This creek run flows of the Southern flank of Volcan Callaqui (3164 meters) and is easily reached from ruta 5 and the city of Los Angeles. Follow paved highway Q-61-R 42 km to Santa Barbara then continue east another 52 km to town or Ralco. From here it is 2.7 KM further east to the takeout bridge on Rio Pangue. Turn left and follow gravel road up to the put-in. 7.7 KM upstream you reach a serious set of cataracts which we chose not to run. Below this are several class 5 rapids followed by non stop class 4 to take out bridge. Carefully scout and/or portage the first two rapids as they feed into undercut walls.

The river is best run in maximum spring and early summer flows so September to end of November. Ideal flows are 10 to 25 cubic meters per second (300 to 750 CFS). The water is ice cold and crystal clear. On sunny days you look over your shoulder while boating and have great views of Callaqui Volcano. Due to non stop action the run can be completed in just over an hour.

Put–in elevation is 750 meters and takeout at bridge is 450 meters. Average gradient is 39 meters per kilometer or just under 200 FPM.

If you want to see river on 1:50,000 topo the map is called Bio Bio 042

Other nearby rivers include the Queuco, Lomin, Ralco, Chavalquin and Duqueco.

The trip involves an entire day of hiking up to the put in with horses, a full day of paddling down the creek and another full day of paddling out on the Ñuble River (unless a car is left at Los Sauces/Ñuble confluence). There are only a few big rapids, but a day on the Truchas is full of non-stop boulder garden style rapids that will keep you on your toes. I would call this a class 4-5 run, with class 5 consequences due to its remote nature.  One of the best parts, is that besides hiring someone to get your boats to the put in, your shuttle involves just a bus ride from the town of San Fabian and then you more or less paddle right back to same town.
Pre-River Logistics:  Sounds complicated but it’s easier than it seems…
Arranging the cowboy (huaso) to carry your boats with horses- Contact Pablo Jimenez of Extremo Sur Expediciones at extremosurexpediciones@gmail.com, he is the man who knows all the details of getting the horses set up. His family also has a nice hosteria which is a great spot to base from in San Fabian. The cost for the horses was 30,000 pesos per person.

Most likely, the huaso will want to meet you at a beach beside Los Sauces river to start the hike. What this means is that the night before you meet him, you need to catch a bus leaving San Fabian at 5:30pm which will take you up river (or if you have a car drive to Los Sauces) . If on bus tell the driver you want to be dropped off at Los Sauces (this will be about an hour to an hour and a half bus ride from San Fabian). You’ll be dropped by a pedestrian bridge that cross Los Sauces River. Put on and paddle about 10 minutes downstream until you reach a nice beach on your left. You’ll know you’re at the beach because you will have just run a very low volume, junky class 3 rapid which is out of character with rest of river. Camp at the beach and be ready for the huaso to arrive there in the morning. This beach is about 1 KM upstream of the confluence of the Los Sauces River with Ñuble River and elevation approximately 662 meters elevation.

Help load your boats on horses and start hiking. The first part of the hike is fairly flat, you’ll be walking up the Upper Ñuble Valley for 8 KM. You will cross a couple small creeks and eventually you will get to the first significant crossing. This is Las Truchas.  On our trip we were worried about the water being too low and we were told that if during these crossings (you actually have to cross it twice because it goes around an island at this point) you’re knee deep in water and your legs are burning from the cold at the end then the water level was good. But if you were walking ankle deep in water the whole time it was too low. For us, it was somewhere in between and I’d say our level was on the low side of medium.

Our first crossing of the Truchas

After these crossings you will get to the small town of El Roble elevation 730 meters. The huaso should wait for you there. This is where you make the only turn of the trip, and have to go through a gate off to the left just after the town. The reason he waits there is to insure that you make the correct turn. After this point he will probably take off with the horses and leave you behind. We made an arrangement with him to leave a white sack on the trail when we got to the spot where we needed to leave the trail and head down to the put-in on the river river. The hike from El Roble to the put in is much more rugged then up to this point. During this section you will cross two big tributaries. the first, or lower, is called Estero del Leon and the second or upper is called Estero de Chureo. After you reach the second tributary you are probably one hour walk to the put-in). The hike took us a full 8 hours.  Plan to camp at put-in and begin early the next morning.

