Medanos del Chaco National Park

Médanos del Chaco covers around five thousand square kilometres in the far northwest of Paraguay against the Bolivian frontier, and its distinguishing feature is sand: dune fields, médanos, of wind-blown sand among the dry thorn scrub of the arid Chaco, a landscape of quebracho, cactus and bare ground with almost no surface water. It holds the Chacoan peccary, a species known only from fossils until living animals were found here in 1975, along with jaguar, puma, guanaco and armadillos including the giant armadillo. There is no infrastructure of any kind: no roads within the park, no water, no staff presence, and reaching it means a self-sufficient expedition with permits and local knowledge.

What you actually see

• The dune fields - the wind-blown sand among the thorn scrub.
• Dry Chaco vegetation - the quebracho, cactus and bare ground.
• Chacoan peccary - the species rediscovered living here in 1975.
• The emptiness - a landscape with no settlement or water.

When to go

May to September in the cooler dry months; summer temperatures in the Chaco exceed forty-five degrees and are genuinely dangerous. Expeditions need permits, convoy vehicles and water for the duration.

Honest expectations

There is no infrastructure whatsoever: no roads inside, no water, no facilities and no rescue. Access requires a self-sufficient convoy, permits and local guides. Wildlife sightings are unlikely. Summer heat is lethal without preparation.

Nearby

Mariscal Estigarribia lies southeast; the Bolivian frontier is north.