake, with little streams coming down some frozen snow.
 +
There is another part without water, that begins a little after Div 126 until the refuge of Neri and Hector. I personnaly thought easy to find water in the forest and got really thirsty because of that. There was nobody in the refuge, so I could find water a few meters after the north gate of the house, following a little trail that went on the right side, directly in the forest and to the river. (A little bit of bush bashing at the end, next to the river).
 +
Further on the road down there was some other rivers and there and good camping sites. You join the real road at bridge 63 and no problems of water after.
  
---
 
January 2020
 
*The Puyehue Traverse - GPT19*
 
 
Okay. This is my first conditions report. I walked the Puyehue Traverse with my parents over the last week. It is basically the last part of GPT19, starting on the rd to Héctor y Neri's (Los Venados)(phone beforehand to secure permission : +569 81868927). Let me know if I should structure it differently in the future.
 
 
*Getting to the Los Venados from Osorno *
 
We caught the bus first to Rio Blanco, another to Largo Ranco. We then lucked out that the Riñinahue bus happened to be passing through! I think this is only once a day and goes all the way to the turn off to Cruce Pichico (3.8km from the turnoff to Los Venados). Again we were lucky and managed to hitch a ride (with two anthropologists!). A car past telling us they (Héctor and Neri) weren't home so we took the bypass - not sure if this is private or not? We made camp by some water for the night.
 
 
*Up into the park*
 
There is more water available if you're willing to walk off the main track. Numerous times I heard water off to the sides. The first water close to the track was after you pass the national park sign where marked in the section pts. Then above the treeline there are better sources available from the snow melt (better and more numerous later in the day). From the geothermal site we side tripped into the valley for a day and came back along the ridge to the SW. The valley has a lot of streams and some great camp spots. You could even do a shortish 2hr detour to camp in the treeline here. We took some slight variations to the optional hiking route.
 
 
*Passing the recent lava flow *
 
Rejoining the RR at a lake we followed the wall around camping a night part way along. (met four French ppl hiking the GPT here). There is snow, but no really good water sources until you get to the points marked at the base of Volcán Puyehue (first one here -40.59224, -72.13547).
 
 
*Climbing the volcano *
 
In short. We didn't. We woke to rain and retreated to the refugio. We spent the day cleaning it. So much rubbish! Carried a load down but there is a lot more if anyone feels like it. It snowed overnight. There was snow down to the refugio at 1400m but only persisted to maybe 1600m. We couldn't see the top of the volcano and in the afternoon, with food running low, decided to bail. The hut has a dunny.
 
 
*Getting back into Osorno *
 
After waiting three hours for a bus we ended up hitching a ride in una camión. He told us we would have been waiting a long time. Maybe one bus a day. Not really sure. But getting there early is a good idea. Coming down you could camp where the rd starts if you want to save money on lodging. We then caught a bus back into Osorno.
 
 
24-Jan-2020 Tom & Maddie
 
Regular route SOBO starting from 37km, 1 day and nero.
 
Incredible section! We had no particular issues. It is possible to collect some water along the traverse after Hector and Neri’s property, however no reliable water sources are available until after the pass. There are some small streams flowing from the snow at the top so finding water is not impossible. We carried 3L per person and it was the right amount of water, including a side trip to the summit not on a track listed in the files. I would recommend doing the whole traverse in one day due to the limited water and the exposed nature of the area. Good weather is preferable, not just for the amazing views but also for safety reasons. The refuge at the other end of the pass is quite nice and a good place to spend the night.
 
 
==Summary Table==
 
{| border="1" style="border-collapse:collapse"
 
|+'''GPT19: Volcán Puyehue'''
 
| colspan="4" style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| GPT19: Volcán Puyehue
 
| colspan="2" style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Hiking
 
| colspan="2" style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Packrafting
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"|Group
 
| colspan="2" | D: Lagos Chilenos
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Total
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|'''83.0 km'''
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|'''28 h'''
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| '''70.0 km'''
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"|'''23 h'''
 
|-
 
| style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"|Region
 
| colspan="2" | Chile: Los Ríos (XIV) & Los Lagos (X)
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Trails (TL)
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|5.4 km
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|6.5%
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 5.4 km
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"|7.8%
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Start
 
| colspan="2" | Puerto Maihue
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Minor Roads (MR)
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|55.8 km
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|67.2%
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 34.2 km
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 48.8%
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Finish
 
| colspan="2" | Anticura (CONAF)
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Primary Roads (PR)
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|2.2 km
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|2.6%
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 2.2 km
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 3.1%
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Status
 
| colspan="2" | Published & Verified
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Cross-Country (CC)
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|19.7 km
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|23.7%
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 18.6 km
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 26.6%
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Traversable
 
| colspan="2" | Dec - Mar (Maybe: Nov, Apr)
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Bush-Bashing (BB)
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|-
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|-
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| -
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"|-
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Packraft
 
| colspan="2" | Useful
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Ferry (FY)
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|-
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|-
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| -
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"|-
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Connects to
 
| colspan="2" | GPT18, GPT20
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Investigation (I)
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|-
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|-
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| -
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| -
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Options
 
| colspan="2" | 216 km (6 Options & Variants)
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Exploration (EXP)
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|-
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|-
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| -
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"|-
 
|-
 
|
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Hiking
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Packrafting
 
| rowspan="4" style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"|
 
| colspan="2" style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Total on Water
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| '''9.6 km'''
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| '''13.8%'''
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Attraction
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|5 (of 5)
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 5 (of 5)
 
| colspan="2" style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| River (RI)
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| -
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| -
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Difficulty
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|5 (of 5)
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 5 (of 5)
 
| colspan="2" style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Lake (LK)
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 9.6 km
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| 13.8%
 
|-
 
| style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"|Direction
 
|style="background-color:#ffbfbf;"|Both ↓↑
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"|Both ↓↑
 
| colspan="2" style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Fjord (FJ)
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"| -
 
|style="background-color:#c2edfc;"|-
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Comment
 
| colspan="7" | -
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Character
 
| colspan="7" | Valdivian Rain Forest, Volcanic Terrain, Summit Ascents, Hot Springs, Settlers, Lake Packrafting
 
|-
 
|style="background-color:#bfbfbf;"| Challenges
 
| colspan="7" | Exposure to Elements, Demanding Navigation, Lack of Drinking Water
 
|}
 
 
==Satellite Image Map==
 
==Elevation Profile==
 
====Elevation Profile of Regular Hiking Route====
 
[[File:profile GPT19.PNG|frame|center|Elevation Profile of Regular Hiking Route (2019)]]
 
