Appropriate season

Year-round.

Access

The Peine is the highest peak within the Reserva Altos del Lircay Reserva (“Reservas” tend to be smaller than “National Parks” and planed human intervention is sometimes allowed); it´s located in the area of Vilches Alto about 63 kilometers east from the city of Talca, and during summer there are daily buses departing from the bus terminal. By car first go 19 kilometers till the town of San Clemente, then continue for extra 19 kilometers towards “Laguna del Maule”, then turn left; the road is mostly well signaled and paved at least until the detour (works of improvement were taking place in 2008 and is ok for a small car at least during summer). The road crosses smaller vales with streams, pine plantations and native forests until it reaches the Lircay Valley and the small hamlet of Vilches Alto, surrounded by magnificent Nothofagus trees (the forest here is a transition between dry and humid climates further south), plan for 1 hour and 30 minutes from Talca.

Approach

At the Visitor Centre a ranger will charge a small fee to allow you into the reserve (about 5 dollars which help to sustain the forest), is worth to spend a moment in the showroom which gives details of the flora and fauna. Also the rangers are usually knowledgeable and friendly, and can provide small maps of the area free of charge. From the visitor centre the trail passes through the archeological site of “Piedras Tacitas” (“Small Cup Stones”), in the rocks you can see holes made by the pre-Hispanic inhabitants named Pehuenches, they used them to crush seeds (for food and pigments). The trail is conveniently posted with signs carved on wood, and passes through private land for a few hundred meters before going into the Reserve itself See Foto6 (the image shows a map made by the Military Geographic Service).Once in the Reserve the trail turns straight to the right, it crosses a small stream and in a few more minutes goes next to a rock (about 2 meters high) which has the appearance of the head of a monkey, then there is a small stream again. At this stage the trail does frequent zig-zags allowing to gain altitude fast, after an hour you will get to an ample terrace, a good place to take a rest and an option to vivac with water available in the proximities. A few more minutes further there is a ridge marked with small clusters of stones (made by other hikers), leading to a path See Foto2 joining the “Quebrada de los Coigües” (Ravine of the Coigües, a Nothofagus species of tree) with the “Laguna del Alto” (Lagoon from the “High Place”) See Foto3. Finally we take a panoramic route which abruptly zigzags towards the lagoon and leaves us at the start of the Peine ascent trail See Foto4 .

The climb

The ascent from the “Laguna del Alto” to the summit will take about 1 ½ to 3 hours, with a simple scramble among granite rocks just before arriving See Foto5. To return take the same way, or if you make a circuit be careful to recognize the trails and be prepared to walk back to the route you already covered (be careful NOT to get lost or attempt to go cross-country). A nice option is to make a bivouac, unfortunately the park rangers have prohibited camping next to the lagoon since some visitors regularly made fires and left trash.

Recommendations

Please follow the rules and register your group at the Visitor´s Centre. It is prohibited to make fire in the Reserve. It might seem tempting to attempt the summit directly from the col, but rock quality is very poor.

Gear

• Skis or snow racquets • Ice axe and poles • Crampons • Cold-weather clothes • Ad-hoc camping equipment Summer: • Poles • A windbreaker • Remember to carry water (not available near the summit) ropa de abrigo

equipo de campamento

Para verano:

Bastones

Cortaviento

Schedule

Schedule 1

Visitor Centre – Summit – Visitor Centre

It takes between 3 to 5 hours to get to the “Laguna del Alto” from the Visitor´s Centre. From there 1 ½ to 3 hours to the summit of Peine. For the return times can be marginally shorter.

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