Hello,
I'm gonna spend some time in Chile and Argentina in jan and febr...
I would like to know wich volcanoes are most impressive to climb, but not too technical. You have lascar in the north that is still active, but also Villarica in the lake district. For the Lake district i was planning to go only to Bariloche (Argentina) and do the Nahuel Huapitraverse and then to Puerto Montt. So Villarica is a little bit out of direction, but plans can always change! I'm going to San Pedro de Atacama so Lascar is doable. There are also other and higher volcanoes in the north maybe more scenic (but active ones has that little extra i think :)? Does anyone know of a good agency for those things? Is it expensive?
Any advice would be highly appreciated!
Thanx
A volcano climb with excellent scenery but not technical is Puyehue. In the road Osorno-Bariloche, before the Argentinian border, in El Caulle farm you pay U$11 and you go to a wooden hut with hard berths and wooden stove (4-5 h). From there in about 4-5 h you can do a return trek to the caldera. Another good trek from the hut is to Los Banos, also with good scenery and hot water springs.
In the Argentinian side there are good treks in Tronador volcano.
Villarica is a very easy guided walk. Think TDP walkers - but going up a volcano. With all of the snack and photo breaks on the walk up, you're still there in time for lunch - and that's after a very late start. The views on a clear day are phenomenal and the whole event is fun. The volcano and the town of Pucon are both a bit of a tourist trap.
Lanin volcano on the Argentine side is another option, best approached from Junin de los Andes where you can find guides etc. Scenery in the north is very different (mostly desert) and as you say the volcanoes are a lot higher. Bear this in mind as San Pedro is barely high enough for acclimatisation for going well over 5000m (which most peaks in the N are)
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