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==Season 2023/24==
*2024-Mar 2nd to Mar 13th / 12 days / Hiking / SOBO / GPT11 Var F, RR, Var Q, Var P / Michael and Kasia
TL:DR a really beautiful and varied section. The RR up to the plateau is challenging but not terrible; we liked Laguna Escondida for camping; the ridge at the end is not a good option if the winds are strong.
Day 1 March 2nd
The first two days were actually on GPT12 Var F which we used to connect into GPT12. In Lonquimay a guy working for CONAF as a driver taking firefighters to and from Troyo offered us a ride. What luck! He was very friendly and pointed things out during the drive. He left us at the crossroads of the road to Troyo and Ranquil and even gave us a bottle of water and a bottle of Gatorade. A big thanks to him!
The road to Ranquil had many, many water points along the way. It's crazy how much water is in that area. It is a dirt road and dusty, but few cars came by, so it wasn't too bad. There is barbed wire fencing along much of the road. There were some helicopters running water in the distance to fight the fires. We arrived at Ranquil and found a place to camp at (-38.24902, -71.23244) just over the bridge. Then we went to the minimarket run by Maximiliano and Anna’s shop. They were incredibly kind people. They offered for us to camp on their property, offered to let us take a shower and wash clothes. They are definitely people to stop in and say hello to. They have gas now. 3.000 for refill canisters, 7.000 for 230g stove tanks and 9.000 for 460g stove tanks. They also had canned fish, powdered soups, mate, Nescafé, cold drinks, and Anna made us delicious pan amasado in her wood fired clay oven.
Day 2 March 3rd
We continued on GPT11 Var F. Tons of water on the way up. We watched a helicopter pull water out of a large pond and dump it on a small fire on the hillside. At km 26.17 saw a building from the road with the word provisiones painted in large letters on the back wall. We did not need anything else, and the gate was closed, so we did not check to see if it was open.
We found out first piñones of the season! We collected probably a kilo of them. We passed through Pelehue which it turns out is nothing. We camped by the river about 200 m before the turn onto GPT12 Opt 01. I walked to the Carabineros to register us, it was quick and easy. We had just finished dinner when a family stopped by and offered to let us stay with them and asked if we needed anything. They were so kind and thoughtful, it was very touching.
Day 3 March 4th
We finally officially started GPT12. We collected more piñones. The Carabineros passed us on horseback, so it's probably good that I took the time to register even though the path doesn't pass right by them. It was sunny all day, pleasant walking, all fords were easy. We camped at (camp 12 [31.6/1306]). It was fairly flat with grass and river access about 30 m away.
Day 4 March 5th
A short day. We walked to Laguna Marinanqui.
When we were there, it was possible to walk the distance between (camp 12 [31.6/1306]) and (ford 32.5/1296]) without following the track up and down the dusty trail. It requires a few additional fords, but with warm weather, being in the water is very pleasant.
We camped at the north side of the lake. It was windy until the sun went down but calm after.
Day 5 March 6th
We stayed at the lake for a rest day.
Day 6 March 7th
From the north side of the lake it was a bit tricky to find a path to connect to RR going around the lake as the ground was very muddy. Sticking closer to the big plant clumps helped. We collected more piñones at the south end of the lake. By this time we had probably 5 kg of them. Amazing views along the route that day, nothing especially difficult. There were some areas where the trail was damaged by landslides, but reroutes had already been created to get around them.
We camped by the river right after the last ford at (-38.34864, -71.15528). There was a small path leading into the trees and to a small clearing. After a bit of site cleanup it made for a really nice and protected camp site.
Day 7 March 8th
It was a short day. We were confused as to whether Opt 3 of the current track files was the correct route up to the plateau or not. We tried finding it but had no luck so we decided to go with what showed up as RR on the GPS and Gaia. It started raining and was fairly windy. The ponchos I had bought us did not work well and we both got wet. We camped around the marked campsite at the end of Var E.
Day 8 March 9th
Back to a calm sunny day the next morning. It was cross-country for parts. The assent to the plateau was demanding. We could not find any true paths, though there were many things that appeared to be paths for short distances and would just end abruptly. I started referring to them as the mirages of the mountains.
After reaching the plateau, the first laguna we arrived at was very pretty, deep blue water surrounded by green grass, and a few birds floating on the water. The area around was unfortunately too wet to camp on. We walked to the two larger ones but the area around was not pretty and the water was very shallow with a muddy bottom. We saw another heading back the direction of Option 3 and camped at the first one we came to (-38.36201, -71.07188). It was very cold, but fortunately there was no wind in the night. It was so silent there.
