Glaciar del Juncal (english)
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Contenido
Season
Trekking and Mountain Bike: September-May. Although the valley is high, its orientation does not allow for the accumulation of snow, making it a bad destiny for randonnée.
Access
Vehicle Access
From Los Andes, you should take the international road to Mendoza CH-60. Continue on this road for approximately 50 km and exit immediately before the 20-curve slope that ends in Portillo, here begins a dirt road that penetrates the same valley that the railroad used to travel to Mendoza, you can still find traces of its tracks and installations. This road, is generally in good shape. After approximately 8 km you will see two houses, a summer residence for the valley muleteer. This is where the trek begins.
Access by Public Transportation
- You can take a bus in Santiago (at Los Heroes subway terminal) that goes to Mendoza. You have to pay the price of the total trip and negotiate a special price, since you will not be going to Mendoza. Ask to be left at Curva Cero (Curve Cero), or at the Galpon de Vialidad Juncal. From there, the walk is about 2 hours long.
- From Los Andes, take a "colectivo" to Rio Blanco. Ask to be taken either to Curva Cero or Los Hornitos. Walk for about 2 hours.
- From Los Andes take a bus to Rio Blanco. Hitchhike to the gas station to curve cero. Walk for 2 hours.
Route Description
After parking at the houses, start walking on the path toward the southeast, after about 5 minutes you will reach a bridge that crosses the river, the path slowly ascends for about 25 minutes reaching a lookout that reveals the valley almost in its entirety, and the beauty of the peak Alto de Los Leones. The path descends lightly until reaching the valley, starting here, the walk is relatively flat with a few occasional ascents and descents. Immediately after passing some fertile lowlands, you will reach a zone of large rocks (Boulders), that can be used as a campsite. Here the road will open in a fork of different paths, you should keep going south until reaching the river Monos de Agua, this river is 7 mts wide and it usually does not exceed knee-height, but during the months when the glaciers thaw (December), it can be the greatest obstacle of the trek. To cross the river, it is recommended to take shoes to get wet, because of the low temperatures, and a rope in case it is carrying too much water. . It is also recommended crossing Monos de Agua as early as possible to avoid the a rise in the volume of water. Once having crossed, continue on the valley of the Juncal river (the same valley you have been walking up the path), and not the Monos de Agua Valley, the later would take you to the Glaciar Francisco Moreno described under the trek with the same name. Fifteen minutes from the river the path begins to ascend and after going around a mountain the road turns left revealing little by little the glaciers of Mount Juncal, at the curve the moraines of the glacier will start to appear as the path gets lost. Here a decision must be made as to when to turn back. You should keep in mind that when you reach the moraine you will be on top of the glacier, and these tend to have large crevices that could be hidden under the snow.
Estimated Time
- Trekking: 4 hours to the the glacier and 3 hours back.
- Mountain bike: 2 hours to the glacier, 1 hour back.
Also consider 30 minutes of a car ride from the fork to the beginning of the trek.
Permits
This place is private property. It costs $1.500 CLP per person per day. There are no installations, and no signaling. For more information go to Parque Andino Juncal.
Leave no trace
Ask for permission to Catherine Kenrick:
- ckenrick@terra.cl
- 09 337 6336
- 02 228 8534
Kenrick Lyon Community
Ascending the Juncal
- To make an ascent of the Juncal (6.110m. IGM) yo may visit descripción de la ruta en Andeshandbook.
Waypoints on Google Earth and Map Source
To download the file right-click and then select "Save file as" (IE) or "Save link as" (Firefox, Chrome). By trying to open it directly, some browsers will show the raw code with the coordinates.
Hiring Guides
Hiring guides is possible for this trek:
- Contact: guia@montananativa.com
- Phone: +569 6477 8461
- Social Media: Facebook Montaña Nativa
- Ecotrekking Santiago de Chile Ecotourism and "High Mountain" activities in Cajón del Maipo and Farellones. Logistics, guides, and passenger transport.
- Contact: ecotrekkingchile@gmail.com
- Facebook: Ecotrekking Santiago de Chile
- TripAdvisor: Ecotrekking Chile
- Phone: +56966028918 (WhatsApp)
- Ecochile Travel: Regular and private trekking trips in the Andes.
- Contact: info@ecochile.travel, (56- 02) 25708826
- Flecha Extrema: Private Hiking Tours / "High Mountain" Expeditions around Santiago - Experience the Andes
- Contact: contacto@flechaextrema.com, +56 9 65 61 72 77
- Facebook Turismo Flecha Extrema
- Phone: +56965617277 (Whatsapp)
- AndesBrown: Hikes and excursions in Chile's central mountains. Guided tours, certified guides
- Phone +56988382014.
- Cajonoutdoor: Treking, horse back, and excursions in all of Cajón del Maipo. Passenger transport to and from the hotel/airport/chosen destiny. Bilingual local guides.
- Contact: contacto@cajonoutdoor.cl
- Phone: +56991940429 - +56975275503.
