Galletué Lake, also spelled as Gualletué Lake, is located in the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

of the

La Araucanía Region LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...

of southern

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

. It is surrounded by mountains on three sides. Issuing from the lake on its eastern side is one of the two sources of the

Biobío River The Biobío River (also known as Bío Bío or Bio-Bio) is the second largest river in Chile. It originates from Icalma and Galletué lakes in the Andes and flows 380 km to the Gulf of Arauco (in Spanish) on the Pacific Ocean. The major tri ...

, the other being nearby

Icalma Lake Icalma Lake is a lake of glacial origin located in the Andes of the La Araucanía Region of Chile. A hamlet on the southern shore of the lake is also called Icalma. About from the hamlet is Icalma Pass, in elevation and on the border with Argen ...

Quinquén Community

Araucaria araucana - Parque Nacional Conguillío por lautaroj - 001

The drainage area upstream from Galletué Lake is called the Quinquén Valley. About east of Lake Galletué the Quinquèn river combines with the Zamueco River to form the Ñirecco River which flows into Galletué Lake. The

Pehuenche Pehuenche (or ''Pewenche'', people of the "pehuen" or "pewen" in Mapudungun) are an indigenous people of South America. They live in the Andes, primarily in present-day south central Chile and adjacent Argentina. Their name derives from their de ...

(or Pewenche) people have lived in this valley for several hundred years, but came under the control of the government of Chile during the 1880-1883 "Mountain Campaign" to pacify and establish Chilean rule over the

Mapuche The Mapuche ( (Mapuche & Spanish: )) are a group of indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who sha ...

and other indigenous people. In the early 1900s, a white rancher paid the Pehuenche to graze his cattle in the valley during summer, but he later claimed that he owned the land. Thus, began a century-long dispute about ownership and land rights in the Galletué Lake area. Two

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

s began operation in 1946 and logging began. The loggers exploited the lush forests of monkey-puzzle (

Araucaria araucana ''Araucaria araucana'' (commonly called the monkey puzzle tree, monkey tail tree, piñonero, pewen or Chilean pine) is an evergreen tree growing to a trunk diameter of 1–1.5 m (3–5 ft) and a height of 30–40 m (100–130 ft). ...

) trees, thus depriving the Pehuenche of one of their most important foods and sources of income, the

pine nuts Pine nuts, also called piñón (), pinoli (), pignoli or chilgoza (), are the edible seeds of pines (family Pinaceae, genus ''Pinus''). According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, only 29 species provide edible nuts, while 20 are trade ...

produced in abundance by the araucaria trees. The araucaria is an endangered species due to logging, forest fires, and grazing. The resistance by the Pehuenche to the loggers led to violence and repression of them by the police in the 1960s. In 1987, a

forest fire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...

caused by the logging companies burned hundreds of acres of Araucaria trees. In 1989, the Chilean courts ordered the expulsion of the Pehuenche from the Quinquén valley. However, the Pehuenche found an ally in newly-elected Chilean President

Patricio Aylwin Patricio Aylwin Azócar (; 26 November 1918 – 19 April 2016) was a Chilean politician from the Christian Democratic Party, lawyer, author, professor and former senator. He was the first president of Chile after dictator Augusto Pinochet, a ...

. In 1990, Aylwin forbade the logging of Araucaria trees and in 1991 declared the Quinquén Valley to be the National Reserve of the Galletué, proceeding to purchase the lands from logging companies for the Pehuenche. The government completed the purchase in 1992, acquiring for 6,150,000 U.S. dollars. The land purchased included Galletué Lake and adjacent areas. However, legal challenges prevented the transfer of the land to the Pehuenche families living in the valley. Much of the land purchased by the government was finally titled to the Pehuenche in 2007. With assistance from the

World Wildlife Fund The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wo ...

and Chilean environmental organizations, the Pehuenche focused on developing the land for

eco-tourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds ...

. More than 120 Pehuenche families occupy the area purchased.Quinquén", ''Memoria Chilena, Biblioteca Nacional de Chile,'' http://www.memoriachilena.cl/602/w3-article-96734.html, accessed 24 Apr 2018

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Galletue Lake Lakes of Chile Lakes of Araucanía Region Mapuche groups Indigenous peoples in Chile