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→Season 2023/24
Lastly a small ferry arrived here at 4.30pm after i cooked and enjoyed my food from the shop... the ferry's name is Gavoita.
* '''2024-Jan-15-20 / 5 days / Hiking / SOBO / Argentina, completely new option, Villa Traful to Villa Angostura / Natalie & Tomáš'''
[Note 2024 November: This is not in the GPT yet at all, but it is in our suggestions in the 2024 Track files. This is a part of an alternative Argentinian route connecting GPT16 all the way to GPT21. In our opinion, for hikers it is probably better as it involes a lot less roadwalking and is very scenic (and the roadwalking there is is mostly easily hitchable). It might be slightly mode difficult than the RR. This is especially useful when coming from the Villarica traverse. What follows is roughly what corrresponds to GPT20, previous log is in GPT19, next in GPT21. Look also at Hannes von S report who followed us: https://www.facebook.com/groups/222224388283455/posts/1763867210785824/.
Our pictures: https://www.facebook.com/groups/222224388283455/posts/1735838016922077/.]
You can connect Lago Trufal directly to Villa la Angostura with no hitchhiking and no road walking and with the added bonus of beautiful views and very little people. Look at our track in the suggestions for 2024 to see what you can do - and these trails are also mostly in OSM appart from a CC connection.
Day one: Villa Truffal to Río Minero
We started late in the afternoon, went up the OSM trail and went down to the valley. The trail is there and is marked and easy to follow. Met noone after 30 minutes from the town. Do not try to do any shortcuts in the valley of Río Minero, it is not worth it, and follo the eastern curve. There are plenty of places to pitch a tent in the valley.
Day two: Río Minero to Lago Nahuel Huapi
We followed the trail to Refugio Tapera at the pass. We did not see it as there was some sort of boy scout thing happening. Until then, we met noone. Going up, one needs to ford the river multiple times, it does not make sense to try to keep your feet dry probably. At the pass, Natalie followed the normal trail down to the lake Nahuel Huapi. She did not like it, it was a lot of up and down and it was not the clearest.
Tomáš went up west from the refugio, following a relatively (after unclear start) decent cow trail (it is on OSM now). Once above the treeline, he followed the ridge (quite pretty, not really needed to use hands, SAC scale T4), and then cut it across the valey through here: 40.7674378S, 71.4940931W., up over a pass and he caught the trail here: 40.7615383S, 71.5096497W. This was a nice ridgewalk that was fun but doable. He then followed the trail southbound, it was quite clear and exceptionally well marked with something reflexive, so he could easily follow it even in darkness to meet Natalie around here: 40.7615383S, 71.5096497W, where we camped.
Day three: We hitched to Villa Angostura, where we rested. There is good bakery in the middle of the town and decent pizzeria 100m on the right on the main road after the bus station. They did very good empanadas. Late in teh evening, we then took a bus out of the city and slept at suboptimal place near the trailhead here: 40.7885775S, 71.5863394W.
Day four:
Getting up very early, we split, Tomáš investigated the longer ridge climb to Cerro O Connor approaching from the south all the way) while Natalie took the more classical route that goes from the west and only turns north in the middle of the ridge. We both met one or two couples of hikers. We then followed the ridge all the way to here, where we camped: 40.7243011S, 71.5295303W. The ridge is fairly easy to follow initially (there is a trail). Then whenthe trail foes left, one goes right and one needs to use one's hand maybe once or twice, but it is more like T3 on the SAC scale, doable by most people. Natalie went up Cerro Exequiel Bustill, because Tomáš was late and she liked it.
Day five:
Natalie went exploring in the morning (see the Facebook post linked above) while Tomáš rested, being uncharacteristically lazy. In the afternoon, we followded the trail over the pass under Cerro Newberry, went down the valley then turned left to another valley and slept somewhere here: 40.7248703S, 71.5598608W. The trails are well marked and easy to follow.
Day six:
We went up the valley and at the pass here: 40.6989764S, 71.5754606W turned west over the ridge, doing CC. It was easy, not scrambling. WE then went on, crossing Huella Andina and seeing some hikers on it (our third time in the park), we went up to Cerro Buol from the south, continuing the easy if steep CC. There we followed the trail to Cerro Belvedere and then down the Valley to Villa Angostura. On our way down, we met maybe a dozen people. Trail again very clear. The whole area is very beutiful and the ridgewalkign is just splenddid. In Villa angostura, we slept at Camping Unquehue, 500m further on the left from the bus station. It was ok, full of people. Villa Angostura is Argentinian Davos/Aspen, they say, so it is expensive. The next day we took a noon bus to Bariloche, which takes two hours and goes five or six times a day and is cheap (something like 3000 pesos). One could alternatively walk to Bosque de Arrayanes and from there take a ferry. Entry is paid (around 6 thousand I think). The ferry is a tourist boat the comes from Bariloche. You can contact them, but when we asked about the price, they insisted on paying the whole price there and back, amounting to about 55 thousand pesos (50 € or so), which we thought was too expensive. It is this company: https://www.turisur.com.ar/.
==Season 2022/23==
