Laguna del Laja National Park () is a national park of

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 ...

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 ...

, between 37°22’ and 37°28’ south latitude and 71°16’ and 71°26’ west longitude.

Geography

The park features spectacular mountain landscapes, whose main attractions are the Antuco Volcano,

Sierra Velluda Sierra Velluda is a massive Pleistocene stratovolcano located immediately southwest of the Antuco Volcano, in the Bío Bío Region of Chile. The heavily glaciated mountain has two main summits and is the tallest mountain in Laguna del Laja ...

and

Laguna del Laja Laguna del Laja is a lake located in the Bío-Bío Region of Chile. The lake borders and gives its name to Laguna del Laja National Park. References

* Lakes of Chile, Laja Lakes of Biobío Region {{Chile-lake-stub ...

(Laja Lake). The latter gives the name to this protected area, but it only borders the park. The park ranges in elevation from 976 m to 3585 m at Sierra Velluda. Although a little snow caps Antuco volcano, much more snow adorns the two major summits of its southern neighbor, even during Chile’s summer. Sharp ridges and deep valleys carve this rugged region, which alternates between bare rock and lush vegetation. Another summit in the park, although least prominent, is ''Cerro Cóndor'' at 1,668 m. The park forms part of the Bío Bío River basin. Some small tributaries of Laja River originate in the park.

Biology

The park lies within the

Valdivian temperate forests The Valdivian temperate forests (NT0404) is an ecoregion on the west coast of southern South America, in Chile and Argentina. It is part of the Neotropical realm. The forests are named after the city of Valdivia. The Valdivian temperate rainforest ...

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of l ...

. It is home to a wide variety of wildlife, including the

cougar The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mamm ...

and foxes (particularly the chilla and the

culpeo The culpeo (''Lycalopex culpaeus''), also known as culpeo zorro, Andean zorro, Andean fox, Paramo wolf, Andean wolf,Comparative ecology of two South American foxes, 'Dusicvon ariseus' and 'culpaeus' by Warren E. Johnson. Doctoral dissertation. Io ...

). In the park have been identified 47 bird species. Endangered and rare vegetation species are found in the park. Among them are: ciprés de la cordillera,

araucaria ''Araucaria'' (; original pronunciation: .ɾawˈka. ɾja is a genus of evergreen Conifer, coniferous trees in the family Araucariaceae. There are 20 extant taxon, extant species in New Caledonia (where 14 species are endemism, ende ...

, ''maitén del Chubut'' and '' radal enano''.

Tourism

Several activities can be performed within the boundaries of the park and in the surrounding area including

climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or any other part of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders), to small boulders. Climbing is done fo ...

, trekking,

skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IO ...

and

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

File:Cascadaplaja.jpg, One of the park's waterfalls File:plaja.jpg, in the park File:Vantuco1.JPG, Antuco volcano File:Caverna hielo.JPG,

Ice cave An ice cave is any type of natural cave (most commonly lava tubes or limestone caves) that contains significant amounts of perennial (year-round) ice. At least a portion of the cave must have a temperature below 0 °C (32 °F) all ye ...

s formed at the foot of the Sierra Velluda in summer.

References

{{authority control Protected areas established in 1958 Protected areas of Biobío Region National parks of Chile