Lihué Calel National Park

Lihué Calel means the sierras of life in the Mapuche language, and the name records what makes them matter: these low hills of pink granite, rising only a few hundred metres from an otherwise flat and arid steppe, catch enough rain to hold water in cracks and hollows long after the plain has dried, creating an island of relative fertility. Valleys between the outcrops shelter caldén trees, jarilla scrub and endemic plants, and the wildlife includes guanacos, pumas, foxes, armadillos and many raptors. Trails climb to the Cerro de la Sociedad Científica for wide views, and a short path leads to a rock-art site under an overhang where earlier peoples left painted designs. The old ranch buildings at the entrance house the visitor centre.

What you actually see

• The pink granite hills - low sierras rising abruptly from flat steppe.
• The rock art - painted designs under an overhang near the trailhead.
• The valley vegetation - caldén, jarilla and endemic plants in sheltered folds.
• The summit view - the climb to Cerro de la Sociedad Científica.

When to go

March to November for walking; summer temperatures exceed forty degrees with almost no shade. Spring brings flowering after rain. Storms can be violent and brief, and flash flow fills the dry channels quickly.

Honest expectations

The park is small and its trails short, so a day is plenty. Facilities amount to a campsite and visitor centre with no shop. The rock art is faint and partly damaged by past vandalism. Water must be carried on every walk.

Nearby

General Acha lies northeast; Parque Luro is far north on the RN35.