The second tributary coming in

The GPS coordinates of put-in are

1100 meters altitude

Latitude:-36.74699 *which equals 36 degrees 44 minutes 45 seconds

Longitude:-71.29358 * which equals 7 degrees 11 minutes 35 seconds

The put in is about 200 meters below the confluence with the Estero de Los Rabones. It is 12 KM of boating from put in back to Ñuble confluence at El Roble. The average drop in this section is 31 m/km or 155 FPM.

The next 8 KM down the Ñuble to the confluence with Rio Sauces has average gradient of 8.5 m/km or 42.5 FPM which does not sound like much but due to much higher volume there are some surprisingly big rapids.

The River:
The day on the Truchas took us all day, and involved lots of scouting. Its completely do-able, but don’t underestimate the amount of time it will take you to get down. We probably scouted about 20 rapids and did only one portage. Everything is more or less scoutable.

You’ll want to check out the rapids if you can’t see them from your boat as at least at our level there were some manky spots were you wouldn’t want to end up. The rapid we portaged is definitely runnable, but did not seem worth the risk. Portage on a trail on the left. 

One rapid of note is a 20 foot waterfall that at lower flows has a rock in the center of the landing (turns out my friend who had been here at higher water did not know the rock even existed and they boofed right off the center). At our level boofing the center was not an option. Be aware of this hazard either way. I piton the rock and got lucky I didn’t break my ankles.

Gareth boofing the waterfall rapid

Gareth at the bottom of sweet boof right after portage

Not long after you pass the second significant tributary you will arrive at the confluence of the Ñuble where the elevation is approximately 740 meters.. At this point where you camp is up to you. In order to shorten our third and final day, we paddled one more hour downstream (which does include a couple significant rapids on the Ñuble) until the confluence with Los Sauces (elevation at this point is 662 meters). We ended up camping at an awesome spot on the right just after the confluence.

Enjoying-the-final-night

The final day involves paddling all the way down the Nuble. This is probably around 20km long and can take anywhere from 4-8 hours depending on where you chose to camp the night before and how fast you move downstream. Take out when you reach a beach on your right just before a vehicle ferry / cable. From here we just jogged back to San Fabian (about a mile) to get someone to come pick us up with our boats.

If you are lucky enough to get topo maps of the area the one that shows Upper Ñuble and lower Truchas is called Lara 103, then you need map title Rio Ñuble 113, and the Upper Truchas is found on map titled “Pichirincon”  104

For additional info on author visit blog (http://theliquidlifestyle.blogspot.com/2010/11/nublefest-2010.html)

French kayaker Valentin Grollemund

I first started looking at this creek in 1995 but it was not until 2009 that I was able to get back to run it. Equipped with a good topo map, several days of rain, a good group and a newly constructed access road everything fell into place to add another class 4-5 steep creek to the countless options in the Pucon area.

In the canyon of the Trafanpulli

The river is a bit of a geological mystery as it comes within 400 meters of entering Lago Caburgua but then swings northwest and continues another 12 KM before entering Lago Colico. At very high flows some water spills into a flood channel and indeed enters Lago Carburgua. This unique feature means that one river can split and feed two distinct drainages that each runs its parallel course before once again joining each other 80 km downstream where the Allipen joins the Tolten.

To get to the river from Pucon there are two options. Both options take more than two hours although neither option is more than 140 KM. Option 1 is go west to Villarrica and cross over Tolten bridge on main road towards Temuco. Immediately turn right and follow newly constructed road to Pedregozo. From there continue north either on the Interlagos road or the road towards Los Laureles. At a T junction turn right towards Lago Colico and follow its north shore to Puerto Trafanpulli. Continue east and you will begin passing over bridges over the Rio Trfanpulli. Each has a sign with its own bridge number.

