53
ediciones
Cambios
sin resumen de edición
==Season 2025/26==
*''' 2025.07.01 / 4.5 days / Hiking / NO/EABO / RR + Op. 2 (Tronador) + Op. 3 (Lago Nahuel Huapi/ 5 Lagunas) / Kris and Stiina'''
We combined sections 22N and 21 from El Manso to Colonia Suiza - 8 days total - 3,5 days for section 22N from El Manso to Cochamó via La Junta.
A resupply in Cochamó and hitch to Ralún (El Cruce) for Section 21. 4.5 walking days for section 21 options 2 & 3.
(Continued from section 22N)
Day 4 - After the lunch and resupply in Cochamó we opted for the magic thumb once again. There was supposed to be a bus at 15:30 going through Cochamó towards Puerto Mont, but our thumbs summoned a ride before the bus arrived, though the bus was running a few minutes late.
We got a ride to El Cruce - X, Bus {21} [76.9/64] and when we were stepping out of the car the bus passed us.
We called Miguel +56 9 9866 2101 (nr. provided previously by Dorota) and he wanted 20k CLP for the 10km ride, so we decided to walk.
In all honesty, after the few previous days of walking in a deep, dark, muddy forest on anything but a flat ground it felt great to finally be walking again, despite it being on a dusty +28C gravel road. There were even views behind us of the Estuario Reluncavi fjord and Volcán Yates. No cars passed us on the way up though some came down seemingly with people coming from the Lago Cayutué. When we got to the lake we met an Argentinian couple camping that had just done the hike from Pampa Linda so they shared some useful information about the upcoming. Later a bunch of youngsters came to the lake for camping aswell. For the most part they all behaved nicely. It is an excellent campsite by the lake with views of Volcán Puntiagudo and the water was a perfect temperature for swimming.
Day 5 - A bit of a green tunnel most of the day, from Lago Cayutué to Termas Vuriloche with some openings in the meadows however that’s where all them tabanos were hanging out. All fords were easy and there was plenty of water en route, we didn’t carry more than half a litter at a time. The nice thing about the forest was that it kept things cool while it was very hot out in the sun.
It seemed like a popular traverse, we met 3 guided groups and some other hikers along the way, mostly Argentinian.
Termas Vuriloche:
Ford {21-02} [101.3/351] - can be avoided if you go through the settlers yard and follow the osm trail that leads to a suspension bridge: -41.24813, -72.04719 across the river. Right after the bridge there is a trail going up and a trail going down. Following the upper trail brings you to the meadow with campsite described by Clara. And the trail going down brings you to the river. And some termas? We didn’t go down this trail our selves we used a different one.
The settler (“Jose/ Coche”? - Peggy) was at home and saw us, we greeted him an asked if it’s ok if we pass here to go to the termas to which he said yes, no problem.
The trail then goes by the newly built private refuge - Nana Roth that is owned by a company called Expediciones Petrohue -41.24847, -72.04779. A little googling showed that guests are brought there by helicopter to enjoy the termas and stay at the Refugio, it did look very fancy and a really unexpected out of place building when it suddenly appeared in front of us.
We camped here -41.24555, -72.04866 in a meadow, but as described by Clara, there is an established campsite, sheltered in the forest with fireplace and tent sites, however there was already a guided Argentinian group camping there, mostly older folk.
Looking at the campsite from the meadow there is a trail on the left (south) side leading down to the river where there are a few termal pools, one is built with concrete walls but very private, comfortable and perfect temperature, we didn’t want to leave.
Another more natural looking terma just on the rocky beach, a bit warmer.
But as I said there are probably more termas that could be accessed from the trail leading down from the suspension bridge because we saw people going there in swimming outfits when we took the upper trail (the one marked on the OSM)
Day 6 - From the Termas Vuriloche to Pampa Linda still a lot in the forest but finally some views of Tronador were opening up.
The trail passes Settler {21-02} [92.9/592] and crosses Rio Aguas Turbio twice, before and after the settler there are bridges on both sides.
Another new Refugio Baguales being built here -41.22699, -71.96225 by the same company that had constructed the Refugio Nana Roth. Refugio was similar design, built from the same materials on the outside.
