Argentina- Aconcagua National Park

Difficulty rating: **

Situated comfortably in Chile we felt the urge to take advantage of being near the Argentinian border.  After a short investigation, I discovered a day trip to the natural reserve of Aconcagua, just over the border of Chile within the heart of the Andes, Argentina. The Andes are the longest stretch of mountains in the world- a continuous range of highlands that cover the west coast of South America.  The journey would last 3 hours each way and passed through the “Los Libertadores” frontier pass which joins Chile to Argentina.  Travelling across the border meant going through passport and visa control twice, as well as a bag search on the way back into Chile.

After zig-zagging for many miles, cramped in a full minibus, there were no complaints as we witnessed beautiful views that were improving each moment we reached further into the mountain range.  We eventually made it to the Aconcagua Natural reserve for lunchtime.  We were surrounded by the Andes, beautiful picturesque mountains with clean fresh air.  The sun was shining but you could feel the wind at times, which had a severe chill in it.     We began our hike to the furthest point of the natural reserve where we would see lagoons and most importantly reach the summit to view the worlds highest mountain outside of Asia and the Himalayas- Mount Aconcagua. 

 

The hike was slightly challenging due to the altitude change and uphill walk.  After passing 2 small lagoons we reached our highest point of the hike and took pictures to celebrate.  On a slight descent we came across a large and impressive lagoon named “Horcones Lagoon” and sat and rested in the sun as we took in the views.  Walking back to the bus we came across an area with fossils from millions of years ago from when the area was underwater.

 

Descending from the trek was both refreshing and rewarding.  My only regret was that I could only stay for a day.

*TIP*

Aconcagua National Park is easily achievable as a day trip from Santiago.  There are many operators that will offer transport for a reasonable cost.  Note that crossing the border into Argentina can cause delays and passports or ID will be required and VISAs if not exempt.  The trek around the National park is at a high altitude yet not too strenuous even for those not used to these conditions.