<br>
 
 
====Elevation Profile of Regular Packrafting Route====
 
[[File:profile GPT19-p.PNG|frame|center|Elevation Profile of Regular Hiking Route (2019)]]
 
<br>
 
 
==Section Planning Status==
 
==Recommended Travel Period==
 
==Benefits of Hiking and Packrafting==
 
==Recommended Travel Direction==
 
==Section Length and Travel Duration==
 
==Suitable Section Combinations==
 
==Section Attractiveness==
 
==Section Difficulty==
 
==Resupply==
 
===Resupply Town===
 
====Shopping: Food====
 
====Shopping: Fuel====
 
====Shopping: Equipment====
 
====Services: Restaurants====
 
====Services: Laundry====
 
====Services: ATM and Money Exchange====
 
====Accommodation: Hostals and Hotels====
 
====Accommodation: Cabañas====
 
====Accommodation: Camping====
 
====Transport: Ground Transport====
 
====Transport: Ferries====
 
====Transport: Shipping Services====
 
 
===Resupply on the Trail===
 
====Location, Names, Available Items and Services====
 
  
==Access to Route and Return==
+
==Resupply and Accommodation in nearby Towns==
===Access to Start===
+
Osorno to Riñinahue:
+
  
There are a lot of Busses going from Osorno to Río Bueno, where you have to change Bus to Lago Ranco, where you have to change again to Riñinahue. If you take the 09:20 Bus in Osorno you get the once-a-day-connection that goes further than Riñinahue, until the bridge over Río Nilahue, where the optional route meets the regular route.
 
  
===Return from Finish===
 
===Escape Options===
 
==Permits, Entry Fees and Right-of-Way Issues==
 
The regular route passes through the property of Héctor y Neri's (Los Venados). They prefer you phone beforehand to secure permission : +569 81868927.
 
  
==Regular Route==
+
==Resupply and Accommodation along the Route==
===Regular Hiking Route===
+
*Route description by Kara Davis after Season 2017/18:
+
  
GPT19 begins at the northeastern end of Lago Maihue. The regular hiking route follows T-559, a nice road with beautiful overlooking views of the lake, for many kilometers. Less than a kilometer after the GPS track turns east to contour the north bank of Río Hueinahue, the track turns off of T-559. There is no trail at the turn off, continue cross country until reaching the road on the other side. Be careful crossing this river! At high water, it may be a good idea to walk the few extra kilometers to the T-559 bridge crossing. The river is wide and the river bed was slippery.
+
=Transport to and from Route=
  
Soon after rejoining T-559 on the south side of Río Hueinahue, turn right onto T-537 and begin to steeply climb. After about 2 kilometers, the road reduces to a very rutted trail with occasional spurs and limited camping. The route joins a gravel road T-567, for about 27 km until the turnoff onto Camino a Predio Contrafuerte, a smaller gravel road. After about 16 km, the road ends at a residence that the GPS route apparently goes right through. This house belongs to Nari and Hector, a wonderful older couple who are very used to hikers coming through their property on their way to Volcán Puyehue. Don’t be too alarmed with the barking dogs, go in and introduce yourself!
+
=Permits, Entry Fees and Right-of-Way Issues=
  
From Nari’s house, there is NO WATER until halfway down the descent of Volcán Puyehue!! It may be possible to grab a drink from some melting snow but don’t count on it during low snow years. Climb a wide rut up the hill behind Nari’s house. The rut reduces to single track and continues to climb through an open forest with plenty of places to camp. After reaching treeline, the trail disappears. You may see the occasional cairn or footprint, but for the most part this is cross-country travel until treeline on the south side of the volcano. The landscape through this section is alien and breathtakingly beautiful.  
+
In this sense you have to pay the entry of the private property in Lican, at the camping/restaurant of the base of the volcano (10 000 CLP). The owner is called Santiago and is really nice, he gives you all the informations necessary for places to camp and water supply. I could take a photo of the touristic map too, which normally you have to pay for. Going southbound I don´t think that you have to pay something to enter the parc.
  
Just before the very steep descent at approximate elevation 1.400 m, there is a small hut which is popular with hikers climbing the volcano. Descend on a nice trail through the forest with limited camping options. As you approach the road, 215-CH, the route passes by several small cabins. Just west of where the route intersects 215-CH, is a bus stop. The nearest large town is Osorno (see town description in GPT20).
+
=Links to other Resources=
  
===Regular Packrafting Route===
+
Retired Section Article [[GPT19 - Volcán Puyehue]]
==Optional Routes==
+
==Investigations and Explorations==
+
==Links to other Resources==
+
==Alerts and Logs of Past Seasons==
+
  
==Images==
+
=Images=
<gallery>
+
File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354781.jpg|
+
File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354783.jpg|
+
File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354857.jpg|
+
File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354866.jpg|
+
File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354871.jpg|
+
File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354758.jpg|thumb|
+
File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354765.jpg|thumb|
+
File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354768.jpg|thumb|
+
File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354769.jpg|thumb|
+
File:GPT_13_Volcán_Puyehue_109354773.jpg|thumb|
+
</gallery>
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[[category:Greater Patagonian Trail]]
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Revisión actual del 10:58 2 dic 2023


Add a new log entry always on top in the appropriate season sub-chapter and use format:

* Start Date to Finish Date (use Format YYYY-MMM-DD) / Duration in Days / Hiking or Packrafting / Travel Direction (SOBO for Southbound or NOBO Northbound) / Chosen Route and/or Option Name (RR for Regular Route) / Names or Alias

Summary with remarks to route that are considered useful for other hikers and packrafters. Include alerts, suggestions and personal perception of attractiveness and difficulties.


