GPT27P - Alto Río Palena
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- 2020-Jan-22 / Shaun / Regular Packrafting route
I combined this section with GPT28P. These two sections are spectacular, varied, fun and challenging. I barely saw another person the entire time, and there’s something very satisfying about following a single river all the way out to the ocean. Very enjoyable, very memorable.
I found the wiki comments of Kara Davis (below) and the Facebook comments of Jen Ni (Jan 5 2019) and Gerald Klamer (March 27, 2018) to be very helpful. Jen’s categorization of 27P and 28P into five sub-sections is very good. My impressions were similar to all of theirs and I don’t have much to add.
Not having much whitewater experience, I started 27P around km24, just west of the cable ferry. However, I was fine with the many rapids after that, so with hindsight I would have started from Palena. Each section took me about a day and a half for a total of just over three days. Apparently, the river was at a normal level for this time of year. It ran around 5-8kph for most of 27P and until about km40 of 28P, then maybe at 2-3kph thereafter. There were countless tree and rock hazards throughout, plus a number of whirlpools (often at sharp turns). But I avoided all these without much trouble. As the river widened, I encountered fierce headwinds in several places, and a noticeable incoming tide toward the end.
At Raúl Marin Balmaceda, I took the 11 hour ferry to Puerto Cisnes (departs Thursdays and Sundays) which technically completed the section, as it currently stands. The views were stunning.
Summary Table
| GPT27P: Alto Río Palena | Hiking | Packrafting | |||||
| Group | F: Sector Palena | Total | - | - | 103.5 km | 21 h | |
| Region | Chile: Los Lagos (X) & Aysén (XI) | Trails (TL) | - | - | - | - | |
| Start | Palena | Minor Roads (MR) | - | - | - | - | |
| Finish | Río Palena (La Junta) | Primary Roads (PR) | - | - | 2.3 km | 2.2% | |
| Status | Published & Verified | Cross-Country (CC) | - | - | - | - | |
| Traversable | Jan - May (Maybe: Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec) | Bush-Bashing (BB) | - | - | - | - | |
| Packraft | Required | Ferry (FY) | - | - | - | - | |
| Connects to | GPT26, GPT27H, GPT28P, GPT30P, GPT72 | Investigation (I) | - | - | - | - | |
| Options | 124 km (Variants Only) | Exploration (EXP) | - | - | - | - | |
| Hiking | Packrafting | Total on Water | 101.3 km | 97.8% | |||
| Attraction | - | 5 (of 5) | River (RI) | 101.3 km | 97.8% | ||
| Difficulty | - | 4 (of 5) | Lake (LK) | - | - | ||
| Direction | None | Only ↓ | Fjord (FJ) | - | - | ||
| Comment | Hiking: Hiking not feasible | ||||||
| Character | Valdivian Rain Forest, Farmland, Settlers, River Packrafting | ||||||
| Challenges | - | ||||||
Satellite Image Map
Elevation Profile
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: La Junta In La Junta, there are plenty of lodging options, from hotels and cabañas to camping, as well as a couple medium sized grocery stores adequate for resupply. There is a tourist information center located at the edge of the main plaza.
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:
Notes to consider before beginning: Be aware that the Chilean border control outside of Carrenleufú requires you to declare items in your possession, so keep this in mind when resupplying. They will confiscate certain foods, including produce and honey brought from Argentina.
This is the first time during this hike where the Regular Hiking and Regular Packrafting Routes begin to significantly differ. The two tracks do not rejoin until GPT32.
Beginning from Palena, walk north down the paved road, 235-CH and cross Puente Palena to the put-in on the western bank of Río Palena. The river is swift and has several Class I and Class II rapids. There are also many places where the river splits and becomes very shallow. I would recommend scouting any rapid that makes you uncomfortable. Also be wary of obstructions, such as logs and branches, that occasionally block parts of the river. Camping along the edge during this stretch of the Río Palena is difficult due to the thick foliage and steep rocky beaches. Flat and clear spots are a rare find.
The river widens out approximately 12 km from the Palena put-in. There are still several class I and class II rapids, but with longer stretches of flat water in between. The banks on both sides are littered with rocky beaches, and nice camping is still hard to come by. There is also a notable increase in the density of homes and other structures lining the river.
The banks of the Río Palena flatten out and provide better camping after the ferry at El Tranquilo, approximately 20 km from put-in. This car/passenger ferry draws itself across the river along thick metal cables which can be easily passed on a packraft. A lot of the surrounding land is used for grazing and traces of livestock are everywhere. A sign advertising a refugio, “Predio El Refugio,” was located at La Mula, approximately 12.5 km past the ferry crossing. As several smaller streams join the Río Palena, the river swells and the frequency of rapids decreases.
The river continues winding through farmland all the way to the La Junta take-out. There is a small beach here with a trail that leads up to Highway 7. La Junta is located about 2 km south of the take-out.
