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Books : Lonely Planet Trekking in the Patagonian Andes
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Rating: 
- An Unparallelled Resource
Like all Lonely Planet guides, Trekking in Patagonia is very much geared to independent trekkers. Considering how huge Patagonia is, the book covers it pretty thoroughly with a wide range of suggestions, from easy short walks right up to a few week-long ones. The text is strong on practical information like local transportation and accommodation and supplies wide coverage to flora and fauna, which is a real bonus.
Patagonia's five regions are arranged in chapters that go from north to south which the way most foreigners seem to travel. The information is set out very logically, with tables of routes and a small info box at the start of each walk so you know what to expect. I liked the book's simple but correct contoured maps that are given for every trek. Some walkers I met wanted the book to have more day walks but that's a matter of personal preference. I got alot out of my 5 weeks in Patagonia, thanks greatly to this book. Unless you're a complete jerker, you're not going to get lost with this! A warning though, sometimes it's hard slogging that may not suit pampered English hill-walkers.
This book is a veritable encyclopaedia that I found a real companion on the trails constantly taking it out for quick reference. It is indeed an unparallelled resource for trekking in Patagonia, so I'm awarding it 5 stars!
Rating: - Well-done work
I am using the latest (thid ed.) on my second trip to South America. It an indispensable resource with very accurate text and maps which are quite accurate to use even if you you don't have a topo (yeah I know, but maps are not always easy to buy here). The routes carefuly prepared...this new edition has a whole lot of new trails. I'm also finding it up to date. One thing is maybe that the authors could have given better coverage to some areas such as the Pumalin. But this is more than enough material to spend a couple of summers down here anyhow, even if you just go for it! I definitely feel anyone that wants to trek in this region will be sorry if you don't have this book. Enjoy! Feel free to contact me privately for any info.
Ryan
Rating: - Impressive guidebook to Patagonia
We used this guidebook for 2+ months of backpacking
in Chile and I would strongly recommend it. The maps
can be used in lieu of topo maps (I would recommend
topos of course, but you can only get them in Santiago
and Buenos Aires) and the descriptions are remarkably
spot on. I've used dozens of backpacking guides (and
biking, climbing, ... guides) and there are invariably
inaccuracies or route descriptions that don't quite seem
to match. However, this book had fewer of such infelicities
than any guidebook I've used. Kudos to Lindemayer.
In addition, the "other treks" sections of the book
proved invaluable. After our first few weeks, we
realized we really wanted to get off the beaten track
and these little 1-3 paragraph route descriptions gave
us all we needed to track down information on beautiful,
rewarding, and untramelled hikes throughout Patagonia.
Lindemayer clearly has an explorer's impulse and a near
encyclopedic knowledge of the area.
Only caveat: if you're just going to Torres del Paine
and/or Los Glaciares you really don't need any guidebook;
the commonly available maps and steady streams of backpackers
on the trail will keep you well informed.
Rating:
- Inaccurate, missing many important facts
This is really the only travelbook for Patagonia. So it's a real shame that it is inaccurate and incomplete. We found this out recently when we used it to prepare our trip to Torres Del Paine and Los Glaciares NP. Some examples: (1) to the South of TDP NP is Bernardo O'Higgins NP, with many glaciers and fjords. One can't really hike there, but kayaking etc are all possible. This park is never mentioned in the book. (2) Throughout our trip, the most abundant wildlife was a big caterpillar which we had to remove from ourselves on numerous occasions. The fauna/flora section does not mention these. We found out later that these can leave an acid burn mark. (3) Driving distance from Calafate to Chalten is 4.5 hrs, as opposed to the 2.5 or so you may expect, looking at the map. Never mentioned. (4) If one wants to do separate segments of the TDP circuit as overnight hikes (e.g. Vallee Frances), this book does not even tell you what the elevation gain is. (5) All (ALL) boat schedule information we found was wrong. We were told in the hotel that it has never changed.
It's unclear how much of this is due to the book being out of date, although most of the examples above do not change in time. My recommendation is to surf the web for the rudimentary information. You can't find all details on the web, but this book does not have them either. Tourism in this part of Chile/Argentina is so well developed that dealing with the unexpected is never really a problem.
Rating: - Inaccurate, missing many important facts
This is really the only travelbook for Patagonia. So it's a real shame that it is inaccurate and incomplete. We found this out recently when we used it to prepare our trip to Torres Del Paine and Los Glaciares NP. Some examples: (1) to the South of TDP NP is Bernardo O'Higgins NP, with many glaciers and fjords. One can't really hike there, but kayaking etc are all possible. This park is never mentioned in the book. (2) Throughout our trip, the most abundant wildlife was a big caterpillar which we had to remove from ourselves on numerous occasions. The fauna/flora section does not mention these. We found out later that these can leave an acid burn mark. (3) Driving distance from Calafate to Chalten is 4.5 hrs, as opposed to the 2.5 or so you may expect, looking at the map. Never mentioned. (4) If one wants to do separate segments of the TDP circuit as overnight hikes (e.g. Vallee Frances), this book does not even tell you what the elevation gain is. (5) All (ALL) boat schedule information we found was wrong. We were told in the hotel that it has never changed.
It's unclear how much of this is due to the book being out of date, although most of the examples above do not change in time. My recommendation is to surf the web for the rudimentary information. You can't find all details on the web, but this book does not have them either. Tourism in this part of Chile/Argentina is so well developed that dealing with the unexpected is never really a problem.
