Argentina: El Chaltén
Argentina: El Chaltén
El Chaltén is situated in Argentine Patagonia’s Los Glaciares National Park. We’d always wanted to hike in Patagonia and this is the perfect location with the 3,405 metre high Fitz Roy mountain as a constant backdrop and home to the Southern Patagonian Ice Field. Our trip was in January 2024 in search of great hiking, camping and a slice of wilderness.
We knew it would be busy so looked to find some trails which weren’t top of the list for most tourists but still offered spectacular views. Not hard to find in this part of the world…
Logistics and Planning
Firstly, if you’re new-ish to hiking then check out our Getting Started Hiking post.
How to get there:
Bus is the best option whatever direction you’re heading from. We always had good experiences with the Marga Taqsa bus company.
Alternatively, the Comandante Armando Tola Airport airport is just outside of El Calafate and there are several buses each day directly from there to El Chaltén taking about 2hrs40mins.
Time of year to go:
We visited in January which is right in the middle of their peak summer months of Dec - Feb. It is obviously busier then but it is preferable for those views and for camping!
Weather advice:
El Chaltén (and Patagonia in general) is known for strong winds and we certainly witnessed this on a few of the days we were there. Make sure to check the wind forecast and pitch your tent in a sheltered spot. It’s another good reason to stay for longer so you can hike on the less windy days.
Local maps:
Quite a few of the outdoors shops in El Chaltén town have decent maps of the area complete with contours, trails and estimated timings. We got the ‘Chaltén Outdoor Maps’ topographic map with a 1:65000 scale. This massively helped us when planning as well as hiking.
What You’ll Find There
Accommodation:
We camped at Complejo turístico El Relincho. It's a busy campsite and there can be a queue to check in but we'd recommend it because the facilities (bathrooms and kitchen) are kept very clean, the staff are lovely, they will store luggage for a small fee if you go out hiking, the prices are reasonable (especially if paying in cash) and there is a nice lounge area to hang out on those windy days!
Eating/ Drinking:
El Chaltén is one of those places where you can just wander around and find somewhere nice. We found that for some of the restaurants you do need to book though due to the amount of people.
Our café of choice was La Nana for the sweet treats, coffee and a nice environment to sit and use the wifi.
For bars we went to La Zorra Taproom and Bourbon Smokehouse, they both have a nice atmosphere and good views. We got some delicious fries in the Bourbon Smokehouse after a day out hiking too mmmm.
Overall Cost:
There is a huge range in El Chaltén from the super fancy to pretty basic. When we were there in early 2024 the prices in Argentina were going up and up but since El Chaltén is a tourist hotspot it is always going to be a bit pricier than elsewhere.
Make sure to utilise the free campsites as one way to keep costs down: Campamento Laguna Capri, Campamento Poincenot and Camping de Agostini
Read on below for info on the hikes we did from El Chaltén :)
El Chaltén town from Mirador de los Cóndores with Monte Fitz Roy in the distance
2 Night Loop Hike
Summary: This is one of the more popular hikes in the area. Overall it isn’t too demanding and a good first hike to explore and figure out places you might want to go back to. It is more than manageable over 3 days or of course you can easily extend or shorten the trip.
Day 1: Leave El Chaltén from the Sendero al Fitz Roy start point in the north of the town and follow that trail past Laguna Capri and through to Campamento Poincenot.
Day 2: Head south past Lagunas Madre and Hija then around to Laguna Torre where Campamento de Agostini is situated.
Day 3: Take the trail eastwards back to the south of El Chaltén town.
Distances and ascent:
El Chaltén to Poincenot is about 8.5km with 435m ascent.
Poincenot to de Agostini is about 10.5km with 200m ascent.
De Agostini to El Chaltén is about 8.5km with 110m ascent.
Total distance: 27.5km
Campsites: Poincenot and de Agostini
We stayed at Poincenot on two occasions and enjoyed it a lot more than expected. It is busy but if you head through the main camping area and down a little slope there are some lovely camp spots slightly out the way. They are nearer to the river and have a beautiful view of Monte Fitz Roy.