The other option is leave Pucon and go east to Curarrehue then north up the Machin valley thru Reigolil and westward down to the Trafanpulli.

Elevations of bridges 2-5 are as follows along with distance between them.

Bridge 2 is at 359 meters and it is 3 km to bridge 3 at 393 meters elevation. It is then 5 km to bridge 4 at 424 meters elevation and another 6.9 km to bridge # 5 at 481 meters elevation. Whitewater is minimal on the bridge to bridge sections but logistics are simple. For the real whitewater us bridge 5 as takeout and proceed east on main road for about 3 km. There will be a turn off to the left with a sign “Al Cercon”. Most likely this gate will be locked and you will need to park the vehicle, climb over the fence and begin hiking with all your gear. After hiking for 3 km (40 minutes) and climbing 200 vertical meters you will come to gravel road forking off to the left with a sign saying “El Zapato”. Follow this road for approximately ½ km as it descends down to a bridge over the river.

This section of river is 4 km down to bridge number 5. The put in is at around 685 meters. We chose to get off the river about 1 km prior to bridge # 5 where we could see the road and from there walked back to get our vehicle 1 KM upstream. The 3 km stretch we ran dropped 185 meters for average gradient of 62 MPK or 310 FPM. We had a estimated flow of 250 CFS which was scratchy and a bit disconcerting at the beginning but as the river quickly channelized in a mature bedrock canyon, the flow proved to be acceptable. Another 100 CFS would be optimal but anything over 500 CFS would be too high. There were 2 short portages that may have been runnable with a little extra juice otherwise the drops were continuous and clean with the largest being a 5 meter falls. For the intrepid boat hiker the maps indicate an additional 2 km stretch upstream with average gradient of 50 mpk but one 300 meter section where river drops 50 meters that must be peppered with waterfalls.

I have seen the river in late January and it had the same flow as when we did it on a rainy spring day on December 1st. For that reason I would guess the run is boatable thru the summer months as the main source of water is snowmelt and groundwater.

Note: Take food and beer and fill your vehicles tank as the nearest stores are at least an hour away.

Other nearby rivers include Blanco de Caburgua, Solipulli, and Truful Truful

Topo maps are very useful and 1:50,000 are available from the IGM Instituto Geographica Militar. The river spills onto two maps with titles being Nevados De Caburgua G-06 and Lago Caburgua 3900-7145

The emerald Río Manso flows through a wild canyon in Parque Nacional Nahual Huapi (Mapuche for “Tiger Island”) south of the ski resort town of San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina. The river drains the southeast flank of Monte Tronador (3491 m) (‘Thunderer’ or ‘Anon’ in Mapuche, whose meaning is almost identical to the Spanish), a white behemoth that dominates the skyline. Manso means gentle or calm, but like the Pacific Ocean, the river belies its name.

Its narrow gorge is cloaked in lush vegetation, including impenetrable colihue and quila thickets. Most of the rapids are short, steep technical drops. Hydrologists report December flows of 48 cms that can turn the trip into a scary nightmare. At least one rapid becomes unscoutable, unportagable, and marginally runnable. Mistakes can turn into epics due to the Manso’s remote, mountainous location, which eliminates the feasibility of hiking out. Therefore, paddlers would be well advised to wait until early January, paying close attention to the weather so other plans can be made if the river becomes swollen from rain. For maximum vistas and minimal misery, try to run the Manso on a sunny day. Although the water is warm, a lack of sunlight in the narrow gorge can make for a cold day on the river.

For most mortals, the run begins in a large pool below Cascada de los Alerces elevation 750 meters. In January 1998, Brennan Guth joined local soccer legend Diego Maradona in Bariloche’s “Hall of Fame” after the first successful descent of this 16 m-high waterfall.

