2/12/2025 – 5/12/2025 Huemel Circuit
Parque Nacional Los Glaciares (Los Glaciares National Park)
Area Lago Viedma
Santa Cruz Province, ARGENTINA
Distance: 75.8km Time: 34 hours
Total Ascent: 2695m Total Descent: 2803m
Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos), Sue Davies (Report), Pedro Navarro (Guide), Patrizia Schäffnerl, Valentina Sobol (Porter)
The Huemul Circuit is not a casual stroll but a full immersion into the raw weather, vast ice and big skies of southern Patagonia. From the moment our small team left El Chaltén and Monte Fitz Roy faded behind us, daily life was replaced by a rhythm of boggy lenga forest, wind‑buffeted passes, creek crossings and evenings spent drying gear beside lakes.
Guided by Pedro, with our porter, Valentina, carrying a very heavy pack and an endless supply of good humour, we circled Cerro Huemul above Lago Viedma, twice crossed the Río Túnel by Tyrolean traverses, and crunched over glacial ice while storms and sun took turns sweeping the Southern Patagonian Ice Field. This report aims to capture an experience that tested creaky knees and comfort zones, but rewarded us with a guanaco on a perfect backdrop, rare orchids, and the quiet satisfaction of finishing one of South America’s toughest and most beautiful treks.
