GPT39 - Monte Fitz Roy
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- 17 to 20 of February 2023 / Véronica & Zach / GPT39 RR SOBO / also all the optional routes to the various lagunas on the way to El Chaltén / 4 days
Route: Lago Del Desierto - Río Las Vueltas - resupply in El Chaltén - Lagos Eléctrico y Marconi - Lago Piedras Blancas - Lago de los Tres - Lago Torre
If packrafting Lago Desierto, consult the Gendarmaria for advice about current wind conditions. We can't speak about the trail or paddling along most of Lago del Desierto, thanks to a special encounter with a trail magician with a motorboat. We camped that night in a sheltered cove with a fantastic view of Monte Fitz Roy. The next morning, I walked ~3km to the south side of the lake while Zach packrafted down with a tailwind. We learned the ferry crosses the lake from south to north on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 10 a.m., and returns from north to south those same days at 11 a.m.
We walked a scenic dirt road to the put-in for Río de las Vueltas. From there, Zach packrafted and I walked the road. There were no signs along the river prohibiting paddling, but we heard you need a permit to go all the way into El Chaltén.
We resupplied in El Chaltén that evening, then the next morning hitched back up to Bridge, X {39} [31.7/449], where Option 1 starts. For the next three days, we walked beautiful, well-maintained trails to the lagunas and viewpoints in the vicinity of Monte Fitz Roy. Most of them are out-and-back, and you can easily stash your backpack and walk unencumbered to the glaciers and lakes. Note: Option 39-E requires a harness to cross on a Tyrolean cable, or a burly ford.
2023 Helen and Craig
Really sad amount of rubbish on the trail. Maybe because of this reason mice are a real proplem around the camp sites. *Secure food* (we have taken to sleeping with all food in the main compartment of our tent and don't trust drysacks and backpacks alone to protect)
2020 Jan - Oreste - Northbound The campground Ricanor near to Laguna Azul was close for maintenance when I passed there (18 January).
2019 Dec - Matthieu - Northbound - 2 days Trail easy to follow for the parts in the wood bedfore the road. Long road to The Lago Desierto, and a possibility to take a boat on the Lago to join the post of Gendarmeria. The walk by the lake is beautiful though, worth it. No special difficulties.
Dec 14 2019 - Arnaud et Adriane /
It was a very rainy, windy and cold day so we walked to the road 12km (along the lago del desierto) and after 6 km on the road, we finished hitchhiking directly to El Chalten. Everything was covered with clouds so we sadly saw nothing.
Season Section Log
- 2023-Mar-7-14 / SOBO / RR / Ondrej / Lago Desierto - El Chaltén / 2.5 days
This section offers lot of impressive views of snowy peaks, turquoise rivers and glaciers - if one has the luck of a good weather. If you are going SOBO and want to do the weather-sensitive GPT40 afterwards, one way to reduce potential waiting days is to pause GPT39 once you cross Lago Desierto and hitchhike to El Chalten. This allows you to consult rangers in El Chalten about a good weather window for The Huemul Circuit (GPT40). You can complete the remainder of gpt39 while waiting for the weather window to come or after you have finished GPT40. I was on a relatively tight schedule and this strategy has worked well for me.
Starting from the Argentinian checkpoint at Lago Desierto around midday, I did the stretch in the afternoon (took me around 5 hours) and camped at the official campsite at the other side of the lake. The rates were 3,000 argentinian pesos per person. They have hot water but the pressure is really really bad. They also have a new common room where you can cook and recharge devices (if you have the argentian plug, which I didn’t). The campsite also sels some biscuits, chips etc. There was also a big restaurant bulding, however, it closed at 6pm so I didn’t have a chance to check it out.
On the second day I walked the road to the point where the trail branches off the road (km38.0). The road was quite scenic but in a hindsight the trail after km38.0 felt much more beautiful. Once you get closer to the trailhead you can observe the monumental Fitz Roy peak, weather permiting. In my case the forecast predicted rain all day. However, at noon the sky suddenly opened and after five gray days granted me beautiful views. This made me to change my strategy and hitch to El Chaltén from the crossroad (km38) hoping that I will be able to use this good weather window for the Huemul circuit (GPT40). This has indeed worked out.
I hitched back to the crossroad (km38.0) few days later and continued with Option 1 (Laguna Piedras Blancas - L. De Los Tres - L. Torre - El Chaltén) with light backpack in a single day as I was short on time. I would prefer to spend at least two days on this portiom, exploring the lagunas further away. Very scenic and mantained trails in general. Easy to jog some parts for those who enjoy trail running.
- Helen and Craig 29th December - 1st of January 2023
>Well marked trails. Very busy on sunny days, Incredibly dusty camp sites in high winds (but nicely sheltered)
>Really sad amount of rubbish around the trail. We picked up the bits we could carry but sad to see. Worst littering we have seen anywhere in Patagonia. Wished I had a bigger trash bag to pick up.
>We walked a very leisurely 3 night loop with side trails in high winds whilst waiting for a weather window for GPT40. Then hitchhiked up to rejoin the trail at Lago Desertio.
>To avoid the crowds, the popular miadors we walked to at odd times of day, sunset for the 'sunrise' veiw. Very much Worth it.