A kilometer downstream of Cascada de los Alerces, the calm water ends abruptly at a triple waterfall with the last drop the highest at about 5 m. All three falls are runnable, but if you are hesitant, there is an easy portage over a hill on the left.

Shortly after the triple falls, the river begins to gorge up. Continuing downstream, you will run five rapids in quick succession. Depending on the flow, it may be prudent to portage a sticky, river-wide hole at the end of this sequence. Portage on the left, following a well-trodden, machete-cut trail. Calm water follows, leading into a left-hand bend with rapids. Directly below the bend is a big, marginal waterfall with a tricky entry. Skilled, confident boaters can reasonably run the rapids and the hole, then get out on the left to portage the falls. A route has been cut through the bamboo, but the muddy, wet rock is treacherous. Not that in 2009 the Demshitz crew ran this falls making every drop on the river runnable.

After the above falls/ portage, a major rapid ensues with a large boulder in the center of the river at the bottom. The last class V rapid is the toughest and most difficult to portage. At higher flows, the only eddy is a tiny one at the top on river right. In the past, paddlers have traversed 5 m down the right wall, then downclimbed to the water. After securing a fixed line, boats were hauled down. People used the line for a backup while walking along a treacherous ledge. At lower flows, the rapid is runnable, and the portage much easier. However, there is still only room for one boat at a time in the eddy. If you find yourself on the river at high flows and are unable to eddy out at the top, sneak down between the pillow and rock on the far right. From here, run tight around the left side of the big boulder downstream. Eddy out behind the boulder, then boof into the next eddy directly below. You must avoid a nasty hole that extends from the left to the center of the river.

One more rapid follows before the gorge opens up. From here the whitewater eases to class III as a wall of mountains appear on both sides of the river. Eventually, the river empties into Lago Steffen, named after a German explorer who passed through the area in the 1880s. Hitch a ride on a powerboat or paddle 8 km across the lake to the take-out. Easterly winds help to surf you across the lake. Running the Manso can be a long day, so get an early start.

From Osorno, 913 km south of Santiago, drive east over Paso de Puyehue into Argentina. Drive southeast to the resort town of San Carlos de Bariloche. Continue 35 km to just south of Villa Mascardi. Turn west onto a dirt road towards Cerro Tronador and Los Alerces, and drive 25 km to Cascada de los Alerces. Follow the road to the end, then walk a few hundred meters down the trail to the river.

To reach the take-out, return to the main highway and drive south 22 km past Lago Guillelmo. Turn west on an unmarked road just before the sign Cañadon de la Mosca, and continue 11 km down the road to Lago Steffen elevation 509 meters.

This 16 km stretch (plus 8 km of flatwater across lake) averages 15 mpk or 80 fpm. It is runnable in summer months at rated as follows class  IV+ at  650-800 cfs with 2 portages,  class V- at 800-1300 cfs with two portages,  class V•V+ at any flow over 1300 cFS or  at any flows if you run what most people portage.

Topo maps titled Villa Mascardi

Spend the time, roughly six hours, to thoroughly scout the entire run before committing to a descent. The ash fall and resultant carnage in the forest have knocked many trees into the river. They add considerably to the already high level of danger on this run.

At the put-in, the Cajón cuts a braided channel below glacial-covered peaks. After a few kilometers, the river enters a narrow 30 m-deep class II basalt canyon, which resembles a half-pipe draped with hanging vegetation. When the geology changes to granitic basement rock, look for a sawmill on the left that marks the beginning of the tough drops. Less skilled boaters should take out here. Downstream, you must negotiate several log strainers, sieves, and class IV rapids en route to a portage around a big log jam. Countless trees have piled up in this narrow cleft to form a massive 6 m-high obstruction. Do not miss the last chance micro-eddy just above this death trap where the swift current piles into the trees. In January 1997, a German team lost a boat in the big log jam after someone swam upstream. Apparently, they recovered it after a few hours of probing.