Add a sub-chapter by placing two "=" before and after the new sub-chapter heading ('==Sub-Chapter Heading==').


Section Log, Alerts and Suggestions

Season 2025/26

Season 2024/25

Season 2023/24

  • Recommendation Jan Dudeck in November 2023: Based on the STRAVA Global Heatmap (https://www.strava.com/heatmap#12.18/-72.09488/-40.50378/hot/all) the Route GPT19 Option 3 is open and used again (we got severely stuck in bamboo in November 2013). This route might be slightly faster but makes access to the hot spings "Hot Spring {19-01} [6.8/1415]" a big detour. Due to the river crossing this route is only recommended northbound in December while the snow on the plateau is melting. This places the river crossing at the beginning so it's easy to return to the regular route if the river ford is not manageable. This Route GPT19 Option 3 might be beneficial when the weather window of decent weather for crossing the plateau is rather short.

Season 2022/23

  • January 2023 Frank

Option OH-001 crossing Rio Corrigue: this section barely exists as large parts have been taken back by bamboo. It is now a severe & sustained bamboo bash requiring huge effort to crawl, break & climb through at about 1 kilometre per hour. Try RR or other options instead


  • 10/02/2023 - 13/02/2023 / RR + volcan summit + termas - round trip from south / Louis, Rémi & Noé :

I wanted to precise one thing that I haven't understand : Santiago has a restaurant, near the road and a refuge (waypoint refuge no water). You have to check in at the restaurant to pay the 15k CLP /pers. This price includes a night in the refuge (there is nobody in there), access to volcano and a night at the camping near the restaurant (with cold shower for free).

Day 1 - Refugio El Caulle - 8km - +1000m/-0m First day going up to the refuge. We took the bus from Osorno, the only one going to Anticura leaves at 6pm but you have plenty of others going to Termas de Puyehue (going to Aguas Calientes). From there, 15km of hitchike, very easy. Then, the rise until the refuge in a beautiful and green forest. There is water upward the refuge, 15min walk.

Day 2 - Volcan Puyehue + camp El Domo - 13km - +1300m/-1100m The caldeira of the volcano is superb ! the path is well traced until the summit. Then, we did the round of it and went down on the opposite side. We camped at the "El Domo" camp, located on Santiago's map, around km XX. Water is available just before it.

Day 3 - Termas - 17km - +700m/-900m Under the rain, it's not easy to navigate on the volcanic plateau. I would say that a navigation device is mandatory. Hot springs are very enjoyable after such a day under the rain. There is drinkable water before the hot springs (1km).

Day 4 - Back to Restaurant El Caulle on RR - 32km - +1300m/-2400m A long day, even longer under the rain but doable. The restaurant was closed when we arrived (a Monday at 7pm). Santiago selled us basic food (pasta, sauce, eggs (a bit expensive)) and he opened the doors of his barn for us to sleep dry. The only bus going down from here to Osorno leaves at 7:30am.


  • 2023-Feb-04 to 2023-Feb-07 / 3.5 days / Hiking / SOBO / RR / Martin & Helena

Great section, after a lot of forrest trails it was nice to see again something totally different and quite similiar to the landscape of GPT06. We were a little irresponsible with the water so better plan carefully.

The beginning around the lake is just road walking with quite a lot of traffic, depending on the weekday, but its better to avoid it, we didn’t feel always safe with more cars passing by. There should be ferry that goes on the other side of the lake. Good restaurant at around km 2-3, the one with empanadas to go in the house above the restaurant (reealy good). We camped behind a gate at km 5.7, below one of the miradors. At Hueinahue we went down to the beach we have seen from the road, hoping to buy some food, but nothing was there except of crowds of people. We crossed the river to get back on the road, but it would have been better to return back really. MR continues for the next almost 30km, but its quite nice walking through forrest and around settlements. Food truck with empanadas and some drinks at km 23 was a nice surprise, but might be there only in summer. Great place to camp by laguna at km 31, but its shores are all muddy.

Bridge at km 37 is the last reliable source of water so keep it in mind! When we got to the start of option 03, there was only locked gate and no one around at Hector and Neri’s place. Because of that we went with 03, and after 2 locked gates joined the CC variant and back on the RR. There is probably some tiny stream at the CC part but not easily accessible. The way up on the RR already was relatively easy with a few fallen trees that you can always walk around. We were hoping to find some water at km 53.5 or the one next to it but it was all dry already, just like many creeks that we have seen over the treeline. This became a problem for us, and the first water we found was at the big plateau you have to descent to in order to continue to the lava field and further. We didnt turn left at the beginning but continued straight to a few snowfields that are still big enough and on a hot day we could gather water from the snowmelt. From that point its about half a day to the next water (close to the start of descent down to the refugio and valley) so again good to take as much as you can. We didn’t have to pay anything at the end of the section as someone told us, this might be the case only in NOBO direction, or it was because we went there later in the evening. We camped on a yard of family living across the road for 5k CLP, they sell some basic food and its possible to have a shower there as well. Bus to Osorno and Entre Lagos as well leaves early in the morning around 7 AM we think but rather ask.

Contact: @martin_hanzelka @helenneka


  • 28.01.23 - 30.01.23 / Yannic & Mirjam/ Northbound

Much has already been explained in great detail, so we will be brief: We saw no one at the entrance and therefore walked through without paying an entrance fee. The two water streams in the forest are dry and there is no water directly at the refugio. However, there are still snowfields about 1-2 km further up from the refugio which provide enough water. There was still enough water at 68.6. After that, there were still isolated snowfields, but partly further away from the trail. We spent the night between the lava rocks at S 40.53312 / W 72.16869, as there were still snowfields there, which we used for drinking water. After that, there was no more water until we reached Neri and Hector's house. The two of them were so nice and filled up our water. They charged an entrance fee of 5,000 CLP per person. Because of language barriers, we weren't sure if it was voluntary or because we couldn't show a ticket from the other entrance. Anyway, we paid and moved on. Hitchhiking to Rininahue went quite well once you are on the bigger Minor Road T-851.


