Los Alerces National Park Two Covers
Los Alerces National Park Two Covers
A great opportunity to learn about the engineering feat built within the Los Alerces National Park: the Futaleufú Hydroelectric Complex
Time of year | All year |
Maximum Pax | 23 |
Duration | Full day |
Transfer | Includes transfer from your accommodation in Esquel If you are staying in Trevelin, we can coordinate a meeting point in Esquel or, for an additional cost, we can pick you up in Trevelin, or wherever you are staying. |
Includes | Guide, insurance |
Recommendations
In all seasons of the year it is suggested to wear comfortable shoes (sneakers), comfortable clothing, and layered coats.
In summer/spring bring sunscreen, repellent, cap, preferably light clothing, personal bottle of water,
In autumn/winter, wear a hat, a neck warmer, gloves, warm shoes and extra socks.
Clarifications
The tour is done by vehicle and at each attraction visited there are low difficulty trails with a guide.
Description of the excursion
Los Alerces National Park has three entrances: the North, Central, and South entrances. On this excursion, we will explore the areas surrounding the latter two. We depart from Esquel or Trevelin toward the Central Entrance, traveling along National Route 259 and then Provincial Route 71. The road gains altitude and offers excellent vantage points. Once inside the protected natural area, we visit Puerto Limonao, where we disembark from the vehicle to appreciate the beauty of the area and take a short, easy hike to the Futalaufquen Inn. On the way back, we will visit Villa Futalaufquen, where we will visit the Museum and Interpretation Center, a convenient place to learn about flora and fauna exhibits and related topics.
We then continue toward the rock painting ledge, a ten-minute walk that takes us to a viewpoint overlooking Lake Futalaufquen. The entire interpretive tour takes about 40 minutes and is of easy difficulty. The Central Gateway stage concludes with a visit to Irigoyen Waterfall, located six kilometers from Villa Futalaufquen. It's a significant waterfall amidst abundant and varied vegetation, and access takes 15 minutes.
We'll then head to the South Gate of Los Alerces National Park, where we'll find the Futaleufú Hydroelectric Complex, a fascinating feat of engineering and construction. The tour follows a circular route, returning to the starting point.
There we will visit the Amutui Quimey Reservoir, the General San Martin Dam, the Balancing Chimney, the machine sector, and the Pipe Bridge. We will take a walk in the pools area.
All the hikes on this excursion are of low difficulty. One starts at the Los Tambor waterfalls, approximately 100 meters long. The other trail is the Cauce Viejo trail, which is accessed from the Los Pozos viewpoint. It skirts a small stream in the middle of the forest and reaches the former bed of the Futaleufú River.
Frequently Asked Questions
1) PN. LOS ALERCES DE MEDIO:
We only tour the downtown area, entering through the gate of the same name. We make stops to visit the cave painting trail, the Irigoyen waterfall, the Futalaufquen village, the town hall, the visitor center, the Limonao port, and the Futalaufquen Inn.
2) PN. LOS ALERCES FULLDAY:
The first part is the same as option number 1, then a stop is added on the shores of Lake Futalaufquen in Punta Mattos, and we continue along Route 71 towards the northern area visiting the Rio Arrayanes walkway, a trail is taken along the Menendez River, visiting the Lahuan Soledad, the Isla Alerce viewpoint and the source of the Menendez River, we reach the shores of Lake Menendez where we will see the Torrecillas hill and glacier.
3) PN. LOS ALERCES CENTER DOORWAY AND SOUTH DOORWAY:
The first part is the same as option 1. We then leave the park and head toward Trevelin to enter the national park through the south gate. We will take a tour visiting Los Tambores waterfall, the Pozones viewpoint, the old Futaleufú River bed, the Amutui Quimey dam and lake, the Balancing Chimney, the machine room, and the Virgen de las Nieves Chapel. This tour takes place within the area concessioned to the Futaleufú hydroelectric plant, where we will follow a circular route, making various stops.
Return to Esquel via Trevelin and RN 259.
Can the Los Dos Portadas National Park excursion and the Lake Safari to explore the Ancient Larch be taken on the same day?
Unfortunately, these tours cannot be combined on the same day; both are full-day tours. To experience the Millenary Alerce, you must take a lake excursion on Lake Menéndez (northern part of the PNLA). This requires a land transfer to the Arrayanes River Footbridge (90 km from Esquel/Trevelin). Since the arrival time at the pier is at 10:30 a.m., you must depart from Esquel around 8:00 a.m. Once you reach the Arrayanes River Footbridge, the only way to reach the Puerto Chucao pier on Lake Menéndez is by walking along a 1,500-meter-long, easy-to-difficulty trail. At this point, you board the boat and return at approximately 4:00 p.m., where you walk the trail again to the Arrayanes River Footbridge.
