Los Lagos Region ( es, Región de Los Lagos , ''Region of the Lakes'') is one of Chile's 16 regions, which are first order

administrative division Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

s, and comprises four provinces: Chiloé, Llanquihue, Osorno and Palena. The region contains the country's second largest island, Chiloé, and the second largest lake, Llanquihue. Its capital is Puerto Montt; other important cities include Osorno,

Castro Castro is a Romance language word that originally derived from Latin ''castrum'', a pre-Roman military camp or fortification (cf: Greek: ''kastron''; Proto-Celtic:''*Kassrik;'' br, kaer, *kastro). The English-language equivalent is '' chester''. ...

Ancud Ancud () is a city in southern Chile located in the northernmost part of the island and province of Chiloé, in Los Lagos Region. It is the second largest city of Chiloé Archipelago after Castro. The city was established in 1768 to function as ...

, and

Puerto Varas Puerto Varas, also known as "La ciudad de las rosas" or “the city of roses”, is a city and commune located in the southern Chilean province of Llanquihue, in the Los Lagos Region. The city is famous for its German traditions, its natural env ...

. The mainland portion of Los Lagos Region south of

Reloncaví Sound Reloncaví Sound or ''Seno de Reloncaví'' is a body of water immediately south of Puerto Montt, a port city in the Los Lagos Region of Chile. It is the place where the Chilean Central Valley meets the Pacific Ocean. The Calbuco Archipelago comp ...

(Palena Province) is considered part of

Patagonia Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and gl ...

. Historically, the Huilliche have called this territory between Bueno River and Reloncaví Sound

Futahuillimapu Futahuillimapu or Fütawillimapu is a traditional territory of the Huilliche people. Futahuillimapu spans the land between Bueno River and Reloncaví Sound. Futahuillimapu means "great land of the south." Back in the 18th century when this territ ...

, meaning "great land of the south". The region hosts

Monte Verde Monte Verde is an archaeological site in the Llanquihue Province in southern Chile, located near Puerto Montt, Southern Chile, which has been dated to as early as 18,500 cal BP (16,500 BC). Previously, the widely accepted date for early occu ...

, one of the oldest archaeological sites of the Americas. The largest indigenous group of the region are the

Huilliche The Huilliche , Huiliche or Huilliche-Mapuche are the southern partiality of the Mapuche macroethnic group of Chile. Located in the Zona Sur, they inhabit both Futahuillimapu ("great land of the south") and, as the Cunco subgroup, the north hal ...

who lived in the area before the arrival of the Spanish. The Spanish crown settled

Chiloé Archipelago The Chiloé Archipelago ( es, Archipiélago de Chiloé, , ) is a group of islands lying off the coast of Chile, in the Los Lagos Region. It is separated from mainland Chile by the Chacao Channel in the north, the Sea of Chiloé in the east and t ...

in 1567 Hanisch, Walter. ''La Isla de Chiloé''. 1982. pp. 11–12. while the rest of the region begun to be slowly colonized by non-indigenous people only in the late 18th century. In the 1850s Germans arrived to colonize the shores of Llanquihue Lake under a Chilean state-sponsored program. Los Lagos Region economy is dominated by the

service sector The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the second ...

but based in

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 ...

, salmon aquaculture,

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...

and

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...

farming. Tourism is economically important 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 ...

where

ski resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area – a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North ...

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...

s and

recreational fishing Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is professional fishing for profit; or subsistence fishing, which is fishing ...

are popular offers.

Geography

The region is bordered on the north by

Los Ríos Region The Los Ríos Region (Spanish: ''Región de Los Ríos'', , ''Region of the Rivers'') is one of Chile's 16 regions, the country's first-order administrative divisions. Its capital is Valdivia. It began to operate as a region on October 2, 2007, ...

, on the south by

Aisén Region Aisén or Aysén may refer to: *Aisén (name), an African name for a boy or a girl Places *Aysén, Chile, a commune in Aysén Province *Aysén Region, one of Chile's administrative divisions *Aysén Province Aysén Province ( es, Provincia de ...

, on the west by the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

and on the east by

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

(provinces of

Neuquén Neuquén (; arn, Nehuenken) is the capital city of the Argentine province of Neuquén and of the Confluencia Department, located in the east of the province. It occupies a strip of land west of the confluence of the Limay and Neuquén rivers w ...

