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LOCATION OF THE CANI
Pucon,
our nearest town, is about 800 km South of Santiago, and easily
accessible by an excellent overnight bus service. We're located 21
km East of Pucon in Pichares, 20 minutes along the paved road to
Huife hotsprings. In Pucon you can easily locate us on the corner
of Urrutia and Arauco Streets at the ECOLE GUEST HOUSE.
(TELEPHONE: (O45) 441675). VISIT ECOLE'S
WEBSITE, www.ecole.cl
WHAT IS THE CANI SANCTUARY?
The
Cani, a private natural reserve of 500 Hectares established in 1990,
belongs to the Lahuen Foundation and is administered by the Cani
Guide Group, a rural community organization. The reserve's
biological diversity includes cathedral forests of the Nothofagus
species coihue and lenga associated with the 'living fossil'
araucaria or monkey puzzle trees - whose authentic local name is
pewen - which are capable of reaching an age of 2,000 years. The
native local fauna includes the puma or cougar, foxes, skunks, an
increasing population of wild boar and a rich bird life inhabiting
this patchwork of ancient extinct volcanoes from the early
Pleistocene, sprinkled with at least a dozen hidden crater lakes.
From the highest viewpoint, the Mirador (lookout
hill), at 5,000 ft elevation, you can see all the region's four
major volcanoes - Villarrica, Quetrupillan, Llaima and Lanin, on the
border with Argentina. There is a network of trails, huts of
different sizes, and three camping sites. The Reserve is located in
Chile's 9th (Araucania) Region, 21 km along the road from Pucon to
the
well-known Huife Hot Springs.
THE
CANE GUIDE GROUP
The
Cani Guide Group is a local rural community organization created in
1999 by a group of environmentally aware young people with the
purpose of taking on the administration of the Cani Reserve, a
privately protected area of mountain native forest. At present our
work concentrates on three areas: Ecotourism, Environmental
Education and a Native Tree Nursery.
ORGANIC TREE NURSERY The native tree nursery has an interesting
history and function. In the early 1990's when the Cani project
began, very little was known about reproducing native trees, and so
when the Americas Fund financed a native nursery and associated
community project, it was a pioneering program. It has not only
contributed income and economic sustainability to local communities,
but also new sources of understanding and resources such as
fuelwood. Other services offered include advice on planting and
maintaining new wooded areas, as well as training courses for
individuals and institutions.
THE NURSERY PROCESS
Working all year round as it does, the nursery
performs these functions on an ongoing basis. In autumn seeds are
collected from the protected forest areas, then carefully prepared
for planting, each species in its seedling bed, and finally planting
out and selling. The plants live under constant care for about 2
years before being sold. The process includes seed latency and
preparation, weeding, root pruning, concentrated seasonal watering
and organic fertilizing. The result is a reasonably priced range of
the region's local trees.
CANI BASE HUT, 400 m
elevation
Begun in 1991, this is now the
office, meeting and starting point for excursions to the reserve.
It's also the home of the native tree nursery the Cani guides started in 1995 and still
maintain.
THE LOMA, 600
m
Situated 2 km along the trail
to the Sanctuary, this rustic campsite welcomes visitors and
is home to Tocatierra, the Cani education program run by Rod Walker,
who lives there.
SAWMILL HUT, 1100m
Constructed in 1997, this remarkable structure
is strategically located at the entrance to the reserve, some 2
hours along the Cani trail. It provides shelter and rustic comforts
for as many as 30 people, with a central open fireplace,
wood-burning cooking stove, and bench, shelf and floor space for
sleeping bags. The west-facing location affords spectacular sunsets
and night views of the lights of Pucon and Villarrica,
often under star-studded skies.
MOUNTAIN CAMP SITES, 1400m
Another couple of hours along the trail, over
1,400 meters above the sea, lies the Laguna Negra (black lake) camp
site, the most regularly used. It nestles among araucarias and
lengas beneath the summit crags of the high viewpoint, Mirador
(nearly 1600 meters elevation). Here you'll find tent spaces, a
fireplace with nearby spring water and pit latrine beside a tiny
rustic shed among the trees.
VISITING THE CANI
SANCTUARY
This trek is much more than
simply tourism ... It's a profound contact with brilliant ancient
forest that enables you to expand awareness wide enough to begin to
sense mysterious echoes coming down from past millenia. To
experience the forest and its rhythms is to live the true meaning of
deep ecology, as you become immersed in it, identified with it. How
to leave behind those city habits, even for a few brief hours, and
touch and vibrate with this magic of the Cani? Here's what we offer:
TREKS OF ONE OR MORE DAYS THROUGH THE
RESERVE
ONE DAY:
Leave between 9
and 11am, return between 5 and 7pm, hiking with or without a
guide.
GUIDED
A trained local guide accompanies you all
day, with information on flora and fauna and local lore.
UNGUIDED
The Cani
Field Guide is on sale at the base hut. It contains all essential
information about the Reserve including maps, with estimates of time
and distances, and your route will take you along well-marked
trails. Along the way you'll see many aspects of local life and
culture, as well as marked changes both in terrain and in the kind
and patterns of forest cover - rich bird life, climax forest
including the ancient araucaria which can live to an age of 2,000
years, old volcanic crater lakes ... a summit viewpoint giving a 360
degree panorama of four volcanoes and, with a little luck, the
majestic condor may
appear.
TWO DAYS OR MORE:
You
can set off either in the morning or afternoon, and choose to spend
the night in the Sawmill Hut at the entrance to the Reserve or by
Laguna Negra lake, in the heart of the Sanctuary. As well as the
rich experiences of a one-day visit, you'll also have the chance to
enjoy seeing sunset -or sunrise - from the high peak, share
impressions around the evening camp fire, visit all the hidden lakes
and range over Cerro Redondo (Round Hill), an extinct
volcanic cone whose summit is dotted with crater
lakes.
WHAT TO TAKE?
FOR 1 DAY
Backpack
containing trail food and water, sunglasses, sunhat and screen,
trekking boots,
warm clothing ready for all weathers - and don't
forget the camera.
FOR 2 DAYS
All the above, plus sleeping
bag and mat, tent, flashlight and personal items.
WINTER TREKS:
These treks, only for experienced backpackers, take you
snow-shoeing through the
brilliant ancient forests, the
understory now dormant beneath the snow, and crossing
the
shimmering levels of hidden lakes. A guide is mandatory, and
clothing and camping
gear should be adequate for extreme
conditions. If you opt for a 2-day visit you can
camp in the
well-equipped Sawmill hut. We recommend that all visitors make prior
contact
with the Cani guides, for updated information on local
conditions.
Finally, please remember
all these rewarding excursions to the Cani Sanctuary are
physically demanding, and the responsibility of undertaking them
is exclusively your own.
EMAIL us, either in SPANISH OR
IN ENGLISH and we'll get back to you.
OR PHONE: - (56) 9
8373928 (Manuel) - 9 9313846 (Roberto) - 8 882 9845 (English, Rod)
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Pichares, Pucon, IX Region de la Araucania,
Chile
