'Desolation Traverse': Los Queñes - Rio Colorado - Descabezado plateau - Central Los Cipreses
Trail photos
Author
Trail stats
- Distance
- 101.74 mi
- Elevation gain
- 22,411 ft
- Technical difficulty
- Very difficult
- Elevation loss
- 21,663 ft
- Max elevation
- 10,257 ft
- TrailRank
- 64
- Min elevation
- 2,213 ft
- Trail type
- One Way
- Time
- 5 days 21 hours 39 minutes
- Coordinates
- 19836
- Uploaded
- March 22, 2024
- Recorded
- March 2024
near Los Queñes, Maule Region (Chile)
Viewed 145 times, downloaded 4 times
Trail photos
Itinerary description
(GPT05 - GPT06 )
13.03 -19.03. 2024
6 days, 167 km, Ascent 7.619m
Team of 2
This route is mostly off-trail!
- The famous gully “Cuesta La Hormiga” is not very difficult and pretty safe, the subsequent CC traverse is annoying.
- Part of the path is now destroyed due to the 2023 winter storms, detours are required.
- The bridge (Rio Colorado) is gone. And it is not clear whether it will be restored in the future. The Colorado River Valley looks abandoned and partially overgrown up to Hot Springs1.
- Even if the bridge were in place, I think that our option is easier, more spectacular, safer and overall better than RR GPT05
- Fording the Rio Colorado was very easy, less than knee deep.
- At the farthest point of the Colorado River Valley, the trail crosses a remote but fully operable (we met a fly-fishing team in a Toyota Prado) 4x4 road from Argentina, which is worth keeping in mind in case of emergency or rescue operations (marked in the track)
- We completed the “Avoid Don Victor” option without visiting Banos del Blanquillo.
I can recommend after waypoint “Pass in the rock belt. Easy descent to Laguna Caracol” just descend west about 5-6 km to the lagoon so as not to miss this magnificent place.
13.03 -19.03. 2024
6 days, 167 km, Ascent 7.619m
Team of 2
This route is mostly off-trail!
- The famous gully “Cuesta La Hormiga” is not very difficult and pretty safe, the subsequent CC traverse is annoying.
- Part of the path is now destroyed due to the 2023 winter storms, detours are required.
- The bridge (Rio Colorado) is gone. And it is not clear whether it will be restored in the future. The Colorado River Valley looks abandoned and partially overgrown up to Hot Springs1.
- Even if the bridge were in place, I think that our option is easier, more spectacular, safer and overall better than RR GPT05
- Fording the Rio Colorado was very easy, less than knee deep.
- At the farthest point of the Colorado River Valley, the trail crosses a remote but fully operable (we met a fly-fishing team in a Toyota Prado) 4x4 road from Argentina, which is worth keeping in mind in case of emergency or rescue operations (marked in the track)
- We completed the “Avoid Don Victor” option without visiting Banos del Blanquillo.
I can recommend after waypoint “Pass in the rock belt. Easy descent to Laguna Caracol” just descend west about 5-6 km to the lagoon so as not to miss this magnificent place.
Waypoints
Campsite
0 ft
Camp1 (bivouac)
River
6,277 ft
Ford2
River
6,283 ft
Ford3 (Rio Negro)
Risk
Bridge
Thermal waters
Car park
River
9,379 ft
Ford8
This is the last reliable all year around source of water for western plateau. Can be murky early in the season so need be filtered. The crossing is in flat valley around 70m long, so no problem if you cross far enough from the edge of waterfall.
Campsite
7,313 ft
Camp5 (little water)
Quebrada Descabezado is almost dry late in the season. Fortunately we had some old snow fields as a good source of water.
Mountain pass
8,241 ft
Pass in the rock belt. Easy descent to Laguna Caracol
This is a good point for easy 6 km descent to Laguna Caracol to avoid trespassing problem with Don Victor. Our route after this point is pretty difficult, so to go down here is a good idea.
You can add a comment or review this trail
Comments