Hike to Chorrillo Del Salto in El Chalten

Chorrillo del Salto

   Nestled at the base of the Patagonian Andes is a small town called El Chalten. Hikers and climbers from all around the globe flock to this village to use as their base for exploring the surrounding mountains, valleys, glaciers, and lakes. Thus El Chalten has garnered the nickname 'the hiking capital of Patagonia.' It was about a three hour bus ride from El Calafate to El Chalten. Some people make a day trip out of their El Chalten visit but that is a big mistake. It is better to spend the bulk of your time here over El Calafate.

  The big draw for hiking here, besides the amazing scenery, is that all the hikes start from town. So there is no need to get a shuttle, or bus, or taxi like we were doing down in Ushuaia. There are shorter hikes and longer hikes so you can find the perfect one for how active you want to be or how much time you have. The views on some hikes can be so breathtaking that it is worth keeping an eye on the weather so the best views aren't covered by rain clouds.

The secret way to hike off the road

Filling up my water bottle

  We arrived midday to our hotel, called Indlandsis, which is a Greenlandic word for 'inland glacier.' Since we only had half the day left, and we wanted to get acquainted with our new base for adventures, we picked one of the shorter hikes to tackle for the afternoon. About 4km north of town lies Chorrillo del Salto, a beautiful 60ft waterfall near the end of the Chorrillo river.

The road, river, and valley

   The hike out from town follows the gravel road leading to Lago del Desierto. While we were there this was a pretty well traveled road, which meant lots of dust everytime a car or truck came by. We found out on the way back that there is a trail off to the left that you can take which hugs the ridgeline out of town that is a way better option. Everyone else was also hiking on the road though so it seems that this other trail is not well known. Once you hit the parking lot you are almost there. If you drive or bicycle this is where you must leave your transportation and finish on foot.

View from the ridge line

  The waterfall itself shoots out of a slot canyon and tumbles into a shallow pond. This gave me some opportunities for long exposures and also our first chance to fill our water bottles with fresh glacier melt water. You may be able to do this down in Ushuaia but we never asked. Up here though, anywhere there is clear, moving water you can drink it. That is probably why there is a 'no swimming' sign pinned up to a tree here.

  The walk back to town was infinitely better with only a small portion being on the road. Getting a little bit of height on the ridge on the way back also gave us a good look back into the valley as well as a nice overview of the town. The moment you step out of town you enter the national park, no entry fee needed. If there is going to be one stop in Patagonia and you are a hiking enthusiast then this might have to be it.