Palena Province ( es, Provincia de Palena) is the southernmost administrative area in Chile's Los Lagos Region
Los Lagos (X). The area is also called Continental Chiloe or Northern Patagonia, as geographers consider the Palena Province to be the starting point of Chilean Patagonia which extends south from Palena all the way to Tierra del Fuego. Palena Province is remote, beautiful, and difficult to access. In fact, Palena is one of the most sparsely populated provinces in the country and features a stunning geography characterized by steep fjords, wild rivers, hot springs, and numerous snow-capped volcanos. Chile's Austral Highway (Carretera Austral) is not continuous through the jagged geography of Palena Province. Motorists accessing the area by car are required to take two ferries across fjords to cross the province.
Historically, Chaiten was the provincial capital. Due to the eruption of
Chaitén Volcano and the subsequent destruction of that town,
Futaleufú was named the new provincial capital in March 2009. Major tourist attractions in Palena Province include the
Pumalín Park, one of the largest established wilderness protection areas in the world, Yelcho Lake, and the Futaleufu River. Pumalin was the dream of the late US philanthropist and environmental activist Douglas Tompkins, it is nowadays called the Pumalin Douglas Tompkins national park after its founder. The park has excellent infrastructure for camping and is divided into two parts by the Huinay Ranch. Yelcho Lake is considered a prime destination for fly fishing. The Futaleufu River is considered by specialized media to be one of the three greatest whitewater runs in the world.
Due to its location in front of
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 ...
Palena Province is sometimes called Continental Chiloé (''Chiloé Continental''). Palena Province is named after the
Palena Lake, which in turn was named by the Italian
Jesuit Nicolás Mascardi after the town of
Palena in
Abruzzo,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
.
Administration
As a province, Palena is a second-level
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 ...
, governed by a provincial governor appointed by the
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
. The province comprises four
communes
An intentional community is a voluntary residential community which is designed to have a high degree of social cohesion and teamwork from the start. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political, relig ...
, each governed by a municipality, headed by an
alcalde.
Communes
*
Chaitén
Chaitén (, ) is a Chilean town, commune and former capital of the Palena Province in Los Lagos Region. The town is north of the mouth of Yelcho River, on the east coast of the Gulf of Corcovado. The town is strategically close to the northern ...
*
Futaleufú
*
Hualaihué
*
Palena
Geography and demography
According to the 2002 census by the
National Statistics Institute (''INE''), the province spans an area of and had a population of 18,971 inhabitants (10,255 men and 8,716 women), giving it a population density of . It is the seventh least populated province in the country. Of these, 7,624 (40.2%) lived in urban areas and 11,347 (59.8%) in rural areas. Between the 1992 and 2002 censuses, the population grew by 1.2% (223 persons).
References
{{Communes in Los Lagos Region
Provinces of Los Lagos Region
Patagonia
Provinces of Chile