Leaving the rainforest and the big city delights of Coyhaique behind us, we escaped to Cerro Castillo National Park which has some of the best hiking on the Carretera Austral – if the weather obliges.
Showered, laundry done, reprovisioned and petrol filled up (CLP 1,350 per litre) we left Coyhaique under grey blustery skies and headed south on the Carretera.
It had been a surprisingly busy town and there was a lot of traffic on the roads, although a lot branched off to Balmaceda.
The region was largely cleared and the landscape was very different: the rainforest was now behind us and the country was much drier. The mountain tops turned into the barren volcanic landscape of Iceland, albeit heavily forested up to the tree line.
Some 50 kilometres south of Coyhaique we entered Cerro Castillo National Park, a land of high peaks and an important refuge for the rare heumul deer. Sometimes compared to Torres del Paine, it has a well known 3-5 day 51 km long hiking circuit, often called Las Horquetas after it’s starting point.
At Laguna Chiguay we noticed the gate to the campsite was open and decided to check it out. We met a Canadian who was far more informative than the Tourist Office in Coyhaique.
He told us that the Las Horquetas trek was indeed closed but that the path towards Laguna Duff was open and that it was possible to stay at the 2 campsites en route.
In the meantime he suggested we walk to the lookout above the campsite, so we duly set off on the Buena Vista trail then bore off towards ‘Cerro 4’.
The trail started pleasantly enough, winding up through trees until we emerged on bare scree covered slopes from where there was a good trudge in loose shale to a high ridge. There were magnificent views in all directions of desolate snowy mountains.
I think one could have gone further to a crenelated summit but there was a howling gale. My hat, which had survived 3 months in Iceland, was blown from my head and never seen again. We descended to gentler, if not warmer climes, turning off on the Buena Vista track to a nice look out above the lake.
From there the track dropped down to the water where there is a small jetty and info boards on local birds. A rare frog lives on the edges of the lake.
We decided to stay in the pleasantly leafy campsite, taking over the Canadian’s spot, which had a wooden shelter that looked quite tempting in the cold and wind at 871 m. In the end, we didn’t even put our tent up but just slept on the benches inside and were quite cosy.
Campamento Porteadores
The next day we followed our Canadian friend’s suggestion and drove on to Villa Cerro Castillo through a dramatic mountain landscape, although the peaks were wreathed in cloud.
The road to the actual park has a short 4 x 4 section so we had to park about 3 km before the entrance. We packed our rucksacks and got under way, then some kind Germans offered us a lift. We piled in the back of their pickup, thus saving a tedious if easy slog on the gravel road.
At the entrance the rangers told us that only the trail to the Neozelandés camp was open, and that snowshoes were needed to get to Laguna Duff. The park and camping were free at that moment which was a bonus.
However we did have to pay CLP 1.500 each to cross the private land before the border of the park (and for parking had we used it) – thankfully these guys haven’t been to the Faroes and don’t know what they are charging there!
We set off through heavily grazed pasture land, followed a tumultuous stoney river briefly and then a pleasant woodland path. The densely packed trees were quite atmospheric.
The 4.3 km trail rose 550 m to Campamento Portadores but it was quite a steady climb. Where the trail turned off to Cerro Castillo we paused to admire the view. The peak was now quite visible above us, a long ridge of spikey pinnacles which reach up to 2,675 m. Cerro Palo at 2,191 m had a distinctive stepped outline with the rough outline of Cerro Sahne Nuss (2,170 m) behind.
Campamento Porteadores at 870 m was just a little further, with some tip toeing necessary to cross a stream. It had a rather scrappy appearance with 4 tent platforms plus a few other areas with tables and benches. There was a choice of an old long drop or newer flushing toilets (one of which wasn’t working).
We put our tent up above the stream and later returned to the lookout as the weather brightened. Simon explored some of the Castillo Cerro trail and reached another ridge with fine views. There did not appear to be any snow on our side but it is apparently a high snow year and we could not know what was over the passes, although I suspected that some of the locals may have been going through.
Campamento Neozelandés
It may well have been freezing in the night but we woke up to a bright sunny day. However the weather in Patagonia can be as temperamental as Iceland: an hour later on the 3.6 km trail (330 m climb) to Campamento Neozelandés it started to snow.
At first we did not take the gentle flakes very seriously as we followed another pleasant path up through trees, but by the time we reached the campsite, the places nicely scattered amidst the forest, it was snowing quite heavily.
We threw the tent up and dived in for lunch. A couple of hours later it appeared to brighten up a bit and we decided to walk on the 2.6 km (200 m elevation) to Laguna Duff. There was a considerable amount of snow around but luckily a group with snow shoes had gone before so we had easy tracks to follow.
The path opened out rapidly into a wide valley with superb views of the surrounding peaks. Beyond the trees, we followed snowy slopes, which were largely strong enough to hold us although occasionally one would sink through to ones knees – snowshoes would certainly have made it easier.
However, as we neared the lake, the snow moved back in again and became a fully fledged blizzard. I gave up, but Simon preserved and reached the lake although he admitted he couldn’t see a thing. The lake was frozen and snow covered anyway, not the turquoise water one sees in the photos.
He descended and caught up with me and we stopped to eat an apple. 5 minutes later the skies cleared and we had visibility again: we turned around and went back up and finally got our view!
Of course it was snowing again as we descended wearily back to camp. We had a quick coffee and admired the snowy scenery but it was bitterly cold – we gave up and retreated to the tent.
It had been a unexpected day’s walking but a surprisingly charming one.
Down to Villa Cerro Castillo
The night was cold and we awoke to a white world with icicles fringing the streams. After breakfast in the tent we emerged, I to do battle with frozen boots and Simon to get cold fingers as he rolled up a frozen tent.
Nevertheless it was all rather enchanting as we headed down the track on untrodden snow. At one point we were following some pawprints, maybe a small cat or even a fox. It was quite funny in that the animal reached one of the bridges, stepped on it then rapidly backtracked!
The snow petered out near Campamento Portadores and the rest of the trail was quite straightforward. We stopped for lunch a kilometre out with another fine view of the river valley and eventually emerged from the trees
‘I would build my house here!’ Simon exclaimed and indeed it was a lovely view, with the Castle rising above us and an unbroken ridge line of snow topped encircling mountains.
We had plenty of time to appreciate it as we hiked back to the car with no lift, or even vehicle, in sight. Thankfully it was still in one piece and we piled in gratefully.
In Villa Cerro Castillo the eating place of choice appeared to be the La Cocina del Sole, a rather distressed bus parked in the middle of town. It is easy to find the popular stops on the Carretera as they are covered in a multitude of stickers and this one certainly qualified.
It was fun, funky and seemingly popular with the locals – Chilean steak sandwich came with melted cheese and an assortment of fried vegetables for CLP 9000. There was a fabulous view of the Castillo from the bus windows, outlined by a cerulean sky once more.