  • 26.01.23 - 29.01.23 / Anna & Christopher / SOBO, Riñinahue (option 2) - Volcán Puyehue (option 4B) - Licán

From Panguipulli we took a bus at 8:40 am to Los Lagos (on a thursday). From there we took another bus to Paillaco at 11:30 am and got off at the cruce Reumén/Futrono. The connecting bus to Futrono passed there around 12:20 pm. From Futrono we took a bus to Llifén at 13:15 pm. From there we hitchhiked until the junction of Option 2 with the RR at km 37 approx. and arrived there around 17:00 pm. On the way up to Los Venados there is one accessible creek approx. 2,5 km before Los Venados. When we arrived there the gate following the RR was locked. As we didn't wanted to dry camp (we didn't fill up our bottles at the creek) we tried to get access to the river following variant D. It's definitely not possible to get water there, the forest is too dense and its getting too steep to climb down. So we went back and luckily after a while Hector and Neri arrived. They offered us to stay at their Refugio the night as it was already quite late.

The way up to the plateau is a good path. We collected some water from the northern "water?" waypoint around km 53,5. As Véronica mentioned there are only some shallow pools, but with clear water. On the plateau there are still some creeks from the snowmelt, but not that many so better carry some water. Around km 65 we saw in the valley on the left hand side a nicely flowing creek (off the RR) and decided to camp there. Its a detour of about 15-20min.

The next day we woke up to a clear blue sky and therefore decided to climb the volcano and to take the surrounding variant. On the ascent we didn't follow the GPS, which was a bad idea, as we ended up in a steep scree traverse/sketchy rock climbing. So it took us a lot of time to reach the ridge. Once there we enjoyed the amazing views! Walking around the crater got more and more tiring with all the ups and downs, but it's worth it! It was our favorite section so far. We collected some snowmelt water on the descent and camped at the Refugio (no water there).

The path down from the Refugio is in good conditions. From Licán we got a ride directly to Puerto Montt.

  • 2023-Jan-5 Frank 4 days RR SOBO

I came from GPT18. Before Lago Maihue there are a couple of small shops & a restaurant. As you go around Lago Maihue on the road there are a lot of $ campsites, then the road climbs high above the lake before dropping to Rio Hueinahue. I forded the river easily & went down to Camping Rupimeca at the lake, about 1KM off route. Good cheap campsite, no electricity but they will charge your phone at the house. Next day I continued to Hector & Neri's house but they weren't around. I went in on the alternative route which goes right on a road just before Hector & Niri's place. It's marked private with two locked gates but there was no one there. Stream near the road but difficult to access - running in a gully & blocked by vegetation. After several attempts I was able to access the stream higher up & camped nearby. Just before the alternative route rejoins the RR from Hector & Niri's house there is a stream, if you drop down right a few hundred metres from RR onto the alternative route here you can get water. The water sources marked near the treeline were tiny stagnant pools & they are a bit off trail. However, in early January there was plenty of water above treeline from snowmelt. Did the spectacular traverse in one long day. The snowfields could be traversed or avoided fairly easily. Fill up with water before you descend to the hut. There was no water at the hut & on the trail out to the road the marked water sources were only tiny trickles. Carry a few litres of water up to the hut if you are NOBO. There was no one at the entrance & I hitched out to Entre Lagos.

  • 6 to 8 of January 2023 / Véronica / GPT19 RR SOBO / via GPT19-02 / 2.5 days

Route: Riñinahue - Los Venados - Refugio El Caulle - summit of Volcán Puyehue - Anticura

I loved seeing the drastic change in landscape and ecosystems on this section, from the life-filled rainforest to the stark desert-like altiplano.

From Panguipulli, I took the first bus to Los Lagos, which left at 8:40 a.m. There was no bus from Los Lagos to Futrono, so I hitchhiked instead. Then from Futrono I took a bus to Llifen, then hitched the rest of the way to Riñinahue. I wanted to start this section from Riñinahue (Option 2) in order to shave off some of the road walking on the Regular Route. I was lucky and caught a ride all the way to the bridge at km 37.3 over Río Nilahue. Getting to the trail took most of the day. I began to hike south on the regular route around 5 p.m.

I met Neri and Hector, very kind people. At first Hector was apprehensive about letting me hike onward because I was alone. But after explaining how far I'd walked and showing him my GPS and SPOT device, he agreed to let me through the park. I wrote down my name and contact info in the book/registry he keeps with Neri. I dry camped about a kilometer beyond their house.

After Hector and Neri's place, the path stops being MR and becomes TR through the lush Valdivian rainforest. Trail is in good condition. There are a few blowdowns, but they are relatively easy to go around, climb over, or crawl under.

The "water ?" waypoint north of the trail before the treeline is just a few shallow pools of stagnant water. It was cold and clear though, so I collected 2 litres for the upcoming Puyehue plateau. I didn't investigate the other "water ?" to the south. I definetly didn't have to carry that much, because I soon discovered the plateau still has many snow patches, and so there are lots of little snowmelt trickles pretty regularly. This may no longer be the case in a few weeks though.

The altiplano is desolate and beautiful, very reminiscent of Section 6. I found there was a decent path and footprints to follow up until the junction at km 56.1. There are impressive azufreras there! Afterwards it's all cross-country. I had no navigation issues. I found the terrain got more physically demanding the closer I got to the volcano, and climbing in and out of steep-walled dry arroyos was tiring.

The "water ?" at 68.6 km was flowing nicely. The next "water ?" at 69.2 km was non-accessible, because the ravine where it is located is currently covered by a giant snowfield. You'd have to go down quite a bit to get to where the water trickles out. There will be water there a long time, I'd say.

The "pass" waypoint was confusing to me, because I saw nothing there that looked like a pass. It's just a long traverse on the mountainside. About a kilometer south of this "pass" though, a trail reappears and it lasts all the way to the refugio El Caulle.

