Osorno Volcano, Chile

Volcán Osorno is a 2,652 m tall conical strato-volcano near Puerto Montt in Chile. It is on the southeastern shore of Lake Llanquihue. Osorno has similar appearance to Mount Fuji.

The Osorno Volcano is one of the most active volcanoes of the southern Chilean Andes, with 11 eruptions recorded between 1575 and 1869. perhaps it is due one any day now, but there was no sign of smoke when we ascended the mountain in 2007. The basalt lava flows that spewed out during these eruptions reached both Lake Llanquihue and Lake Todos los Santos. Much of the lower slopes are still devoid of vegetation today, and it looks very much like an active volcanic region. The upper slopes of the volcano are entirely covered in glaciers despite its not that high and the snowfall not that great.

We took the car up to the cafe and ski lift, then the ski lift as far as it went in summer. From there you could wander along paths through the cinders and see what the volcano was up to. It certainly looked as if it had been active more recently than 1869

We then drove back down the mountain, and headed for Puerto Vargas, and the hotel where we had started the journey. From there an early start and a flight to Santiago and on to Panama, en route for Spain.


A land of volcanoes everywhere here	This is all that is left of a weathered volcano, just the hard basalt plug

As they say Mount Osorno looks like Mount Fuji	Climbing up the road up the mountain

Cafe and ski lift at the end of the road	We took the ski lift up

And examined the volcanic evidence	Enjoyed a drink

Ski lift stops here in summer	Strange landscape of loose black rock and white ice.

They are improving the road up Osorno	View over the lake from the cafe

On the way back to Puerto Vargas	On the way back to Puerto Vargas