A 100 m-deep, 3 m-wide, unscoutable slot canyon lies not far downstream. Drag your boat up to the rim, hike downstream through the trees on the pumice, and put in immediately below the end of the slot canyon where you can paddle back upstream through this dark, narrow chasm.

Below here you will encounter a vertical-walled canyon with wall-to-wall class V rapids, many blind turns through large boulders, and extremely difficult scouting at river level. Do not attempt this section unless you are up for the challenge.

From Villa Cerro Castillo, 100 km south of Coihaique, drive west 20 km on the Carretera Austral heading up the broad Ibañez valley until the road leaves the main river and follows the Cajón. Look for a decent take-out shortly thereafter 375 meters elevation. Scout the lower canyon with binoculars on your way upstream. Put in at an old corral approximately 11 km upstream at 540 m elevation

This class V+ stretch is 11 km long with average gradient of 15 mpk or 80 FPM and has flow of 600 CFS in spring and summer. Expect 5-6 hours to complete the run and have 3-4 portages.

Topo maps are titled Chile Chico • Cerro Sin Nombre, Cerro Hudson

Beware: Petrohué means “place of flies” in Mapuche, and no one doubts that the hard-biting tabanos and Culihuachos rule here in December and January. But don’t let the flies deter your plans, great whitewater abounds on the upper Petrohué. The action includes big, bouncy, class IV drops, surfing waves, and friendly play holes. Approximately 3 km below the put-in, a volcanic wash draining the southern slopes of Osorno marks the top of an obscure, difficult island drop that should always be scouted and is often portaged. The river turns sharply to the left and pinches down into a narrow slot. A big rock and turbulent hole command the right side forcing a precise move to the left. At higher flows, careful inspection will reveal a far left sneak route.

Continuing downstream, the tumultuous Saltos del Río Petrohué serves as a logical take-out at elevation 120 meters. Although the Saltos has been run at high water from the lip of the last waterfall, it is usually portaged because of the tortured water that bursts through the deadly fluted and fissured basalt chutes directly upstream. Scout the continuous class III-IV action leading to the waterfall prior to embarking on a trip. Once the horde of tourists appears at the overlook, you should move to river right and take out. Obscure trails lead out to the road. Reenter the park via the tourist gate to run the falls or continue down the lower class III run. In the past, the friendly rangers have let us enter for free. Proceed down the main trail to the saltos, or turn right onto the Los Enamorados trail that provides access below the falls.

Lago Todos los Santos sits at the bottom of a deep glacial trough, creating a glaciated fiord-like topography. The stunning, simmering giant, Volcán Osorno (2652 m), towers above the river to the north. Other peaks on the horizon include Volcán Calbuco (2003 m) to the south, the eroded neck of Volcán Puntiagudo (2493 m) to the northeast, and Monte Tronador (3491 m) straddling the continental divide to the southeast.

The Petrohué was slated as another component in ENDESA’s nationwide hydroelectric development scheme. Local opposition thwarted ENDESA’s plans for a dam. The outcry forced ENDESA to relinquish its water rights, thus preserving one of Chile’s finest free-flowing rivers from source to sea.

From the resort town of Puerto Varas, 996 km south of Santiago, drive east around the southern edge of Lago Llanquihue, the fourth largest lake in South America. After reaching Ensenada, continue east 16 km into the park and the outlet to Lago Todos los Santos elevation 190 meters. These two lakes were once connected in early interglacial epochs, but subsequent lava flows from the eruptions of Osorno and Calbuco separated the two. Good campsites site lie a few kilometers downstream from the Saltos at the Los Patos campground.

The 6 km class IV•V- run is boatable year round with flows varying greatly from 1500 CFS upwards. Average gradient is 12 mpk or 60 FPM

Topo map titled Puerto Montt

Don’t be fooled by the low average gradient on the upper Cisnes. Its citadel rock walls reverberate with the roar of great whitewater rising from the abyss. Located east of the Carretera Austral, this precipitous canyon forms the southeastern boundary of Parque Nacional Queulat. Although off the beaten, dusty track, the magnificence of this canyon makes the added time and effort to reach it worthwhile.