, Río Negro and Chubut). Wild environments can be seen along the coastal area, such as

Caleta Zorra Caleta Zorra (meaning "Bay of foxes" in Spanish) is an enclosed, half-moon shaped inlet on the Pacific coast of Chiloé Island in Los Lagos region, southern Chile. Lying north of Punta Pabellion, it is located among Punta Zorra and Punta Barranc ...

Demography

The region has an area of and its population, according to the 2017 INE Census was 823,204, with a population density of 16.9 /km².

Principal Towns

This section is translated from the corresponding Spanish page The Región de Los Lagos has seventeen towns according to the 2017 census, of which eleven have more than 10000 inhabitants each.

Climate

The region, in general, has a natural vegetation of

Valdivian temperate rain forest 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 rainfore ...

. The coastal part, except for the south of the

Chiloé Island Chiloé Island ( es, Isla de Chiloé, , ) also known as Greater Island of Chiloé (''Isla Grande de Chiloé''), is the largest island of the Chiloé Archipelago off the west coast of Chile, in the Pacific Ocean. The island is located in southern ...

, has a temperate climate with cold winter rain. To the south, the climate is characterized by constant rain and not having dry seasons.

Protected areas

Protected areas Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

include 7 national parks, 2 private-owned parks and 2 natural monuments. ;National Parks * Alerce Andino * Chiloé *

Corcovado Corcovado (korcovádo) which means "hunchback" in Portuguese, is a mountain in central Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is a 710-metre (2,329 ft) granite peak located in the Tijuca Forest, a national park. Corcovado hill lies just west of the c ...

Hornopirén Hornopirén is a town ( es, pueblo) in the commune of Hualaihué in Palena Province, southern Chile. It lies along the northern portion of Carretera Austral The Carretera Austral (CH-7, ''in English: Southern Way'') is the name given to Chile ...

* Pumalín * Puyehue *

Vicente Pérez Rosales Vicente Pérez Rosales (; 5 April 1807 – 6 September 1886) was a politician, traveller, merchant, miner and Chilean diplomat that organised the colonisation by Germans and Chileans of the Llanquihue area. Vicente Pérez Rosales National Park ...

;Private parks *

Tantauco Park Tantauco Park (Spanish: Parque Tantauco) is a private natural reserve on the south end of Chiloé Island in Chile. The park was created by Chilean business magnate and later President of Chile Sebastián Piñera in 2005 in order to protect 118,0 ...

Las Vertientes – Reserva Natural Privada Las Vertientes – Reserva Natural Privada, located within the Los Lagos Region 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 clos ...

;Natural monuments * Islotes de Puñihuil * Lahuen Ñadi

Economy

The region is the center of

aquaculture in chile Aquaculture is a major economic activity in Chile. Among the diverse aquacultures practised in Chile, Atlantic salmon aquaculture is by far the largest sector. Apart from salmon and trout, Chilean aquaculture also produces turbots and molluscs, ...

Transportation

El Tepual Airport El Tepual International Airport is a commercial and private aviation facility which serves the tourist area of Puerto Montt, Chile. It is one of the most important airports in Chile and is considered a gateway to the Chilean Patagonia. Histo ...

lies a few miles west of Puerto Montt and

Cañal Bajo Carlos Hott Siebert Airport Cañal Bajo Carlos Hott Siebert Airport ( es, Aeródromo Cañal Bajo Carlos Hott Siebert, ) is an airport serving Osorno, a city in the Los Lagos Region of Chile. The airport is southeast of the city. Airlines and destinations See also *Trans ...

a few miles east of Osorno. Also east of Osorno, the

Cardenal Antonio Samoré Pass Cardenal Antonio Samoré Pass ( es, Paso Cardenal Antonio Samoré) is one of the main mountain passes through the southern Andes along the border between Argentina and Chile. Together with Paso Libertadores, it is one of the easiest of the Argent ...

is a major

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...

across the

to Argentina via Route 215.

References

External links

*http://www.frutillar.com *http://www.regiondeloslagos.cl *https://web.archive.org/web/20060625023200/http://www.regionx.cl/
Satellite view of Puerto Montt (Google maps)Satellite view of the Chiloé archipielago (Google maps)Satellite view of Lake Llanquihue (Google maps)Satellite view of Osorno (Google maps)Satellite view of Valdivia (Google maps)Satellite view of Chaitén (Google maps)
{{Authority control Regions of Chile