Laguna Piedras Blancas, El Chaltén, Argentina
Trail photos
Author
Trail stats
- Distance
- 15.4 mi
- Elevation gain
- 2,533 ft
- Technical difficulty
- Moderate
- Elevation loss
- 1,335 ft
- Max elevation
- 2,636 ft
- TrailRank
- 35
- Min elevation
- 1,314 ft
- Trail type
- One Way
- Moving time
- 5 hours 12 minutes
- Time
- 6 hours 28 minutes
- Coordinates
- 4322
- Uploaded
- February 23, 2019
- Recorded
- February 2019
near El Chaltén, Santa Cruz (Argentina)
Viewed 366 times, downloaded 19 times
Trail photos
Itinerary description
This hike takes you from El Chaltén to a mirador that looks out across Glacier Piedras Blancas, returns to Poincenot campsite and then follows the river to an ascent up to the laguna at the foot of the glacier. The initial trail is fine - it just follows the river over stoney terrain, occasionally moving up to the river bank - and while there are no official markers there are a few cairns to lead the way. The final ascent is marked ‘do not pass’ and probably requires a permit (hmmm... I must have missed the sign on the way up). This part of the hike is back country territory and traverses a huge boulder field, some the size of houses, and should not be undertaken by anyone without experience of hiking/scrambling in this kind of environment. Hands, elbows, knees and bottoms are required. There are a few cairns en route but the path isn’t distinct. I didn’t find it particularly challenging but there is a risk if you do not have the appropriate experience. This is not a tourist trail. The hike up to the earlier mirador is a fairly flat walk through woodland and no problem at all - suitable for anyone and the view is fantastic. My battery ran out toward the end of this hike but it follows the ascent from El Chaltén. Add around 45 mins.
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