Unknown Patagonia Photography Adventure with Tiny Atlas

This morning from Balmaceda, a small airport that serves the region capital of Coyhaique, we’ll drive along this paved section of the famous Carretera Austral, past lenga forests and towering, raw Cerro Castillo, so named because it looks like a castle, and through wild Patagonian landscape. In a few hours we arrive to Puerto Tranquilo, a small town on the Carretera Austral, and most importantly, on the vast azure Lago General Carrera. From here we will visit the Capillas de Mármol (known as the Marble Caves in English), striated limestone “caves” which are in fact, large rocky outcroppings that have been worn away underneath by thousands of years of water lapping at them. We will navigate the caves by small boat in what is our first (official) photography session. Sunset comes long and late in this part of Patagonia, and we’ll have lakeside opportunities to catch it.

*Marble Caves tour is subject to weather conditions*

Meals: box lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Borde Baker Lodge

Today we will visit Parque Patagonia which is the product of 20 years of conservation work by the late Doug Tompkins and his wife Kris. Following the restoration of former estancia lands, the goal of the park was to restore wide swaths of Patagonia to their original splendor. The park covers 650,000 hectares of Patagonia, and restoration efforts have yielded renewed population of Patagonian wildlife such as the llama-like guanaco, the ostrich-like southern rhea (ñandú), and a population of shy huemules (an endemic deer). Lucky visitors might also spy a puma here. The park is an idyllic setting to photograph this megafauna, as well as varied birdlife and landscapes, including lakes, forests and peaks.

Meals: breakfast, box lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Borde Baker Lodge

Taking the road south-east from Cochrane, is located Calluqueo glacier, whose extraordinary beauty and imposing waterfalls, glaciers, lakes and mighty rivers, accompany the path to see the highest summit of Patagonia, the majestic San Lorenzo mountain, which marks the border with Argentina. Once arrived at kilometer fifty, the excursion will begin, located in the terminal moraine of the glacier. Equipped with the necessary implements we move towards the pier through small rocks dragged by glacial action until reaching the first formations of the terminal moraine left by the glacier. We will visit caves, cracks and formations made by the erosion of ice and water, which they shape the Calluqueo glacier day by day.

Meals: breakfast, box lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Borde Baker Lodge

From Borde Baker Lodge we’ll continue our journey around the south shore of Lago General Carrera, considered by many to be the most beautiful section of road in this region of Patagonia. Here the topography changes almost completely, turning much more desert-like and therefore much more gold, ochre and orange, with canyon-like walls and giant boulders along the sides of the road, but with the vast Lago General Carrera never far away. Arriving to the town of Chile Chico on the shores of the lake, we will continue south another 30 miles where we begin our completely off-grid adventure at Outpost Patagonia, set along the shores of Río Jeinimeni.

Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Outpost Patagonia

Over the next few days we’ll explore the Jeinimeni National Reserve, whose scenic landscapes include the area’s four ecosystems: deciduous forests, evergreen forests, steppe, and high peaks. We’ll spend time talking about the region at our Outpost and from there decide which sites to see on which days, based on the group’s interests and ever-changing weather conditions. For example, down in the protected river valley, we’re less exposed to the wind, whereas on stiller days, we’ll have better conditions for some epic hikes.

We approach each area with a photographer’s eye, talking about the geography as well as the lighting, techniques in shooting landscapes and how to plan for various types of shots. There are also endless opportunities for activities at Outpost and the days can be as active or as restful as you like. We will provide a hiking to Jeinimeni National Reserve, walking the shores of Lago Jeinimeni, with its stunning turquoise blue waters and interesting foliage, and also a circuit that includes the Valle Lunar (Moon Valley), with igneous extrusions of many colors, or simply catching up on your reading list along-side your temporary home, the deluxe tents we use for this faraway stay.

There is also the chance to visit the Cave of the Hands with cave paintings dating back at least 7,000 years.

Meals: breakfast, box lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Outpost Patagonia