Ford, Camp {21-02} [88.9/802] - there are two streams and both have hanging bridges, but a bit sketchy ones. The fords possibly looked easier and quicker.
Not really a place for a camp. A picnic table was there but I didn’t see a place for a tent.
Puesto {21-02} [86.9/1030] (Huenchupen) - as mentioned by other is supposedly a refugio. There is a small stream right before it with a flat spot for a tent, another spot a bit after and probably one by the refugio or just inside it like Dorota did.
No problem at the border, make sure your passport is stamped with exit stamp and they give you a paper slip (a double /copy paper) that you have to show to Argentinian border control.
The place and the campsite there is very nice but also very tabano infested. Tap water available.
Camp ? {21-02} [78.1/1241] - not really, didn’t see a spot for a tent, like Peggy mentioned too much vegetation.
If really in a need of camp on that stretch of a trail then here was one: -41.23509, -71.80915 - there is a ford and some flat, bushless spots for a tent I believe the spot that Peggy meant.
After arriving in Pampa Linda we went straight to the border control. Supposedly since covid Argentinians don’t stamp your passport upon entering. However last time (2024 Jan.) we had a stamp and still had some issues when leaving the country, because we were “not in the system”. Due to this we asked them if they could do it so that we could leave the country with less hassle. They stamped the “copy side” of paper slip that we got when leaving Chile. Which we then needed when we were leaving Argentina again.
We camped at Auberge Pampa Linda Camping / Rio Manso camping. 14k ARS pp, shower 15k ARS pp, we washed in the river like any other day.
Dinner at the auberge, fast food, papas fritas is what we have been craving. Card payment accepted and Fernando working there was the friendliest and nicest guy in Argentina.
We camped on the spot nearest to the camp entrance and were “catching” some of the public wifi in our tent. It worked pretty well by the information building (closed) making the wifi, even some tables outside for longer surfs.
Camping Los Vuriloches 30k ARS pp, with shower included. Also has a nice restaurant with some healthier food options and a small shop, not really a resupply, but enough snacks and drinks, fresh fruit. Cash only!
Day 7 - From Pampa Linda we took the option 3 (Lago Nahuel Huapi) however the actual name for this trail is Cinco Lagunas.
It is a very popular trek to do around Bariloche and we met very many people doing it despite it actually being quite demanding in some places with some quite poor sections of the trail in other. But mostly all the locals that we met had a very different philosophy and approach to hiking which we found very interesting. Just one example, by the time we go to Laguna Cretón at around 14:30, the people that camped there the night before were just finishing drinking matte and packing up to start their day. A different approach, for them it’s a camping trip with some hiking whereas for us it’s a hiking trip with some camping. We should try it the other way some time.
It is a very good trail (autobahn of a trail) from Pampa Linda to Laguna Ilón, but after that the trail gradually gets worse and worse.
Ford {21-03} [50.5/848] - has a bridge.
Lots of people camping at Ilón, at least a hundred. (It was Saturday). There you can buy some food, snacks and drinks (Cash only!). And the prices are quite outrageous, Chile felt like a really cheap country in comparison.
A very beautiful location but I wouldn’t want to camp there at least not on a weekend.
Again as mentioned by others the trails going up and down the passes are not in the greatest conditions. There are some cairns and some blue and red markings, here and there but it is still possible to loose the trail because the loose terrain in some places can be engaging and requires full focus.
Up and down - Pass {21-03} [38.4/1942] (Paso Cerro Capitan) was quite simple there was a trail up albeit steep and sandy in places and it sort of fizzled out on the way down mainly because of the rocky terrain, but plenty of cairns to follow.
The Laguna Azul was truly azul in comparison to Jujuy and Cretón, very beautiful contrast with the surrounding mountains.
The Up to the Pass {21-03} [33.5/1911] (Filo Cerro Cristales) was steep and tbh the trail didn’t make sense from the beginning to the end and it is potentially dangerous due to a rock fall that could be caused by others.
