Laguna Torre and Maestri Viewpoint

Laguna Torre

The trail to Laguna Torre is 9km (one-way) long. Optionally it can be extended by 2km (one-way) to the Maestri Viewpoint. The trail to the Laguna is quite easy and after every kilometer you have a marker. So you always know how many kilometers you still have ahead of you. The path goes uphill on the first 3km. The trail can also be done in bad weather. Main attraction is the lagoon with its glacier (Glacier Grande) and the mountain Cerro Torre behind it. The lagoon and the glacier can be seen even in bad weather. In case of bad weather, the glacier has a more beautiful blue colour. The Cerro Torre is not visible in bad weather.

The Laguna Torre trail starts approximately in the middle of the city El Chalten. From the main road the turnoff is signposted and also at the outskirts of the town you can see where the trail starts steeply upwards. But this is not far and it flattens out. Soon you reach the first viewpoint, the Mirador Margarita with a beautiful view into the gorge.

There is an alternative and not signposted entrance to the trail from the northern end of the city. Just behind the Pudu Lodge a trail leads steeply uphill. If you follows it, you passes the monument of the careless trekker. It is a burnt tree due to a cigarette butt. The path is quite narrow, but you can easily follow it. Once your get behind the mountain, you see a kind of reed field. After about 30-45min from the start you get to a place where it looks as if it wants to say, through stones and crossed branches, that you should turn right now. You go right and about 15min later you come out at kilometer 2 of the main road. On this path you will not see Mirador Margarita. The alternative entrance is only worthwhile if you have your accommodation in the north.

At kilometer 3 there is a view point from which one can see the Cerro Torre, as well as the lagoon and the glacier already in the distance (if the weather is good, otherwise you can see almost nothing). Afterwards the path is relatively flat and easy to reach the Laguna Torre. In the lagoon, ice floes that has broken off the glacier and drifts to the shore. You see the glacier and can take pictures with the lagoon, the glacier and the ice.

Optionally you can continue to the Maestri Viewpoint. From there you get an even better view of the glacier. Only for the glacier view it would not have been worth it, but a few meters before the end of the trail you have as well a nice waterfall in the forest. The 2km to Maestri Viewpoint are a bit more challenging than the rest of the trail. It goes up and partly over scree. Also the trail is more unprotected against the weather and it can be very windy. Afterwards you go the same way back to El Chalten.

If that wasn’t enough walking, you can take the Madre e Hija Trail (8km) halfway along the trail. This connects the Laguna Torre Trail with the Fitz Roy Trail at km 7 and passes 2 lagoons.

Drinking water from streams can be found at km 2,5 , 7,5 and right next to the Maestri Viewpoint at km 11

El Chalten Overview

Argentina Overview