Rapids of little consequence make up the first half of the trip. Below the confluence with Estero Quemas, an inviting, narrow side canyon from the north, the river begins to flex its muscles. Numerous scouts are required at blind horizon lines created by boulders polished white by millennia of rushing waters. As the gradient steepens, a portage or two may be prudent depending on the water level, although all the drops have been run. High water runs would be sketchy due to the presence of sieves, undercuts, and one unportagable rapid. In case of an accident, bailout possibilities in the gorge are arduous, if not impossible.

From Villa Amengual near Cisnes Medio, 288 km south of Chaitén on the Carretera Austral, drive east approximately 20 km on X-25 towards La Tapera and the Argentine border. Finding the arbitrary put-in and take-out requires your attention to the topography. After ascending a few switchbacks, look down at the end of the canyon. Take out shortly downstream from here (elevation 430 meters) by hiking up to the road. Put in 12 km upstream from this point at a pullout on the left (elevation 310 meters), where the road descends close to river level. Vehicle traffic is sparse in this region, so be prepared to “hoof it” on the shuttle.

Fishing is absolute amazing and you can see the fish in pools below you as you boat.

This 12 km class IV+•V- stretch is best run at early and mid summer flows of  300 to 700 CFS with average gradient of  10 mpk or 50 fpm

Topo map titled Laguna Las Quemas

The optimal window to run this river is very small, indeed. A half-a-meter more water would have made our trip an awesome endeavor. Much more than that and we would have been forced to hike out. I will never “paddle” the upper canyon again, but I would jump at the chance to hike up to or beyond the Río Azul for the second half of this trip, where the gradient eases up. The Azul looks great on the map with its headwaters draining Parque Nacional Palena. At the right flow (~15-17 cms), this 8 km-long El Tigre section is easily runnable in a day. A trail on river right allows you to preview the run from the take-out. Camping is marginal in El Salto canyon, and not much better on the El Tigre, where Cerro Pico Morro (2006 m) peeks over the western horizon.

From Villa Santa Lucia, 77 km south of Chaitén, drive east on the road to Futaleufú. At the crossroads east of Lago Yelcho, follow the signs east 42 km to Palena. Climb the hill behind the Plaza de Armas in Palena, and drive west. After passing Puente Don Daniel, continue another 2.5 km, turn left, and drive upstream to the end of the road. Elevation 225 meters. To reach the put-in, drive east from Palena towards the border. Turn south at the sign to Valle California and continue approximately 11 km, eventually entering Fundo El Quemado. Ask a local where the turnoff is to Pasarela Río El Salto elevation 650 meters.

Best run in early summer or later after a hard rain. If you repeat the whole journey it is 19 km, class V+ in upper canyon and more reasonable IV+ from confluence with azul.

Topo map titled Palena

This 4 km, class V run is best done at spring/summer flows of 500 CFS. Expect one or more portages with average gradient of 26 mpk or 140 FPM.

Topo map titled Bahía Murta, Tres Arroyos

I know of two bailouts and no successful completions on the Upper Cachapoal. One by Lars Holbek, Eric Magneson, and Mark Allen in 1985; the other by Greg Moore and Jerry Kaufman in 1988. From their tales of misery, be assured that climbing out of the steep, thorny, chaparral-choked canyon is an ordeal that you will regret. Only attempt this run at low water.

From Rancagua, 87 km south of Santiago, drive 22 km east on the paved Carretera del Cobre. Just before entering Coya’s “Zona Urbana”, turn off the pavement onto a gravel road towards Reserva Nacionál Río de Los Cipreses. Drive past Termas de Cauquenes¬—elegant, pricey, and recommended—16.5 km to the park. Check in at headquarters to request permission and the key to enter the “Zona de Pumas”.

