107
ediciones
Cambios
→Resupply and Accommodation along the Route
==Season 2023/24==
Frank 4.5 days RR NOBO
1. I got the bus to the edge of Ushuaia (see transport section) & walked back to the centre along the coast road in a little over an hour.
2. I again got the bus & continued to the end of the road then along an easy trail to Estancia Tunel. 3KM later I forded the river easily (knee deep) & continued about 6KM to the next puesto. Another easy ford before the puesto. From the puesto an old jeep track runs out all the way to the road. I went to see the shipwreck at Puerto Remolino then returned to the road & crossed the river on a footbridge. At the river are several huts, occasionally used by the military. Good camping outside. Next day I continued along the road. Two restaurants & 2 cafes in Puerto Pirata, all closed when I went through. In Puerto Almanca there are 7 restaurants, all open. There should be camping & rooms available also. I continued to the puesto at the start of Sendero Lucas Bridges (SLB)You can camp near the bridge about 2KM before the puesto. From the puesto I hitched back to Ushuaia.
3. From Tolhuin I got a taxi on Ruta 27 to Aguas Blancas where there is a sign for SLB. I walked back 19KM to Tolhuin easily in 4 hours.
4. I got the Tolhuin-Ushuaia bus to the junction with Ruta J then hitched to the Puesto at the start of SLB. Not much traffic, possibly because it was Christmas Eve. At the puesto go in on the jeep track for 1KM then leave it as it turns left & continue along a fence. Forded Rio Varela, it was a little over knee deep & fast. There is a camp just after the ford. The trail is marked with blue & red dots & occasional small metal flags. Continued to Rio Lata & crossed it easily. There are a few more crossings. Most I was able to cross on logs & rocks. There is a narrow trail section along a gravel bank which is eroded & undercut. I walked it but it would be safer to ford the river below the bank. There is an intermediate camp then the trail fades out with no markers until Camp Lata. Summer days are long so I continued from Camp Lata to the pass easily on slabs up a streambed. Good views of the Dientes on the way up. At the pass (650M) don't lose altitude but contour following metal posts to the second pass which is at about the same altitude. Then you drop steeply on a clear trail. Once at the treeline it's very muddy for 1KM but you are soon at Camp Bruzo, 3KM from the pass, where I camped. I marked the locations of all the camps so they should be available with the 2024 track file update.
Camp Bruzo is at the point where the route divides with a 'track' along each side of the river. However the trail & markers disappear & its CC on either side until the point where the routes reunite. I found the best option to be going out on the left route & when I reached the river I started walking along the gravel banks, crossing it many times, often just walking in the river. If you stay on land you are in rough trackless scrub with beaver dams, logjams & mud. At the point where the tracks reunite the trail & markers start again. After a short confusing section through a maze of fallen trees it led out more easily although navigation was still required. Forded the river easily at the puesto & went out on a good track to the road. After a few KM I hitched into Tolhuin.
==Season 2022/23==
We crossed the pasture (unlocked wooden gates) and from there on it was easy to follow the way threw the gassing land. It is necessary to cross the fences a few times untill you get closer to the forest, there you need to follow the track files for a while, because the trail itself is misleading. After we crossed the river Varela (all crossings are recorded accurately at the original locations), and spent the first night in the camp on its shore. The camp looks quite new (first photo). From there the path was well marked with metal Fuegian flags and red and blue spots and leads next to Varela River and after along one of its left sources at the bottom of the valley. We followed that untill we approached another new camp (second photo). Then the trail leads to peatbog where the path disappears with the first beaver lagoon and from that moment on it is just cross-country through the peat. Sometimes we could see more marks but it doesn't help at all (the solution would be to record all the marks on the GPS but we didn't have time for that - if you can, do it!). We wanted to spent our second night at Rancho Lata, but we couldn't find it because of a dark (search around the track in the forest at km 37.2). We slept close to this point between the the trees that provided good shelter from the wind. The next day we turned right to the Paso Bridges. Here the path follows a stream that runs from the pass. When in the mountains, we found yellow and wooden pole marks that led us across the pass. The wind here was strongest we've met in Patagonia so take care! We spent night in the camp Bruzo with another beaver lagoon next to it (and sadly some rubbish as well). In the morning we lost marks again, so we needed to cross the peatbog again, thanks to frost it was harder then a day ago. It is better to go around the lagoon on its right side. We crossed river again over fallen trees, after in the forest we found marks again for a monet. Then some more cross-country untill we reached Rio Valdez. From there on the trail is recorded accurately and well visible with some recent maintainance. Last night we spent close to the river where are many good camping spots. Next day we crossed the river Valdez next to the puesto and soon we were on the mud road leading to Tolhuin. We spent on the path 4 nights. We walked slowly, but also it wasn't easy. Lot's of humidity, peatbogs, fallen trees and half of the path not well marked. But nature really amazing with interesting history (Selk'nam) and present (beaver introduction related demage and recent forest exploitation close to slowly expanding Tolhuin). It seems that not many people visit this sendero these days. Hopefully the protection status will change and more people will come!
* 2023/04/21 - 2023/04/26 / 5 days / Hiking / SOBO / RR and Option 6 / Christopher and Anna
=Resupply and Accommodation=
You can get camping gas in Ushuaia and at one shop in Tolhuin. Anonima supermarkets in both towns.
==Resupply and Accommodation in nearby Towns==
==Resupply and Accommodation along the Route==
7 restaurants in Puerto Almanza. There may be rooms & camping available there also.
Several camps along Sendero Lucas Bridges. They all have lean tos which are more suitable for cooking than sleeping. Rancho Lata is a collapsed hut. Plenty of water along the route & at all the camps.
=Transport to and from Route=
Minibuses run by Lider & Montiel go several times a day Ushuaia-Tolhuin
Tours go to Estancia Harberton by bus & boat from Ushuaia but they are expensive, around 150 euro. They don´t give any discount if you just want transport without the tour. Hitching is possible with a bit of patience.
Local buses A & B run from Ushuaia centre along the coast road to about 6.5KM from the centre along the RR. No need to walk this part unless you like shipping containers. You need a SUBE card to use the bus but if you ask a local & offer them 200 pesos they will normally tap you on.
=Permits, Entry Fees and Right-of-Way Issues=