Cambios

Rio Claro was impossible to cross. We took the 16km detour just to figure out the bridge was washed away as well. The crossing where the bridge used to be was possible but scetchy! Not recommended.

Accomodation: in La Coya I stayed at a "Hospedaje" (S 34°12.3424' W 070°31.8386') for 15000 pesos the night.

==Season 2023/24==

GPT03 (Rios Claros) Exploration:

Option 3 (Rio Claro Alto and Paso Coligues) SOBO

https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/rios-claros-valle-baule-rio-los-cipreses-chile-163289798

Option 02: Large gate with various prohibition signs at -34.2746,-70.5931 on the H-35 road, so I take 02A, a good choice, a nice, easy path along a canal with clear water, in the shade in the morning. Apparently a favourite hiking route for the locals, with numerous fire pits, some of them quite dirty.

Nice hike, trail in good condition (a little bit overgrowned sometimes with spiky bushes before the first pass - slippery with rolling stones on the last descent to estero antivero, before going back to the treeline, as lilian said)

Accomodation : restaurant la Higuera like the others, they are so nice and you eat well, fresh products !

I had no right of way discussions and no bad dog encounters.

On the trail from Coya nothing much has changed, the wooden bridge still holds. As of now there is water at km 7.2 (before hitting the gravel road) so we filled up there instead of spending time at Fundo Huinganes. The main gate by the road was closed but easily bypassed. At the house right after entering there are about 7 dogs, two of them loose, but they don't come out of their yard despite the gate being open. There was a car there but nobody came to see if anyone was passing. We managed to get through the private land without issues.

No issues getting back to the puesto where the route turns up. Water reliable, trail in ok condition. The way down steep as usual but once you enter the forest you can see the arrieros have cleared it from bush. Lots if water. No issues with dogs or landowners, we didn't see anyone.

- Water : all markers are good and even more water present - for now there is water as well in between km 55 and km 57

The owner of the land at km 9.2 was not very pleased to see me. There is a gate that says private property, you can easily walk around it, no fences. He doesn't want anyone to cross his land, but he made an exception for me. Maybe it would be wise to take the alternative route in.

==Season 2022/23==

Wanted to start for the OH in Reserva Los Cipreses, but turned back for RR as Reserva was only allowed for day visit because of high bushfire risk. No active puesto all way long and for this trails were sometimes like a light spiny Bush bashing. At -34.4258 -70.5885 we would have to face heavy BlackBerry-Bb. Instead we took a detour uphill and crossed around this field. Marked water and Ford spots from the track files sometimes where not corresponding with actual location (we supposed a Garmin problem as our marked spots were as well off track sometimes). In Agua Buena Pedro closed down for the moment? his hostel, we slept at Tinajas and cabanas for 40k. Very nice hosts and gardens, we highly recommend.

The best shop is at the main crossroad opposite the road to Reserva Los Cipreses. They had cherries and nectarines, some vegetables, bread, icecream, some salami and chips. Not a great choice, but more than enough. I went onto regular route and then branched off on alternative 03 that follows the river. I met two chilean hikers on the RR (I walked in the late evening and early night first 20 km, it was super hot), then a group of arrieros on the alternative. Plenty of water everywhere, good watering holes too.

Taking a bus from Rancagua terminal to Coya at 1PM, we started the section about an hour later. Old trail is in good condition. After reaching the car road we climbed below the fence a few meters after the gate. Trail starts to get overgrown in some parts but still ok. Rio Claro ford at 48.3 was no problem in the morning. Unmarked water source on the way to the second pass 55.9. Amazing landscape and places to camp before the last pass. The trail goes down through a forrest which was a nice change. We met owners of the last marked settlement who were again really friendly and showed us the way to Agua Buena that follows a minor road. In the village are a few shops and an amazing restaurant with traditional chilean meals that you cant miss. The owners are great people, we really enjoyed our time there! We stayed in Tinajas & Cabanas (look at Google Maps) for 40k at beautiful new cabana. Daughter of the owners speaks English and we got even a nice little tour around the property, bread and cherries in the morning - 100% recommended! In the restaurant we met already mentioned guy José Pedro who was really nice and helped us with the beginning of the section 4 the following day. He offers a place to camp for free at his property or a room in his house for a small fee. You can find the number below, responds quickly on whatsapp.

The crossing of the rio claro on the morning went well, we had water up to our hips.

We travelled by bus from Rancagua to Coya. The bus leaves every hour from the terminal in Rancagua.

==Season 2021/22==

We started from Coya about 7pm and at bridge in 6km we accidentally went right instead of following the RR left because it was getting dark already and after a few hundred meters of walking we found a nice campsite with benches and a table where we decided to call it a night.

Hiked this section in 3 1/2 days. I agree with Ian that it was easier than previous sections. Especially because there are more trees and therefore more shade from the scorching sun. This made hiking this section much more enjoyable for me. Met plenty of arrieros riding on the trails and hanging out in their camps. Also had a spectacular view when a big group of them were gathering a lot of cows in an enclosure near the first mountain pass during sun set.

==Season 2019/20==

All river crossings OK. At KM 47.1 the camp is after you ford the Rio Claro, a few minutes after you reach the road. Water mentioned by Matus & Anna on way to 1780M pass is on the trail @ 1420M. It's a long day if you want to get from Rio Claro camp over the 1780M & 2020M passes to good water & camping @ Water 19. The bush bashing section is well below the 2030M pass. Try to get the entry point exactly right or it will be nearly impassible. 2 good shops in Agua Buena & a good restaurant, La Higuera. Updated transport section.

Overview: For this section I had a few issues with my GPS and the track files. As a result, I personally had trouble navigating this section. On the other hand, I think this section is relative easier compared to the other sections in the area. It is shorter and there are not too many difficulties. I took the alternate over a large pass which was a huge highlight for me in this section. I recommend this although there is a lot of cross country involved and is a little slower and longer. Aguas Buena has two “mini shops” with enough food for me to continue to section 4. There is also a restaurant/bar that sells empanadas for $1.000 each.

the optional track around the last big climb of the route is pretty dang difficult to navigate in a couple places. Be prepared for some bush bashing and the route to not be the most accurate. I had downloaded satellite AND topo maps of the section on Gaia GPS and this was very valuable in finding the best ways through this. Bush Bashing: OH-BB-A@03-03-#006. Trail down to Rio Antivero (last half SOBO): OH-TL-V@03-03-#009

It took us five days to walk this section. Water levels are very low, so river crossings never caused any problems. One short part of the trail (1 km) after the second pass is quite overgrown and we were really glad doing it downhill and not uphill (northbound). Instead of climbing the third pass we took the alternative route to the East and from there the exploration route, again to the East. The "yellow" part of it was a 700 m hell of a suicidal bush bashing, but mainly because there was thick fog and we couldn't get an overview at the top. The rest of the route (orange) was a trail in good condition. Back on the alternative route we couldn't find a safe way to start the bush bashing part, so we turned around and again took the exploration route, which was a great decision, as we found a trail in excellent condition. In Aguas Buenas are some small tiendas but for accommodation you'd have to go to San Fernando. There is a Microbus twice a day (morning at ??? and evening at 17:00).