The weather was looking a bit unsettled, cloudy and windy, and I didn't know if it would rain or not, so I did a long day and camped at the refugio (the volcanic flank is quite exposed). I collected lots of water at the waypoint at km 71.8, so I didn't check to see if the spring below the refugio was running or not.

Early the next morning, the weather looked good, so I left most of my gear at camp and climbed Puyehue following Option 4. There are cairns most of the way up, and other footsteps/tracks to follow. It gets a bit steep in some places, but nothing too crazy. Poles definitely helped and having a light backpack too. The 800-m climb is definitely worth it! Amazing to see the surrounding mountains and valley clouds in the early morning light. Like Quetrupillan, the crater of Puyehue is filled with snow and ice. The climb from the refugio to the summit took me 1h45 min, including a short water/breakfast break on the way up. Downhill was easier and less sketchy than I expected, and that took an hour.

From El Caulle down to the road is a clear path, sometimes steep, down through the forest. The two water sources there were pretty much dry, just a bit of stagnant and muddy water. It has been very dry this past month, almost no rain. I crossed the gates at Santiago's house at the end, I didn't see anyone and no one charged me entry for the park. I hitched easily to Entre Lagos and will be skipping down to GPT22.

  • 10/02/2023 - 13/02/2023 / RR + volcan summit + termas - round trip from south / Louis, Rémi & Noé :

I wanted to precise one thing that I haven't understand : Santiago has a restaurant, near the road and a refuge (waypoint refuge no water). You have to check in at the restaurant to pay the 15k CLP /pers. This price includes a night in the refuge (there is nobody in there), access to volcano and a night at the camping near the restaurant (with cold shower for free).

Day 1 - Refugio El Caulle - 8km - +1000m/-0m First day going up to the refuge. We took the bus from Osorno, the only one going to Anticura leaves at 6pm but you have plenty of others going to Termas de Puyehue (going to Aguas Calientes). From there, 15km of hitchike, very easy. Then, the rise until the refuge in a beautiful and green forest. There is water upward the refuge, 15min walk.

Day 2 - Volcan Puyehue + camp El Domo - 13km - +1300m/-1100m The caldeira of the volcano is superb ! the path is well traced until the summit. Then, we did the round of it and went down on the opposite side. We camped at the "El Domo" camp, located on Santiago's map, around km XX. Water is available just before it.

Day 3 - Termas - 17km - +700m/-900m Under the rain, it's not easy to navigate on the volcanic plateau. I would say that a navigation device is mandatory. Hot springs are very enjoyable after such a day under the rain. There is drinkable water before the hot springs (1km).

Day 4 - Back to Restaurant El Caulle on RR - 32km - +1300m/-2400m A long day, even longer under the rain but doable. The restaurant was closed when we arrived (a Monday at 7pm). Santiago selled us basic food (pasta, sauce, eggs (a bit expensive)) and he opened the doors of his barn for us to sleep dry. The only bus going down from here to Osorno leaves at 7:30am.


  • 2023-Feb-04 to 2023-Feb-07 / 3.5 days / Hiking / SOBO / RR / Martin & Helena

Great section, after a lot of forrest trails it was nice to see again something totally different and quite similiar to the landscape of GPT06. We were a little irresponsible with the water so better plan carefully.

The beginning around the lake is just road walking with quite a lot of traffic, depending on the weekday, but its better to avoid it, we didn’t feel always safe with more cars passing by. There should be ferry that goes on the other side of the lake. Good restaurant at around km 2-3, the one with empanadas to go in the house above the restaurant (reealy good). We camped behind a gate at km 5.7, below one of the miradors. At Hueinahue we went down to the beach we have seen from the road, hoping to buy some food, but nothing was there except of crowds of people. We crossed the river to get back on the road, but it would have been better to return back really. MR continues for the next almost 30km, but its quite nice walking through forrest and around settlements. Food truck with empanadas and some drinks at km 23 was a nice surprise, but might be there only in summer. Great place to camp by laguna at km 31, but its shores are all muddy.

Bridge at km 37 is the last reliable source of water so keep it in mind! When we got to the start of option 03, there was only locked gate and no one around at Hector and Neri’s place. Because of that we went with 03, and after 2 locked gates joined the CC variant and back on the RR. There is probably some tiny stream at the CC part but not easily accessible. The way up on the RR already was relatively easy with a few fallen trees that you can always walk around. We were hoping to find some water at km 53.5 or the one next to it but it was all dry already, just like many creeks that we have seen over the treeline. This became a problem for us, and the first water we found was at the big plateau you have to descent to in order to continue to the lava field and further. We didnt turn left at the beginning but continued straight to a few snowfields that are still big enough and on a hot day we could gather water from the snowmelt. From that point its about half a day to the next water (close to the start of descent down to the refugio and valley) so again good to take as much as you can. We didn’t have to pay anything at the end of the section as someone told us, this might be the case only in NOBO direction, or it was because we went there later in the evening. We camped on a yard of family living across the road for 5k CLP, they sell some basic food and its possible to have a shower there as well. Bus to Osorno and Entre Lagos as well leaves early in the morning around 7 AM we think but rather ask.

Contact: @martin_hanzelka @helenneka


  • 28.01.23 - 30.01.23 / Yannic & Mirjam/ Northbound

Much has already been explained in great detail, so we will be brief: We saw no one at the entrance and therefore walked through without paying an entrance fee. The two water streams in the forest are dry and there is no water directly at the refugio. However, there are still snowfields about 1-2 km further up from the refugio which provide enough water. There was still enough water at 68.6. After that, there were still isolated snowfields, but partly further away from the trail. We spent the night between the lava rocks at S 40.53312 / W 72.16869, as there were still snowfields there, which we used for drinking water. After that, there was no more water until we reached Neri and Hector's house. The two of them were so nice and filled up our water. They charged an entrance fee of 5,000 CLP per person. Because of language barriers, we weren't sure if it was voluntary or because we couldn't show a ticket from the other entrance. Anyway, we paid and moved on. Hitchhiking to Rininahue went quite well once you are on the bigger Minor Road T-851.