- An Unparallelled ResourceLike all Lonely Planet guides, Trekking in Patagonia is very much geared to independent trekkers. Considering how huge Patagonia is, the book covers it pretty thoroughly with a wide range of suggestions, from easy short walks right up to a few week-long ones. The text is strong on practical information like local transportation and accommodation and supplies wide coverage to flora and fauna, which is a real bonus.
Patagonia's five regions are arranged in chapters that go from north to south which the way most foreigners seem to travel. The information is set out very logically, with tables of routes and a small info box at the start of each walk so you know what to expect. I liked the book's simple but correct contoured maps that are given for every trek. Some walkers I met wanted the book to have more day walks but that's a matter of personal preference. I got alot out of my 5 weeks in Patagonia, thanks greatly to this book. Unless you're a complete jerker, you're not going to get lost with this! A warning though, sometimes it's hard slogging that may not suit pampered English hill-walkers.
This book is a veritable encyclopaedia that I found a real companion on the trails constantly taking it out for quick reference. It is indeed an unparallelled resource for trekking in Patagonia, so I'm awarding it 5 stars!
Rating:
- Well-done workI am using the latest (thid ed.) on my second trip to South America. It an indispensable resource with very accurate text and maps which are quite accurate to use even if you you don't have a topo (yeah I know, but maps are not always easy to buy here). The routes carefuly prepared...this new edition has a whole lot of new trails. I'm also finding it up to date. One thing is maybe that the authors could have given better coverage to some areas such as the Pumalin. But this is more than enough material to spend a couple of summers down here anyhow, even if you just go for it! I definitely feel anyone that wants to trek in this region will be sorry if you don't have this book. Enjoy! Feel free to contact me privately for any info.
Ryan
Rating:
- Impressive guidebook to PatagoniaWe used this guidebook for 2+ months of backpacking
in Chile and I would strongly recommend it. The maps
can be used in lieu of topo maps (I would recommend
topos of course, but you can only get them in Santiago
and Buenos Aires) and the descriptions are remarkably
spot on. I've used dozens of backpacking guides (and
biking, climbing, ... guides) and there are invariably
inaccuracies or route descriptions that don't quite seem
to match. However, this book had fewer of such infelicities
than any guidebook I've used. Kudos to Lindemayer.
In addition, the "other treks" sections of the book
proved invaluable. After our first few weeks, we
realized we really wanted to get off the beaten track
and these little 1-3 paragraph route descriptions gave
us all we needed to track down information on beautiful,
rewarding, and untramelled hikes throughout Patagonia.
Lindemayer clearly has an explorer's impulse and a near
encyclopedic knowledge of the area.
Only caveat: if you're just going to Torres del Paine
and/or Los Glaciares you really don't need any guidebook;
the commonly available maps and steady streams of backpackers
on the trail will keep you well informed.
Rating:
- Inaccurate, missing many important factsThis is really the only travelbook for Patagonia. So it's a real shame that it is inaccurate and incomplete. We found this out recently when we used it to prepare our trip to Torres Del Paine and Los Glaciares NP. Some examples: (1) to the South of TDP NP is Bernardo O'Higgins NP, with many glaciers and fjords. One can't really hike there, but kayaking etc are all possible. This park is never mentioned in the book. (2) Throughout our trip, the most abundant wildlife was a big caterpillar which we had to remove from ourselves on numerous occasions. The fauna/flora section does not mention these. We found out later that these can leave an acid burn mark. (3) Driving distance from Calafate to Chalten is 4.5 hrs, as opposed to the 2.5 or so you may expect, looking at the map. Never mentioned. (4) If one wants to do separate segments of the TDP circuit as overnight hikes (e.g. Vallee Frances), this book does not even tell you what the elevation gain is. (5) All (ALL) boat schedule information we found was wrong. We were told in the hotel that it has never changed.
It's unclear how much of this is due to the book being out of date, although most of the examples above do not change in time. My recommendation is to surf the web for the rudimentary information. You can't find all details on the web, but this book does not have them either. Tourism in this part of Chile/Argentina is so well developed that dealing with the unexpected is never really a problem.
Rating:
- Inaccurate, missing many important factsThis is really the only travelbook for Patagonia. So it's a real shame that it is inaccurate and incomplete. We found this out recently when we used it to prepare our trip to Torres Del Paine and Los Glaciares NP. Some examples: (1) to the South of TDP NP is Bernardo O'Higgins NP, with many glaciers and fjords. One can't really hike there, but kayaking etc are all possible. This park is never mentioned in the book. (2) Throughout our trip, the most abundant wildlife was a big caterpillar which we had to remove from ourselves on numerous occasions. The fauna/flora section does not mention these. We found out later that these can leave an acid burn mark. (3) Driving distance from Calafate to Chalten is 4.5 hrs, as opposed to the 2.5 or so you may expect, looking at the map. Never mentioned. (4) If one wants to do separate segments of the TDP circuit as overnight hikes (e.g. Vallee Frances), this book does not even tell you what the elevation gain is. (5) All (ALL) boat schedule information we found was wrong. We were told in the hotel that it has never changed.
It's unclear how much of this is due to the book being out of date, although most of the examples above do not change in time. My recommendation is to surf the web for the rudimentary information. You can't find all details on the web, but this book does not have them either. Tourism in this part of Chile/Argentina is so well developed that dealing with the unexpected is never really a problem.