Colin and I arrived in Junín de los Andes on November 16th in the evening, pretty tired from the long day. Thankfully our host and his girlfriend were there to greet us and helped us carry our bags to the house we were staying in. Upon first impression I decided straight away: Junín de los Andes was a stunning town. The trees and green forests, the massive pinecones, the smell of fresh leaves and pine everywhere – it was really a feeling of being out in nature. That evening Colin and I enjoyed a delicious dinner with our host and one of his friends. Before dinner we got to see a little slideshow of the huge trout, a fish that the Lake District is famous for, which his friend caught in the river earlier that day.
The next morning we decided to take our chances and try to hitchhike to Lanín National Park (pronounced ‘Lan-een’). We got really lucky and met a couple of backpackers on a year-long trip who picked us up and brought us to the park. At the information center we bought our tickets and collected a map – it was many kilometers to get around the park and there was no way we’d be able to walk it! We didn’t realize this, but thankfully our hitchhiking buddies were kind enough to hang out with us for the day, giving us a lift to different locations around the park.
The first stop was along the 30 kilometer long Lake Huechulafquen, a glacial lake (meaning it is fed by melt water streams from the mountain glaciers above it.) Its interesting Mapuche name means long lake. Millions of years ago Lanín volcano erupted and covered everything in stone and volcanic ash, which led to the black sand beaches shown in the photos below. The backdrop of the Lanín Volcano on the perfect day we were there really sealed this spot as one of the most beautiful in South America in our minds.
There were all kinds of beautiful flowers, trees, and streams along the road and we stopped numerous times to get a better look at them.
This scenic drive was one of the best we experienced in Argentina, and we were really glad to have met some people to do it with! I highly recommend renting a car if you can afford it because there is so much to see via driving here. The four of us arrived at the mountain viewpoint where we could really see snow-capped Lanín Volcano. It looked huge and it was nice to stop for some photos in front of it!
We drove to the lunch spot next, where people were also getting boat rides around the lake. Colin and I sat near the lake here and ate our packed lunch, and Colin attempted a swim in the water! (He got out again quickly, saying it was way too cold!) After lunch Colin and I walked around a few trails, including one which took us through some areas of type AA lava flow rocks everywhere – it reminded me of the park I saw up north and you could see the volcanic evidence from years ago clearly! One of the things we wished we hadn’t seen was a dog which looked like it had clearly been attacked by something. The tree next to the dog was a bit torn up and we wondered if a puma (which are present in the park) might have gotten to it. We got out of there quickly and returned to the safety of the lunch area.
Once back we did a final little walk before meeting our new friends to drive back to Junín with them. This walk took us through examples of the trees local to the area including monkey puzzles and lenga. We got to see more examples of cane growing naturally as well. (I can’t believe cane grows like that – just sticks sticking up out of the ground! So strange.) There were little sign boards with facts about the trees and the environment along the walk which helped answer our questions.
These info cards told us that the moss and lichens, along with water and wind, break elements down from the volcano after its eruption. The nutrients from the volcanic elements help various trees and plants in the region grow. We saw the evidence of moss and lichens everywhere, its light green color standing out among the black of the volcanic ash and the darker woods. Coihue trees are also protected in the park which is important because their fine, decay resistant, grayish-white wood is strongly desired for building and furniture.
We left the next day for San Martin de los Andes. Most people visit Lanín National Park from the town of San Martin de los Andes, but we decided just to go to San Martin on a daytrip on the 18th of November due to the high cost of staying in the city. Thus we took a few final pictures and got on the 1 hour bus to the center.
Once we arrived in San Martin, we took a walk around the town and found it to be pretty (filled with colorful flowers and greenery) but quite kitschy and expensive at the same time. San Martin used to be populated by indigenous Puelche people, who raised horses to trade for alcohol, goods, and food. The area of San Martin eventually become a tourist destination for all sorts of gourmet food including chocolate. We ended up having a nice lunch on the rooftop of a restaurant overlooking the city which we loved – but we weren’t too impressed by the chocolate we tried. Maybe it was the wrong store!
After lunch the two of us headed to a little museum which had some models and interactive games explaining the history of the nearby Lanín park and the animals in it. From this museum we learned about The Desert Campaign in 1879 which encouraged the conquering of “savage” native people and their barbaric ways, replacing their lifestyle and population with those familiar with modernity. During this quest, San Martin was founded in 1898. In 1937, the National Park itself was created. It takes its name from the 3776 meter high volcano called Lanín, which is a Mapuche word meaning ‘dead rock’, and is the highest volcano in the region.
The best thing we did in San Martin was a hike to a lookout point at the top of a nearby hill. On the walk we could see the beach down below filled with people. This walk took us through dense forest with some pretty tall coihue and other trees. It wasn’t the easiest climb but we made it to the top where we had to pay a small entrance fee to the indigenous people who own the land around the lookout point. Our reward was the great view you see in the photos below.
Towards the end of the day we boarded the bus to Bariloche, which drove through the 7 lakes district. While this wasn’t the fastest way to get to Bariloche (there is a bus which takes a more direct route) it was scenic and worth the extra time for the lakes route. We had bought some food at a grocery store which we enjoyed on the bus during the drive.
Once we got to Bariloche it was quite late and we got ourselves into bed for the evening. There would be more hiking the next day!
Francesca
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