To scout the canyon, stop at Sector Ranchillo and hike down an obscure trail on the upstream side of the campground. You’ll have to ease over the edge on belay to peer into its depths. Afterwards, if you’re still interested, continue on to the put-in at Potrerillos de Maitenes a few kilometers upstream. Hike up to the top of one of the hills for a view to get oriented then find a trail down to the confluence with the Río de Los Cipreses confluence (1045 m) . To find the take-out, backtrack 11 km to the Sector Ranchillo-5 km sign. From this junction, turn in the opposite direction. Follow the switchbacks 1 km down to the river and Bocatoma Cachapoal elevation 910 meters.

This big, cold and nasty 8 km run has yet to be completed. If you want to give it a go come in at absolute minimum flows of late March or April when river levels drop to a potentially manageable flow range of 750 to 1000 CFS which still make this a class V•V+ run with average gradient of 90 FPM. At spring/summer flows which exceed 10,000 CFS this is a punishing deathtrap.

Topo map titled Río Cortaderal

Note: New dams are being constructed at time of this writing Oct 2009. It is unclear how the surrounding roads and rivers will be affected so proceed with caution and do your homework.

Other nearby rivers include: Río de Los Cipreses, Pangal, Rio Clarillo, and the Tinguiririca

El Toro’s continuous, steep gradient requires precise boat placement. The higher you ascend, the steeper the gradient. A highlight of the run is an intimidating double drop we named El Vulcanizador, located 500 m upstream from the take out.

To reach the put-in follow same directions as for the Melado which are from Talca, 259 km south of Santiago, drive east through San Clemente to Embalse Colbún. After the pavement turns to gravel, continue upstream along the Maule, crossing Puente Claro en route. Follow the Camino Internacional signs. Just after crossing the Maule, turn west at the Y junction. Stay on the main track—veer to the right if in doubt—until you reach the Río Melado. Drive upstream to Puente Curillinque, then continue on the river left side of the Melado along the Canal de Linares. Keep your eyes peeled for El Toro cascading under the concrete aqueduct. Take out here (800 m elevation) or downstream on the Melado at Puente Curillinque.

To reach the put-in, climb up on top of the concete embankment where you’ll find easy hiking for a few hundred meters in a dry irrigation canal. When the canal disintegrates, climb high up the river right side of the canyon. After a couple of hours you will reach a valley, where the gradient tapers off dramatically. Put in elevation is 1075 meters. We didn’t reach this point only for a lack of time and better planning.

This 5 km long class V•V+(p?) has average gradient of 55 mpk or almost 300 FPM. You need 200 to 300 CFS to run the creek which in a normal water year is only likely during PEAK spring runoff which is usually late October.

Topo map of the area 1:50,000 scale is titled Melado

The dam is owned and operated by CODELCO, the largest copper corporation in the world. For release information contact: Central Pangal engineer, Tel: (072)-297890; or Coya manager, Tel: (072)-297881.

If you find yourself in the upper reaches of this watershed (above the dam and resevoir), check out the Río Blanco, a tributary of the Pangal. Its class VI cataracts lie close to great camping in the heart of the cordillera.

From Rancagua, 87 km south of Santiago, drive east on the paved Carretera el Cobre 22 km to Coya. Continue upstream 12 km to Central Pangal, the take-out. At elevation 945 meters. Drive another 12 km up the switchbacks of Cuesta Caracoles to the put-in at Embalse Bocatoma de Pangal elevation 1405 meters. Do not venture below the Central Pangal takeout as construction debris, diversion tubes and a partially-submerged bridge that collapsed during a flood in May 1993 create deadly hazards.

Not high on the list of beautiful free flowing streambeds this 12 km class V+•VI is more of an attraction to adrenaline junkies looking to complete one of chile’s yet un-run stretches of whitewater. Runnable only when the dam releases proper flow. For the stretch below the switchbacks 1200-1500 CFS would be optimal. To attempt the radical stretch low flows would be needed which would make the lower stretch a scrapefest.

Topo map Río Cortaderal