Laguna Blanca

Laguna Blanca is a lake of around eight hundred hectares in San Pedro sitting on a bed of white sand, which gives the water an exceptional clarity and a pale colour unlike anything else in the country, and it is used for swimming and diving as well as being a nature reserve. What makes it important scientifically is the surrounding vegetation: patches of cerrado, the Brazilian savanna type, at the very southern edge of its range, holding species found nowhere else in Paraguay including the white-winged nightjar, a bird known from a handful of sites worldwide. The reserve is privately held, has faced pressure from surrounding land conversion, and offers camping and simple lodging.

What you actually see

• The clear lake - the white sand bed and the pale clear water.
• Cerrado patches - the savanna vegetation at its southern limit.
• White-winged nightjar - the rare bird the site is known for among birders.
• Camping on the shore - the accommodation at the reserve.

When to go

April to October in the cooler dry season for the birding; the nightjar displays in the warmer months from September. Swimming is best in summer. The access road is difficult after rain.

Honest expectations

The reserve is private and its protection has been precarious, with land conversion around it. Accommodation is camping and basic rooms. The access road is rough. Birding targets need a guide who knows the cerrado patches.

Nearby

Santa Rosa del Aguaray lies south; Concepcion is northwest.