Kawesqar National Park
A vast fjord park named for a canoe people almost destroyed, with its waters left outside the protection.
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Kawesqar was created in 2019 out of the former Alacalufes reserve and covers around twenty-eight thousand square kilometres of fjords, channels, islands and ice off the western Patagonian coast - one of the largest protected areas in the Americas. It is named for the Kawesqar, the canoe people who lived in these channels for thousands of years, moving with fire in their boats, and whose population was reduced to a handful by disease, displacement and killing after European contact; a small community remains at Puerto Eden. The park's creation was criticised by Kawesqar organisations because the marine waters between the islands were left as a reserve rather than park, permitting salmon farming.
What you actually see
- Twenty-eight thousand square kilometres - fjords, channels and ice.
- Created in 2019 - from the former Alacalufes reserve.
- Named for the Kawesqar - the canoe people of these channels.
- A contested boundary - the waters left open to salmon farming.
When to go
December to March. Several days by vessel.
Honest expectations
There is no road access and no infrastructure - visiting means a ship. Weather here is among the wettest and windiest on earth. The salmon farming dispute is live and the Kawesqar community's objections are part of the park's story, not a footnote.
Nearby
Puerto Eden is inside the channels; Puerto Natales is south-east.
What to pack for Kawesqar National Park
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.