  • 26.01.23 - 29.01.23 / Anna & Christopher / SOBO, Riñinahue (option 2) - Volcán Puyehue (option 4B) - Licán

From Panguipulli we took a bus at 8:40 am to Los Lagos (on a thursday). From there we took another bus to Paillaco at 11:30 am and got off at the cruce Reumén/Futrono. The connecting bus to Futrono passed there around 12:20 pm. From Futrono we took a bus to Llifén at 13:15 pm. From there we hitchhiked until the junction of Option 2 with the RR at km 37 approx. and arrived there around 17:00 pm. On the way up to Los Venados there is one accessible creek approx. 2,5 km before Los Venados. When we arrived there the gate following the RR was locked. As we didn't wanted to dry camp (we didn't fill up our bottles at the creek) we tried to get access to the river following variant D. It's definitely not possible to get water there, the forest is too dense and its getting too steep to climb down. So we went back and luckily after a while Hector and Neri arrived. They offered us to stay at their Refugio the night as it was already quite late.

The way up to the plateau is a good path. We collected some water from the northern "water?" waypoint around km 53,5. As Véronica mentioned there are only some shallow pools, but with clear water. On the plateau there are still some creeks from the snowmelt, but not that many so better carry some water. Around km 65 we saw in the valley on the left hand side a nicely flowing creek (off the RR) and decided to camp there. Its a detour of about 15-20min.

The next day we woke up to a clear blue sky and therefore decided to climb the volcano and to take the surrounding variant. On the ascent we didn't follow the GPS, which was a bad idea, as we ended up in a steep scree traverse/sketchy rock climbing. So it took us a lot of time to reach the ridge. Once there we enjoyed the amazing views! Walking around the crater got more and more tiring with all the ups and downs, but it's worth it! It was our favorite section so far. We collected some snowmelt water on the descent and camped at the Refugio (no water there).

The path down from the Refugio is in good conditions. From Licán we got a ride directly to Puerto Montt.

  • 2023-Jan-5 Frank 4 days RR SOBO

I came from GPT18. Before Lago Maihue there are a couple of small shops & a restaurant. As you go around Lago Maihue on the road there are a lot of $ campsites, then the road climbs high above the lake before dropping to Rio Hueinahue. I forded the river easily & went down to Camping Rupimeca at the lake, about 1KM off route. Good cheap campsite, no electricity but they will charge your phone at the house. Next day I continued to Hector & Neri's house but they weren't around. I went in on the alternative route which goes right on a road just before Hector & Niri's place. It's marked private with two locked gates but there was no one there. Stream near the road but difficult to access - running in a gully & blocked by vegetation. After several attempts I was able to access the stream higher up & camped nearby. Just before the alternative route rejoins the RR from Hector & Niri's house there is a stream, if you drop down right a few hundred metres from RR onto the alternative route here you can get water. The water sources marked near the treeline were tiny stagnant pools & they are a bit off trail. However, in early January there was plenty of water above treeline from snowmelt. Did the spectacular traverse in one long day. The snowfields could be traversed or avoided fairly easily. Fill up with water before you descend to the hut. There was no water at the hut & on the trail out to the road the marked water sources were only tiny trickles. Carry a few litres of water up to the hut if you are NOBO. There was no one at the entrance & I hitched out to Entre Lagos.

  • 6 to 8 of January 2023 / Véronica / GPT19 RR SOBO / via GPT19-02 / 2.5 days

Route: Riñinahue - Los Venados - Refugio El Caulle - summit of Volcán Puyehue - Anticura

I loved seeing the drastic change in landscape and ecosystems on this section, from the life-filled rainforest to the stark desert-like altiplano.

From Panguipulli, I took the first bus to Los Lagos, which left at 8:40 a.m. There was no bus from Los Lagos to Futrono, so I hitchhiked instead. Then from Futrono I took a bus to Llifen, then hitched the rest of the way to Riñinahue. I wanted to start this section from Riñinahue (Option 2) in order to shave off some of the road walking on the Regular Route. I was lucky and caught a ride all the way to the bridge at km 37.3 over Río Nilahue. Getting to the trail took most of the day. I began to hike south on the regular route around 5 p.m.

I met Neri and Hector, very kind people. At first Hector was apprehensive about letting me hike onward because I was alone. But after explaining how far I'd walked and showing him my GPS and SPOT device, he agreed to let me through the park. I wrote down my name and contact info in the book/registry he keeps with Neri. I dry camped about a kilometer beyond their house.

After Hector and Neri's place, the path stops being MR and becomes TR through the lush Valdivian rainforest. Trail is in good condition. There are a few blowdowns, but they are relatively easy to go around, climb over, or crawl under.

The "water ?" waypoint north of the trail before the treeline is just a few shallow pools of stagnant water. It was cold and clear though, so I collected 2 litres for the upcoming Puyehue plateau. I didn't investigate the other "water ?" to the south. I definetly didn't have to carry that much, because I soon discovered the plateau still has many snow patches, and so there are lots of little snowmelt trickles pretty regularly. This may no longer be the case in a few weeks though.

The altiplano is desolate and beautiful, very reminiscent of Section 6. I found there was a decent path and footprints to follow up until the junction at km 56.1. There are impressive azufreras there! Afterwards it's all cross-country. I had no navigation issues. I found the terrain got more physically demanding the closer I got to the volcano, and climbing in and out of steep-walled dry arroyos was tiring.

The "water ?" at 68.6 km was flowing nicely. The next "water ?" at 69.2 km was non-accessible, because the ravine where it is located is currently covered by a giant snowfield. You'd have to go down quite a bit to get to where the water trickles out. There will be water there a long time, I'd say.

The "pass" waypoint was confusing to me, because I saw nothing there that looked like a pass. It's just a long traverse on the mountainside. About a kilometer south of this "pass" though, a trail reappears and it lasts all the way to the refugio El Caulle.

