Day 1:
With an early morning start from Bariloche, Argentina, you and your mountain guide begin climbing to the summit of Cerro Lopez (2200m). The trailhead is in the Llao Llao area and after passing through a forest, we have open views of the surrounding Andes and the Lakes District of Patagonia. Cerro Lopez sits on the corner of two arms of the Nahuel Huapi Lake beside the beautiful Cerro Capilla, and the mountain is characterized by amazing basalt spires, such as Aguja Lürs, a big open bowl that attracts backcountry skiers when it is filled with snow in the winter, and the exposure to the west of the untouched Nahuel Huapi National Park.
It is about 2 hours of hiking to Refugio Lopez, a little mountain hut, and another 2 hours to the summit. With your mountain guide you will climb through little alpine meadows, along a little lake, on rocky domes, and along the ridge on compacted scree. In the spring, there are still little snow patches on the dome.
Views of the Andes from Cerro Lopez are amazing! From the summit, you will appreciate the incredible Mount Tronador (3354m ) and the Brazo Tristeza arm of the Nahuel Huapi Lake as well as some of the volcanoes of Chile: Volcano Osorno and Volcano Lanín.
Hike down the scree with your mountain guide towards west and Bailey Willis valley. Traverse across the valley to the top of Bailey Willis peak, and then down to Laguna Negra. The last stretch of the day, we’ll have the Manfredo Segre Mountain Hut in sight at the other end of Laguna Negra at the base of Cerro Negro. You can practically taste their homemade pizza and microbrews on this last dash going around the lake. Nice, hot dinner and a celebratory beer or malbec, and then bedtime in the hut.
We can even bivy outside if the weather is good! Favorite part of the day is sleeping under the stars after a good hike!
Approx. 18 km with 1400 meters elevation change in 8-10 hours of hiking.
Day 2:
Today is much more relaxed. Breakfast in the Laguna Negra Hut and then we hike down into Goye’s Valley. Switchbacks down from the mountain hut, and then we’ll hike along the nice, long valley beside a clean mountain stream.
We come back out to civilization in Colonia Suiza, a pretty little farming village founded by Swiss settlers in the early 1900s. Your mountain guide will drive you back to your lodging in Bariloche.
Approx. 14 km with 500 meters elevation change in 3 hours of hiking.
For this trek, we strongly recommend hiring a Professional IFMGA UIAGM or AAGM Mountain Guide.