First it goes steeply down through some trees and to a wet meadow instead of just traversing from the pass by Laguna Cretón. Then it just goes straight up through the steepest part of the face. I definitely wouldn’t want to be on this super loose trail, below some of the very overburdened hikers with 6 bags on all sides, that we saw plenty of, slipping and sliding down the most simple trail because they can’t see where they are going. The “trail” for some mysterious reason is designed to channel any dislodged rocks above you, right at you. We were lucky and there was nobody above us, but I can definitely see a potential hazard there. This part of the trail could definitely be made a lot safer by adding some longer zig-zags traversing the face and spreading the people out instead of keeping everyone in a “death culoir”
Plenty of blue and sometimes red markings, just need to look for them.
Down on the other side was way less steep and mostly on solid granite.
And then the Pass {21-03} [28.0/1815] (Filo Cerro CAB) was a mirror of the previous pass, first up on lower angle mostly solids granite slabs except for the final bit and then down a steep and loose slope but at least traversing the face for the most part. We also didn’t follow the gpx but just went straight down to the NW bypassing the cliffs on the other side. Not sure whether it was any more difficult than the actual route.
We were incredibly lucky with the weather and the views from all the passes were just incredible, we missed those, all the previous days being in the forest.
We camped on the west side by Laguna C.A.B. / Lluvu (locals call it CAB and also some signs reffered to it as CAB not Lluvu.
A nice swim in the lake after a long day but it takes a walk to get to the deep/swimmable part of the lake. A very few other campers by the lake. Though the 20 people we talked to on the way there all had camped there the night before.
Day 8 - There are no actual trails around the either side of the lake so you have to walk through the lake or potentially do a very annoying BB. The lake has actually a pleasant, flat and hard packed bottom near the shore, very easy to walk on even without shoes, a nice foot massage.
After the lake there is a mierda trail pretty much all the way down to the Ford {21-03} [23.0/1133] (Arroyo la Chata) after which it slowly starts to improve again. There is a possibility to camp by the ford. The “ford” is doable on rocks and logs.
The trail up to the Pass {21-03} [20.1/1780] (Filo del Cerro Negro) is actually not too bad except for a short but very steep and sandy part just before exiting the forest. And then after the pass it’s pretty much back on normal trails, especially oncce past the Refugio.
No card payment at the Refugio Manfredo Segre, solo efectivo, Pepsi - 7k ARS.
A lot of people on the trail afterwards and with every km closer to Colonia Suiza more and more people were on the trail.
A massive camp - “Camp {21-03} [16.1/1185]” over 50 people were wild camping there, though when we passed there in the afternoon, most of the people were still drinking matte and packing up in a true Argentinian fashion. I can only imagine how much toilet paper you could find in the bushes around that place. I definitely wouldn’t take the water from anywhere in Arroyo Goye stream.
And btw the pipe from the Refugio toilets went into the gully where the river originates from. There are side streams along the way.
Somewhere else in this valley of surprises a bit lower down there was a school group with about 40 school kids that had camped there. When we were passing there, some of the kids (teenagers) looked quite desperate running around with toilet paper rolls in their hands, one guy was just squatting behind the rock right next to the trail. The shit smell in the air was a direct consequence of a poor planning, bringing so many school kids to a camp-out without any facilities.
Even though we thought we saw many people on the trail, when we got to Colonia Suiza it felt like we had suddenly come to some sort of festival. Supposedly the reason was the Sunday fair due to which the place was extra busy.
We took Uber from Colonia Suiza to Bariloche as after the 28 days of hiking (not all in a row) we were a bit too tired and smelly for the bus. It also started raining shortly after we got back, perfect timing.
Overall, definitely a very beautiful and worth doing section. Bring some ARS if you want some goodies and probably, avoid doing it on weekends if you can.
After 27 GPT sections and over 2000km of trail covered over 3 trips in 6 years we now plan to take a bit of a longer break from GPT. It’s an amazing project and truly a special place to explore and find an adventure and solitude in the mountains that’s not that easy to come by these days. Thank you GPT community!
For more stories, photos, videos on the trail and in case you want to ask us anything you can find us on IG: @smallfootprint_bigadventures
*'''GPT21/ 2026 Dec,Jan 31-4 / WEBO / OH03, OH02A, OH2B/ 4.5 days/ hiking /Bailey'''