The weather was looking a bit unsettled, cloudy and windy, and I didn't know if it would rain or not, so I did a long day and camped at the refugio (the volcanic flank is quite exposed). I collected lots of water at the waypoint at km 71.8, so I didn't check to see if the spring below the refugio was running or not.

Early the next morning, the weather looked good, so I left most of my gear at camp and climbed Puyehue following Option 4. There are cairns most of the way up, and other footsteps/tracks to follow. It gets a bit steep in some places, but nothing too crazy. Poles definitely helped and having a light backpack too. The 800-m climb is definitely worth it! Amazing to see the surrounding mountains and valley clouds in the early morning light. Like Quetrupillan, the crater of Puyehue is filled with snow and ice. The climb from the refugio to the summit took me 1h45 min, including a short water/breakfast break on the way up. Downhill was easier and less sketchy than I expected, and that took an hour.

From El Caulle down to the road is a clear path, sometimes steep, down through the forest. The two water sources there were pretty much dry, just a bit of stagnant and muddy water. It has been very dry this past month, almost no rain. I crossed the gates at Santiago's house at the end, I didn't see anyone and no one charged me entry for the park. I hitched easily to Entre Lagos and will be skipping down to GPT22.

Season 2021/22

  • 2021-Dec-25 / 4 days / Hiking / NOBO / Molly and Melissa

Good: You dive deep into old forests, it feels like true jungle. Many beautiful flowery meadows. Beautiful views on the last-ish part before the lake + the lake. We didn't meet anyone after crossing the gate. Nice hot springs in the beginning. The ferry trip itself Bad: Quite slow to get through a section of the forest - definitely manageable. Feels very much like breaking in as you literally climb a huge fence. Forest may be a little repetitive for some

GPT18: The first part marked as a minor road is now paved. We camped at the first hot springs without the dollar sign. It's a big field where you can camp, and the hot springs are really nice. There are several holes right next to the river, and the water has a nice temperature, not too hot, though probably still best when out of the sun. We didn't go to the other hot springs (Chihuío) where you have to pay, but it seems to be a big swimming pool of a kind. They close at 17:30. When continuing on the gravel road, several signs tell you that it's private property, and finally you get to a big gate next to a house. Maybe the guard's? No one was around when we came, though, and we climbed across the gate. From there we took the optional route along the gravel road, as you had to climb yet another gate to get to the regular route. When the gravel road split up, we picked the one closest to the river. It was nice and clear all the way, whereas the other one seemed very muddy. They met again, our route was behind a little gate that could easily be opened. From there, the optional route followed a very small trail, pretty overgrown, but still definitely doable. It seemed that someone had recently been through with a machete, we didn't need one. At one point we came to a barbed wire fence, and the trail seemed to continue along it. That was wrong, you have to cross the fence immediately, and the trail continues on the other side. We met the regular route by the river at two and decided to continue to the next spot marked as camp. That gave us a long day, the trail was still overgrown, though better than the previous, and it was slow going. When we came through it wasn't muddy though. There was nowhere to camp before the bridge. Right after, there is an abandoned field to the right of the route, the grass is quite long, but it's an okay camping site. The plant with bright orange flowers and white spots on the leaves hurt to the touch, like a stinging nettle. We saw strawberry plants everywhere, a nice section when they are in season!

From there, the rest of the way is on an abandoned 4x4 track, it's never difficult to see, but a little overgrown in places. It climbs above the treeline where the view is very nice, but we were attacked by hordes of flies that went away as we walked back into the forest. We camped on the lake shore, it's a great place to swim. Puerto Pirihueico has several restaurants, we had empanadas at Donde Mané, they were great.

The boat leaves everyday at 4 pm from Puerto Pirihueico and arrives at Puerto Fuy around 5 - too late for any busses. It seems you should buy tickets in the big building next to the lake? bus leaves for Panguipulli the next day around 7 am and 9 am - I think the last is at around 4 pm, and from there there are many busses to Valdivia. There are a ton of accomodation options and restaurants in Puerto Fuy.


Season 2020/21

  • 2021-Dec-19 / Molly and Melissa / GPT21 Northbound - RR + ascent of summit:

4 days - skipping some of the gravel road along the lake

We went from Osorno to Puyehue, as the bus driver said that no buses went any further. From there we were quickly able to hitch a ride to Lican which is the start of the minor road. It's a couple of kilometres before Anticura. It would also be possible to walk, from Puyehue to Lican is about 10 km. We walked up to the restaurant and met a man who lives close by, he told us Santiago wasn't home, but he could take our payment. As others have written, Santiago wants to know the names and approximate schedule of everyone going towards the volcano. We slept at his camp site as well, it has flushing toilets and showers in a shed, it doesn't cost extra.

Volcán Puyehue:

In short: Snow is no longer a problem, but there is still enough to create little streams, so carrying 1-1,5 L of water each was fine for us. Beautiful but tough. Navigation is okay when using the GPS.

The first of the little streams marked as water on the GPS while climbing up through the forest was dry, the other was still running. We passed the refugio, which has quite a few bunk beds without mattresses. From there the path towards the volcano is quite clear through the grass, and is marked with frequent cairns further up so the navigation here is quite easy all the way to the top. We left our bags on the main route which was a good decision, it was very steep with very loose small volcanic rocks. The view from up there was amazing. When continuing past the volcano, there is a trail for about three kilometres more, but after that it's pure cross country. With the GPS it's not that hard to navigate, but clear weather is necessary and the terrain is tough, especially when passing between the lava fields. We found that the Locus Maps showed a different route than the GPS. We still found quite a few streams, especially when still near the volcano, if there's snow there's probably still some water. The snow is no problem for walking though. The first water? was pretty big and will probably last some time, but the second was really small, but there are several other streams as well. There's also more water in the afternoon when more snow has melted. All in all climbing from the camping, climbing the volcano and traversing the plateau took us two days of walking. It could be done in less, but would be tough. We got quite sunburned even though we used sunscreen, it's very exposed!

