The essential El Chalten hiking guide

Before spending a good deal of time trekking & camping within the Parque Nacional Los Glaciares (PNLG), we didn’t know you could consider glaciers a common sight. Even though Patagonia is vast, there are not many places where you can trek among those icy giants but El Chalten – the argentinian capital for trekking – is among them.

> Read our post about El Chalten <

When reading about Torres del Paine (a.k.a. packed, super expensive and hard-to-reach) we weren’t really expecting to find an exact much better copy of it. Think it like this, if you were to go back in time to when TDP was free to visit and no mass tourism was present, then you’d probably have something similar to what PNLG is today.

Truth is that we had a blast visiting this amazing spot so here’s all you need to know about the Parque Nacional los Glaciares and hiking in El Chalten.

Entrance to park from the side of Hosteria Pilar

Northern Section of the Park

The northern section features 9 interconnected trails that lead to sights – such Lago de Los Tres and Laguna Torre – for which the park is known for.

• El Chalten – Camping de Agostini: Long 13km trail of about 200m elevation difference that features only a steep up climb to get to the Torre Mirador. Medium difficulty.
• El Chalten – Camping Capri: Average 6km trail of about 350m elevation difference that features a constant climb with the highest point being Lake Capri. Medium difficulty.
• El Chalten – Camping Poincenot (via Laguna Madre/Hija): Long 16km trail of about 400m elevation difference that constantly climbs until the junction with the Laguna Madre/Hija Trail and then becomes flat. Hard difficulty.

Marta in-between Laguna Madre and Hija

• Camping de Agostini – Mirador Maestri: Short yet rewarding 3km trail to get to the mirador of Laguna Torre. Easy difficulty.

Icebergs floating in Laguna Torre

• Camping de Agostini – Camping Poincenot: Long 14km trail mostly flat with only a 200m elevation difference concentrated at the southern part of the Laguna Madre/Hija Trail. Easy difficulty.
• Camping de Agostini – Camping Capri: Long 17km trail which involve walking until a junction before Camp. Poincenot and then follow another trail right (not really suggested). Medium difficulty.
• Camping Poincenot – Camping Capri: Average 5km trail with insignificant elevation gain. Easy difficulty.
• Camping Poincenot – Lago Los Tres: Short yet very steep and demanding 3km trail up the side of Lago Los Tres (be aware of the high winds). Hard difficulty.

A cloudy morning on Lago de Los Tres. Unlucky us!

• Camping Poincenot – Hosteria El Pilar*: Average 8km trail with about 300m elevation difference and amazing sceneries.

*The trail starting/finishing at Hosteria El Pilar is usually connected to town with a frequent shuttle bus

Amazing mirador on Laguna Piedras Blancas

Southern Section of the Park

The southern section of features 4 separate trails that covers the lesser visited area of the park.

• El Chalten – Mirador Los Condores: Short 1.5km trail with about 100m elevation difference that leads up to a beautiful view of the town and the mountain range behind. Easy difficulty.
• El Chalten – Mirador Las Aguilas: Short 3km trail with about 150m elevation difference that leads up to a mirador looking toward the Viedma glacier.
• El Chalten – Loma del Pliegue Tumbado: Long 12km trail with about 900m elevation difference leading up to a great spot where to enjoy panoramic vies of the whole park. Hard difficulty.
• El Chalten – Camping Toro**: Longest trail in the park counting 18km each way yet featuring only 650m elevation difference. Hard difficulty.

** If you’re planning to hike this trail you must register at the park tourist office.

Well-marked trails within the park

How to get there

The majority of the trailheads are located inside town (northern section) or at the furthest at a walkable distance from it (southern section).

Just 100m away from the town at the start of Sendero Laguna Torre

The only exception is the trail starting from Hosteria Pilar which is about 15km north of El Chalten. This is connected by daily shuttles from two shuttle companies (1) Transporte Las Lengas (400ARG) and (2) another shuttle company 2 blocks from the terminal (300ARG).

During high season shuttles leave twice per day, once in the morning (8-9am) and once in the early afternoon (1-2pm), and sometimes if asked in advance late in the evening (7-10pm).

Possible hiking costs

Entrance fee: (December 2018) Currently the entrance to the Parque Nacional Los Glaciares is free of charge.

Camping fee: (December 2018) At the four camping sites open at this time (Camping Poincenot, Camping Capri, Camping de Agostini and Camping Toro) there’s no fee for staying one or multiple nights.

Shuttle to Hosteria El Pilar: As mentioned above, the shuttle to Hosteria Pilar – for those wishing to start their hike there – costs 300-400ARG/pp.

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PLANNING A TRIP TO PATAGONIA? CHECK MORE GUIDES BELOW!