The Puyehue Hot Springs (Spanish: ''Termas de Puyehue'') is a series of
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 c ...
s located 76 kilometers along
Route 215-CH
Route 215-CH is a branch line road going eastward from Osorno at Chile Highway 5 to Cardenal Antonio Samoré Pass at the border to Argentina. Apart from connecting southern Chile with Argentina, the road is also the main access to Antillanca ski ...
east of
Osorno, a city 20 kilometers from
Puerto Montt in the
Los Lagos Region
Los Lagos Region ( es, Región de Los Lagos , ''Region of the Lakes'') is one of Chile's 16 regions, which are first order administrative divisions, and comprises four provinces: Chiloé, Llanquihue, Osorno and Palena. The region contains ...
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 ...
.
The area is served by
Refugio del Lago Airport
Refugio del Lago Airport is an airport serving the Termas de Puyehue resort area in the Los Lagos Region of Chile.
The airport is on the eastern shore of Puyehue Lake. West approach and departure are over the water. There is a large hill just s ...
.
Description
The Puyehue Hot Springs are part of the 117,000
hectare
The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ...
s of the
Puyehue National Park
Puyehue National Park () is located in the Andes mountain range, in Los Ríos and Los Lagos regions of Chile formerly referred to as the 10th region. The park boast 220,000 acres of natural thermal springs, volcanoes, and evergreen forests, afte ...
, a protected area.
The Puyehue Hotel and
Spa, where the baths are found, is located 75 kilometers east of
Osorno following
Route 215-CH
Route 215-CH is a branch line road going eastward from Osorno at Chile Highway 5 to Cardenal Antonio Samoré Pass at the border to Argentina. Apart from connecting southern Chile with Argentina, the road is also the main access to Antillanca ski ...
, in the foothills of
Casablanca Volcano. The baths collect
geothermal waters from five different sources with water temperatures ranging from .
Nearby attractions include
Aguas Calientes Hot Springs
The Aguas Calientes Hot Springs (Spanish: ''Termas de Aguas Calientes'') is a series of hot springs located 76 kilometers near Route 215-CH east of Osorno in Los Lagos Region of southern Chile.
The area is served by Refugio del Lago Airport.
N ...
and the
Antillanca ski resort
Antillanca is a ski resort in the Puyehue National Park in southern Chile. It is on the slope of the Casablanca Volcano. The nearest city is Osorno, 98 kilometers away.
Image:DonPedro Antillanca.jpg, View from Antillanca ski resort, Puntiagudo ...
.
History
The baths’ origins date back to 1907 when a consortium led by
Conrado Hubach was formed to improve the facilities at the hot springs. By 1910, a hotel had been built with capacity for 100 guests and an old
steamboat transported visitors from the town of El Desague (now known as
Entre Lagos
Entre Lagos is the main town of Puyehue commune in Osorno Province of Los Lagos Region, Chile. It is east of Osorno, next to the entrance of the Pilmaiquén River at the western end of Puyehue Lake. It is the only town of any size on the lake.
...
) across
Puyehue Lake
Puyehue Lake (), ( Mapudungun: ''puye'', "small fish" and ''hue'', "place") is an Andean piedmont lake on the border of Los Lagos Region with Los Ríos Region of Chile.
Puyehue is a lake of glacial origin. Several times during the Pleistocene gla ...
to Puyehue Beach. The steamboat ran for more than 30 years.
In the 1940s, a new hotel, Gran Hotel Puyehue was built over 2.65 hectares to provide more modern facilities.
Facilities
Amenities include indoor and outdoor pools, saunas, hydro massages, and a spa offering a range of services. Other activities include horseback riding, trekking, mountain biking, and ecotourism.
Hot water springs in southern Chile
ThisisChile.cl, July 27, 2009. Retrieved June 10, 2013
See also
*Puyehue National Park
Puyehue National Park () is located in the Andes mountain range, in Los Ríos and Los Lagos regions of Chile formerly referred to as the 10th region. The park boast 220,000 acres of natural thermal springs, volcanoes, and evergreen forests, afte ...
*Osorno Province
Osorno Province ( es, Provincia de Osorno) is one of the four provinces in the southern Chilean region of Los Lagos (X). The province has an area of and a population of 221,496 distributed across seven communes ( Spanish: ''comunas''). The provi ...
*Los Lagos Region
Los Lagos Region ( es, Región de Los Lagos , ''Region of the Lakes'') is one of Chile's 16 regions, which are first order administrative divisions, and comprises four provinces: Chiloé, Llanquihue, Osorno and Palena. The region contains ...
*Puyehue Lake
Puyehue Lake (), ( Mapudungun: ''puye'', "small fish" and ''hue'', "place") is an Andean piedmont lake on the border of Los Lagos Region with Los Ríos Region of Chile.
Puyehue is a lake of glacial origin. Several times during the Pleistocene gla ...
*Puyehue-Cordón Caulle
Puyehue (; ) and Cordón Caulle are two coalesced volcanic edifices that form a major mountain massif in Puyehue National Park in the Andes of Ranco Province, in the South of Chile. In volcanology this group is known as the Puyehue-Cordón Cau ...
References
External links
Termas de Puyehue
- OpenStreetmap
Geology of Los Lagos Region
Hot springs of Chile
Tourist attractions in Los Lagos Region
{{LosLagos-geo-stub