We had no trouble with finding the trail on the other side, it already starts being clear before reaching the forest. After that it's mostly just easy walking on gravel roads. When going northbound there is an alternative route around Hector and Neri's place that seems easier, we opted for the overgrown route to their house because we wanted to see if we could buy some bread, they didn't sell any though, but we had a nice chat with Hector as he let us through their locked gate. They later drove us about a kilometre when they passed us. The gravel road was a bit tedious and very hot, and hard to find good camping spots. The one marked on the GPS was behind a fence and some dense vegetation, but a little earlier it was possible to go through a gate to a little lake. We were told that there were many pumas and that we couldn't drink the water from the lake, we drank from a little stream going to the lake instead, and we didn't see any pumas.

Rio Hueinahue:

We were able to cross the river without problems, it went to mid- thigh height and we are both around 160 cm tall. The current wasn't too strong either. We have had quite a few warm, dry days before.

On the road along the lake we were passed by a bus going to Valdivia which we jumped on happily, so coming off the trail could not have been easier. It passed through Maihue and Futrono as well.

  • 2021-Dec-03 / Alex Abramov / GPT19: Volcán Puyehue. Northbound.

The "Plateau" still has a LOT of snow.


Season 2019/20

  • Feb 2020 / Matthieu / RR + ascent of the summit + OH to the Hot Springs, Northbound

Great section, amazing views, no technical difficulties with the trails and cross country..


Season 2018/19

Season 2017/18

Season 2016/17

Resupply and Accommodation

Nothing in Rupumeica. Little shops in Maqueo and Maihue. A lot of camping sites, free and payable, along the Lago Maihue.

  • 2020-Feb-19 / Martina & Ivo / Regular route southbound (start: km 37, end: Anticura)

2.5 days. Actually we wanted to hike from Riñinahue, so we took a random Bus in Osorno (09:20) to Río Bueno, where there was a connecting Bus to Lago Ranco, where there was another connecting Bus to Riñinahue, and this one continued - to our astonishment - to the bridge over Río Nilahue, where the optional route meets the regular route. We found water in the forest at both waypoints "water?", but we went after a period of heavy rain. The "water?" before the pass is still flowing and there is a lot of snow left to keep it flowing. The section was unexpectedly physically demanding but extremely beautiful! In Anticura we found accommodation, but we didn't look for resupply, which is probably not so easy...

10-02-2020 / Ty/ RR SOBO/ 3 Days I got lucky and got a ride all the way up to Los Venados. I went around Hectors house and camped up before tree line. There’s a bit of water still up there, just a few strong trickles though. I thought they would stay running for a while. Then for day 2 I went to the refuge, with a slight detour to the rim of the volcano. Definitely recommend. The “water?“ at RR-CC-A@19-68.0+3.7 seemed to have plenty in it at the time as well. At the rim a cloud came in and made navigation pretty tricky, but easily managed. Nice refuge with campsites outside. Spring still running. Tables and everything! Overall, an amazing section. From the end I hitched up to Antillanca optional Start for the next section.

16-01-2020 / Arnaud Debilly / Southbound 4 full days We ressuplied in Curiñe, with a minimatket there. To avoid the 15 first kilometers we took the bus from puerto Maihue to Rupumeica Bajo. We slept in the cabañas of Carmen Panguilef (+56 984 54 83 03) in rupumeica bajo who is very welcoming and a proud mapuche. Then the road ends and starts the path to cross the pass to rupumeica alto. Then you follow the minor road until los Venados. The road is blocked by barriers that we crossed easily. At los Venados the path is clearly private and is along the house of Hector. We met him and his wife and they easily let us go through. We overcarried water because we feared the lack of drinkable water. Until almost the treeline, you can hear little rivers not too far from the path. We also drunk melted snow at the top so we had enough. Later in the season, it might be drier (I assume, those little rivers come from the snow melting). The last real rio is just before los venados. After the forest, the volcanic terrain is very easy to walk in and the landscapes are wonderful. We saw many smokes from the volcanic activity but seemed not dangerous. Check the status of the volcano before to go (www.sernageomin.cl). Following the track, it is easy to go between the lava field. Campsites are absolutely great, with an amazing view on the vulcano. We felt an earthquake (5,2) that has been localized near san martin de los andes in Argentinia but it made nothing dangerous with the volcano, luckily. We have had a perfect blue sky without wind during the 2 days on top, it could not have been better. The refugio El Caulle, at the start of the downhill can be a good protection for a bad weather. We found a little spring, to resupply water in the dry rio just under the refugio. On the volcanic terrain, a bad weather changes everything and it must be really difficult and unpleasant to finish this section with rain, snow or wind and without the view. It was for us the most wonderful section we have had until today.

NO WATER at the first refuge down the volcano, you got to go a little bit further up and west. All the west flank of the volcano is full of little stream coming from the snow. On this part no difficulties. "Water 12?" wasnt working when I was though, but there was a last stream after before going west to the desert ( at the div 128).You have a good half day of walking without water, so take some supply with you. The water comes back just before the div 126, on a place which looks like a dry lake, with little streams coming down some frozen snow. There is another part without water, that begins a little after Div 126 until the refuge of Neri and Hector. I personnaly thought easy to find water in the forest and got really thirsty because of that. There was nobody in the refuge, so I could find water a few meters after the north gate of the house, following a little trail that went on the right side, directly in the forest and to the river. (A little bit of bush bashing at the end, next to the river). Further on the road down there was some other rivers and there and good camping sites. You join the real road at bridge 63 and no problems of water after.


Resupply and Accommodation in nearby Towns

Resupply and Accommodation along the Route

Transport to and from Route

Permits, Entry Fees and Right-of-Way Issues

In this sense you have to pay the entry of the private property in Lican, at the camping/restaurant of the base of the volcano (10 000 CLP). The owner is called Santiago and is really nice, he gives you all the informations necessary for places to camp and water supply. I could take a photo of the touristic map too, which normally you have to pay for. Going southbound I don´t think that you have to pay something to enter the parc.

Links to other Resources

Retired Section Article GPT19 - Volcán Puyehue

Images

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