Side trail option: Once you've pitched your tent at Poincenot then you can hike up to Laguna de Los Tres. This is only a short distance but the ascent is super steep and loose underfoot plus it is a busy route. We'd say it's still worth it though. Once at the lake you can head round to the left up to a viewpoint where there aren't as many people.
Our tent at Campamento Poincenot with Monte Fitz Roy visible through the trees - what a perfect spot :)
The view down to Laguna Sucia which is also visible from the Laguna de Los Tres viewpoint… simply stunning
Loma del Pliegue Tumbado 1490m
Day hike #1
Summary: This out and back hike starts and ends at Guardaparque Ceferino Fonzo.
Initially there is quite a gradual ascent through a forest with a few streams. You then come out onto rocky ground but again not too steep until you reach the final push to the peak. Stunning views from the top and not super busy, plus a nice stone wind shelter which I took advantage of.
Distance and ascent: About 19km with 1100m ascent.
Loma de las Pizarras 1708m
Day hike #2
Tip: This one is particularly good to do on a less windy day!
Summary: This out and back hike starts and ends at the Sendero a la Laguna Torre start point in El Chaltén.
Follow the Sendero a la Laguna Torre until you reach the trail leading off right towards Campamento Poincenot. Take this trail for about 30mins at which stage the small trail off to the left can just about be seen in the forest. It's useful to have a good map app on your phone to loacate the trail!
It leads up through the forest and eventually out into the open. You follow the ridgeline up and it's often very windy; I was hiding behind boulders for breaks. It's worth it for the views and total lack of other hikers. We didn't get all the way to the peak (due to strong winds) but still enjoyed exploring the slate rock landscape up there and it was our favourite hike of the trip.
Distance and ascent: To the viewpoint we reached (not the peak) it’s a round trip of 18km with 975m ascent.
Piedra Negra
Day hike #3
Start/end point: Campamento Piedra del Fraile
Summary: This out and back hike starts and ends at Campamento Piedra del Fraile.
Piedra del Fraile is a nice little rustic campsite (if a bit expensive) along Rio Eléctrico. We hiked there from Campamento Poincenot which is a beautiful hike.
From the campsite you take a very steep trail up to Campamento Piedra Negra which is a campsite in the rocks for climbers. The views of Monte Fitz Roy are incredible and there are a few snowfields that we practiced crampon use on. It is also possible to get further up to Paso del Cuadrado (1830m) although we didn't do this due to steep snow fields leading up to it.
Distance: To Campamento Piedra Negra it’s a round trip of only 5.4km but with a whopping 975m ascent.
Laguna Pollone
Day hike #4
Summary: This out and back hike starts and ends at Campamento Piedra del Fraile
It is more of a half day hike but we really enjoyed it. You follow Rio Eléctrico up to the large Lago Eléctrico. Part way along the lake you can take a left turn onto a smaller trail leading up to Laguna Pollone which is a gorgeous little lake that is a quiet spot to enjoy some peace and tranquility in nature.
Distance: A round trip of 8km with 240m ascent.
Other Hike Recommendations
There are a couple of routes / areas that we didn’t explore but wish we had so I’m popping some information on them here :)
Huemul Circuit Trek:
This is a 3-4 day 65km hike that offers incredible views of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field. It is possible to do it without a guide but due to its challenging nature (including zip lining over 2 rivers!) I’d opt to go with a guide who has specific experience of this hike.
Laguna del Desierto:
Next time we’d love to head further north from El Chaltén to Laguna del Desierto and even on to O’Higgin’s / San Martín Lake over into Chile. We’ve heard of others doing this as a route the other way from Chile into Argentina and it sounds like a great idea and stunning area.
Overall, there is so much to explore from El Chaltén therefore it’s worth doing lots of research before you go and heading a bit out of town if you want to escape those crowds. There is something for everyone here from a range of different hikes to rock climbing and kayaking.