Day 9 March 10th
We took a long time getting to the two passes, taking a lot of photo stops. On the way down to the valley it was very windy and the ground was wet, so it was slow going until the forest. The forest areas were very beautiful sand pleasant to walk through. We camped in the valley just past the river at (-38.38830, -71.02145) in between several huge araucarias. It was very windy during the evening but that spot seemed fairly wind protected. It also had some visual screening from the road and the nearby puesto and river access without having to go to the road.
Day 10 March 11th
The valley was quiet and sunny in the morning. We headed up Var G. There was an unmarked puesto at (-38.38774, -71.01221). We were still fairly far off when four dogs started barking and slowly making their way out direction. We decided to go CC up the hill a bit and rejoin the path later which seemed to work at first. But after we rejoined the road we could hear them start barking again and they sounded like they were getting closer. We kept moving and eventually the barking stopped.
The road diverged from the Var G track and we stayed with the road. Eventually there was a fork near a puesto. We went CC on a horse path that eventually connected to the road that I think came from the downhill fork. We followed the road and then did a bit of CC until we connected with the end bit of Var H to get to the pass. Where Var H and RR meet, we had lunch and coffee. The route down was fairly easy to follow. It was extremely windy until we reached the forest. It was a very pretty forest, I think beech mixed with araucaria.
We met a woman and a child at the first puesto. We just said hello and asked if we could pass and she said of course. One of their dogs followed us for the rest of the day, but no matter what we did, it wouldn't leave. RR up to Laguna Escondida was a dirt road the whole way. It was in pretty good shape. We were surprised how many roads were in this area. There were nice views of the valley the whole way up. Laguna Escondida was also very pretty, especially in the later afternoon light. Water access is not so easy, but by breaking off the trail where it turned to the forest and heading straight for the lake, we found a small path to a beach. The water was clear. As it started getting dark, the dog finally left heading in the direction of the valley.
We camped in the forest at (-38.47284, -70.97987). It was a ways away from water access, but the weather report was predicting 80 to 90 km per hour winds in the night, which turned out to be accurate. The trees overhead were blowing all night, but our tent hardly moved. We were very grateful for the wind protection.
Day 11 March 12th
There was a bit of route finding to get to the other side of Laguna Escondida. The view from the top was great. In the valley we started following a dirt road. We weren't paying too much attention to the GPS and ended up off the route. We then really misinterpreted the map and thought we could follow the road all the way up and then just cut across at the top of the hill, but we kept getting further away from the route. We ended up going with our plan anyway and it worked in the end, though it probably added some kms. But there was an interesting wetland area, some great views of the valley, and some interesting rocks, including one that looked like a Buddha head, so a worthwhile detour on the whole. There were house trails cutting across to the pass to Laguna Verde. There were dogs at the puesto on the NE side of the laguna that started barking when we could just barely see them so we stuck to RR. There were some nice views of the lake going around it, though it was easy to see why it's called Laguna Verde, there was plant growth from the edge growing several meters into the laguna all the way around.
We camped close to a stream, around (-38.53009, -71.00810). It was not very wind protected, but the wind stopped after it got dark.
Day 12 March 13th
We hiked up to the plateau. There were some horse trails, but it is also partially CC. After the plateau, to stay on RR we found a spot on the downhill side of the barbed wire fence where we could climb up and over rocks instead of the fence itself. The white rock structures passing along that way were really impressive. We really wanted to walk the ridge, but there was a lot of wind that day. We made it up to the beginning of the ridge, but the further we went up, the more intense the winds became. The weather report predicted gusts up to 75 kph, so we decided to take Var Q down to Var P. It was worth the climb anyway as it provided a different view on the white rock mountain. Var Q was easy to follow down and Var P is a dirt road nearly the entire way to Liucura, not particularly scenic, but not bad
We Arrived in Liucura around 19:00. We stayed at Normita, going rate 15.000 pp, private room, private bath, hot water, and a small kitchen area. Norma is very nice. There are a few shops in town. The big shop closes around 19:30. They have a decent selection and the best prices generally. Donde Carlitos minimarket near aduana had gas recharges for 2600 each. They also have a decent selection of things for resupply and are reasonably priced. Across the street from the big shop there is a woman that sells bread, look for the signs in the window. She is open till around 19:00.
*2024-Feb-15 to 2024-Feb-18 / 3.5 days / Hiking / SOBO / RR + OH11-02B + OH11-02 + OH12-C + OH12-N / Joscha