Santuario de La Naturaleza Yerba Loca

NileGuide Expert tip:

At these altitudes, drinking lots of water and wearing sunscreen are essential.

Description:

• This Santiago park is unique in that it is at higher elevation, yet does not involve any serious climbing once inside the park. It is located on teh Camino a Farrellones, at the 15th curve (curva 15). From there , there is a 4 km unpaved road to Villa Paulina, a campsite wehre many people set up camp, and where they offer horseback riding.
  
  If you don't stay in Villa Paulina, or even if you do, there are from there, 14 km of walking up to Glaciar La Paloma and El Altar, both hanging glaciers. While the glaciers are often the goal of a hike, there is abundant birdlife, including eagles and condors at higher elevations, and some small animals, such as the degu and the vizcacha. In the afternoon, many lizards come out to sun themselves on the rocks. 
  
  The park is named "crazy weed" for some unusual vegetation and a silty glacial river runs along much of the valley. The park is just an hour from Santiago, but there is no public transportation to the entrancde during the summer. Many people bike up to the park as hill training, but this won't leave much energy for exploring the park.
  
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