PN Los Arrayanes (Los Arrayanes National Park) was created in order to preserve a singular forest area composed by arrayanes.

GENERAL INFORMATION OF THE AREA
Los Arrayanes National Park was created in 1971 as an independent National Park, making up until that year the Nahuel Huapi National Park.
The objective of that creation is to preserve a particular forest area composed of arrayanes. The park, which has 1.753 hectares, covers all the Quetrihué Peninsula that is ubicated in the north side of Nahuel Huapi Lake.
In the south side of the Quetrihué Peninsula there is the most singular formation: the purest arrayanes forest, white flowers and cinnamon bark trees with irregular whitish spots.
PN Los Arrayanes (Los Arrayanes National Park) preserves a sample of the patagonic forest eco-region, which has wet and cold warm climate, with winter snowfalls and rains. During almost all the year there are frosts and strong winds from the West.
This eco-region has high mountains, with glaciery valleys. “Semideciduos” forest, which is high represented in the north but not too much in the southern part, dominates the area and alternates with “turberas” in the southern part.

WALKS AND SERVICES
In the National Park is not allowed to camp, although is possible to camp in Villa La Angostura y near places.
Next to Villa La Angostura, in the north side of the peninsula, stars a 12 kilometres path, which connects that city with the arrayanes forest. A kilometre far from de beginning of the route there is a viewpoint.
An 800 metres path made by wooden boards let visitors to appreciate the different growths stages of the arrayan. In the arrayanes forest visitors can find a cafe and toilets.

ACCESS
Visitors can get to the National Park through the Nahuel Huapi Lake, from Pañuelo Port in Bariloche and from La Mansa y La Brava Bays in Villa La Angostura.By land, visitors have to take national routes Nº 237 and 231 to get to Villa La Angostura from San Carlos de Bariloche, and the Nº to get there from San Martín de los Andes.

INTERACTIVE MAP
Press click and explore the map.

NATURAL RESOURCES
Flora
From the coast of the lakes to 900 metres over the sea level grows the “siempreverde” forest, where the coihue is the most representive tree of this area. Close to it grows “cipreses”, “radales”, “arrayanes”, “palo santos”, “ñires”, “pataguas” y “hua huán”. In the north maqui “and” caña colihue dense brushes compose side of the peninsula the “sotobosque”. In places where the roof isn't too much compact visitors can find bushes of flashy flowers like “michay”, “calafate”, “chilco”, “mutisia”, “amancay” and “botellitas”. In the south extreme, next to the coast and covering an approximately 20 hectares area, people can find part of the most singular formation: the pure “arrayanes” forest.

Fauna
In the coast of lakes and internal little lakes lives the “huillin”, an aquatic native mammal in danger of extinction.
The “pudu”, a little native stag, finds in the dense “sotobosque” a favourable ambient to develop.
The “cormoran” imperial is a sea bird, one of the few populations of sweet water. It makes his nest over the rocky thick walls of the Victoria and Menendez island coasts.
The most southern “picaflor” of the world is the “rubí”. It eats the forest's red flowers nectar like the “notro”, “chilco” y “quintal”. It's the only “pollinate” bird of the specie.
Other birds that live in the Park are the patagonic “carpinteros”, “rayaditos” and “chucaos”.

CONTACTS
Arrayanes National Park (Nahuel Huapi National Park)
24, San Martín St.- C.C. 380
(8.400) San Carlos de Bariloche
Río Negro, Argentina
Telephone numbers: (029) 44-423121/423111/422734/436227 (education)
E- mail address: informes@apn.gov.arov.ar

Administración de Parques Nacionales
690, Santa Fe St.- C1059ABN -Buenos Aires
Telephone numbers: 4311-6633/0303
E-mail address: informes@apn.gov.ar

CULTURAL RESOURCES
The first groups who populated the area fished and hunted. Nomads hunters based their diet on steppe animals like “guanaco” and “ñandu”; while other groups used canoes for sailing, fishing and hunting forest area animals like “huemul” and little mammals. All of them developed a strong link with the land, central thought in their relation with the environment.

Around 1600, from the mountain chain, white men came from “trasandinos” territories taking part of expeditions organized to take slaves, evangelist missions (XVII century) and explorer trips (XVIII century). The travellers found “tehuelches” and “araucanos” groups, which have to transform their ways of live after XVII century. These groups incorporated new resources (apples, horses, sheeps and new cultivations, for example), made alliances with white men, reduced mobility and shared the language.

The Dessert Campaign (1879-1883) caused the disarticulation of native people. Then, settlers from both sides of the mountain chain settled down in the area. Juan O'Connor was the first owner of the south side of the peninsula. The Lynch family acquired the lands then, where they constructed a teahouse to promote the place between their friends.