2020 Jan 16 - Oreste Marquis- Northbound
Two first day were on the regular route. Could not see the Fotz Roy from close because of the cloud but still enjoyable route. I hitchike at the end of the second day and did not walk on the road to Lago del desierto because the camping Ricanor nesr to Laguna Azul was close for maintenance so I camp at the one close to the Lago.
2019 dec 14 - Arnaud et Adriane - North to South
It was a very rainy, windy and cold day so we walked to the road 12km (along the lago del desierto) and after 6 km on the road, we finished hitchhiking directly to El Chalten. Everything was covered with clouds so we sadly saw nothing.
- 2019-Nov-9 / Lea Geibel, Kevin Moe / 2 days / northbound / regular hiking route
The highlight of this section for us was visiting all the lagunas in the national park! We cheated and hitch hiked along the road when we hit it after El Pilar. It was not difficult to get a car in the morning when tourists are heading out to Lago Desierto; it might be harder to find one northbound in the evening would be my guess. It's necessary to pay to camp at Desierto, 800 Argentinian Pesos each, and it is not allowed to camp along the road.
Summary Table
| GPT39: Monte Fitz Roy | Hiking | Packrafting | |||||
| Group | I: Campo de Hielo Sur 1 | Total | 59.5 km | 17 h | 64.7 km | 17 h | |
| Region | Argentina: Rio Negro | Trails (TL) | 37.8 km | 63.6% | 26.2 km | 40.5% | |
| Start | Lago El Desierto (Gendarmeria) | Minor Roads (MR) | - | - | - | - | |
| Finish | El Chalten | Primary Roads (PR) | 21.6 km | 36.4% | 9.4 km | 14.6% | |
| Status | Published & Verified | Cross-Country (CC) | - | - | 0.2 km | 0.3% | |
| Traversable | Nov - Apr (Maybe: Sep, Oct, May) | Bush-Bashing (BB) | - | - | - | - | |
| Packraft | Very Useful | Ferry (FY) | - | - | - | - | |
| Connects to | GPT38, GPT40 | Investigation (I) | - | - | - | - | |
| Options | 73 km (2 Options & Variants) | Exploration (EXP) | - | - | - | - | |
| Hiking | Packrafting | Total on Water | 28.9 km | 44.6% | |||
| Attraction | 4 (of 5) | 4 (of 5) | River (RI) | 18.2 km | 28.1% | ||
| Difficulty | 1 (of 5) | 4 (of 5) | Lake (LK) | 10.7 km | 16.5% | ||
| Direction | Both ↓↑ | Both ↓↑ | Fjord (FJ) | - | - | ||
| Comment | - | ||||||
| Character | Forest, Glaciers, River Packrafting, Lake Packrafting, Road Walking, Partly Overrun | ||||||
| Challenges | - | ||||||
Satellite Image Map
Elevation Profile
Elevation Profile of Regular Hiking Route
Elevation Profile of Regular Packrafting Route
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
Town: El Chaltén
El Chaltén is a medium sized town with several hostels, restaurants, and decent resupply options. There were also a few outdoor gear outfitters which offered rentals for the famous Huemul Circuit (GPT40).
It is good to note that there are many beautiful day hikes from this area as well. The GPT39 packrafting and hiking route does overlap with some of these hikes, but if time allows, hiking to Lago de los Tres or any of the other lakes at the base of Monte Fitz Roy is well worth it.
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
Access to Start
Return from Finish
Escape Options
Permits, Entry Fees and Right-of-Way Issues
Regular Route
Regular Hiking Route
Regular Packrafting Route
- Route description by Kara Davis after Season 2017/18:
Section GPT39 begins on the northern bank of Lago del Desierto. According to the Gendarmería, the Argentine Border Control, the wind patterns on the lake are unpredictable and shift frequently. There is also no good access to the trail on the east side if bailing becomes a necessity, so have caution when deciding whether to packraft or not.
Comment by Jan Dudeck: Lago del Desierto is an innocent looking beast. While very calm at the put in heavy wind at the middle of the lake can make a traverse demanding and dangerous.
There is a well-established trail that runs along the east side of the lake. However, it isn’t flat, and the 11 or so kilometers takes longer than expected. There is an option to take a ferry across the lake which is popular with Carretera Austral bicyclers. More information regarding times and prices can be found at the Argentine border control station on the north side of Lago del Desierto.
Hungry hikers are rewarded when they reach the south end of the lake. A burger stand with some snack options is located here along with an established campground with showers, flush toilets, and a communal kitchen.
Walk along RP23, a gravel road, for several kilometers until reaching the put-in for the packrafting section of Río de las Vueltas, which is a sloped rocky beach. The serpentine river section before Lago Condor is fairly swift with no rapids, only some wooden snags. After Lago Condor, the river widens and forms many braided channels.
Alternate: Instead of exiting Río de las Vueltas onto RP23 as shown by the GPS track, we floated the river al the way to El Chaltén and took out just after the bridge crossing east of the town.
- Comment by Jan Dudeck:
To my knowledge packrafting the Rio de las Vueltas all the way to El Chalten requires a permit by the park rangers. Without this permit park rangers might get very nasty and may even confiscate your packraft. So better leave the river before this river enters the national park. Packraft track OP-RI-1@39-02-# only if you have a permit.
