Chilean Patagonia Beyond Torres del Paine: Carretera Austral, Marble Caves, and Perito Moreno
Chilean Patagonia extends far beyond Torres del Paine to include the legendary Carretera Austral road through fjord and glacier country, the Marble Caves of Lake General Carrera, and the connection to the Argentine side of the Patagonian ice fields at Perito Moreno.
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Carretera Austral: The Road to the End
The Carretera Austral, the legendary road connecting Puerto Montt to Villa O'Higgins through 1,240 kilometers of Chilean fjord and glacier country with multiple ferry crossings, is considered one of the finest overland journeys in the world and the primary route for exploring the Chilean Patagonia beyond the standard Torres del Paine tourist circuit.
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Cochrane and the Baker River Valley
The Baker River valley around Cochrane at the southern end of the Carretera Austral accessible section contains some of the finest trout fishing in Chile alongside the dramatic canyon landscapes of the Baker River, the most voluminous river in Chile, flowing from the Cochrane and Bertrand lakes through a succession of gorges before reaching the sea.
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Puerto Varas and the Chilean Lake District Gateway
Puerto Varas on the southern shore of Lago Llanquihue, with the Osorno and Calbuco volcanoes visible above the lake, is the most beautiful small city in the Chilean lake district and the northern gateway for the Carretera Austral journey. The German immigrant character of Puerto Varas, expressed in the kuchen pastry shops and the architecture of the historic houses, creates a distinctly European atmosphere at the edge of the Patagonian wilderness.
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Marble Caves of Lake General Carrera
The Marble Caves of Lago General Carrera, accessible by boat from Puerto Rio Tranquilo on the Carretera Austral, are sculpted limestone formations partially submerged in the turquoise water of the lake and carved by wave action over centuries into cathedral chambers and spiral tunnels of extraordinary beauty. The color of the cave walls changes from white to blue to green depending on the water level and the light angle.
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Perito Moreno Glacier: The Argentine Connection
The Perito Moreno Glacier in the Argentine Los Glaciares national park, accessible from El Calafate and connected to the Chilean side of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field, is the most accessible and most dramatic of the Patagonian glaciers, with an active calving face 5 kilometers wide and 60 meters high that regularly collapses into the lake in thunderous avalanches of ice. El Calafate airport provides the most convenient access from Buenos Aires.
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Punta Arenas: The Strait of Magellan City
Punta Arenas on the Straits of Magellan is the largest city in Chilean Patagonia and has a population shaped by the wool and shipping economy that dominated the region from the late 19th century; the cemetery of Punta Arenas, with its elaborate family mausoleums of the sheep estancia oligarchy, is one of the most architecturally impressive in South America and a window into the wealth and mortality of the Patagonian frontier.