Outings and excursions · San Carlos de Bariloche
Refugio Frey and Laguna Toncek: Cerro Catedral's classic trek
Photos: Justraveling.com · CC BY-SA 4.0 / McKay Savage · CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
From Villa Catedral, a trail of about 9 kilometers climbs through forest and rock to the Club Andino Bariloche hut on the shore of Laguna Toncek, among Cerro Catedral's granite spires.
Few hikes around Bariloche carry as much history as the one up to the Emilio Frey hut. It is named after the engineer who was the first superintendent of Nahuel Huapi National Park and a co-founder of the Club Andino Bariloche in 1931, the same club that runs the hut today. It is a stone house with red shutters, set at about 1,700 meters on the shore of Laguna Toncek and ringed by the granite spires of Cerro Catedral.
The classic trail starts at the base of the mountain, in Villa Catedral. According to the National Parks administration it is about 9 kilometers with roughly 700 meters of climbing, four to five hours one way. You begin on a vehicle track up to a gate where the footpath starts, and for a good while Lake Gutiérrez stays in view below, between forest and small streams.
After about 5 kilometers the path forks: take the right branch, which climbs the valley of the Van Titter stream to the Piedritas hut, the usual spot for a breather. The last two kilometers are a different story: rocky, stepped ground, fully exposed to the sun, until the lake suddenly comes into view.
Laguna Toncek is about one kilometer long and covers some 8 hectares, fed by the stream that comes down from Laguna Schmoll higher up. The rock walls around it made Frey a rock-climbing hub, and the hut, open all year, welcomes hikers and climbers alike. It offers meals, beds and a camping area; to stay overnight you need to book ahead.
You return the same way, watching for the first junction, where you turn left toward the base of the mountain. Besides the Villa Catedral trail, the hut can also be reached from Lake Gutiérrez and along the Catedral ridge, two more demanding options.
- Tour type: Mountain trekking
- Difficulty level: Moderate (9 km and about 700 m of elevation gain each way)
- Tip: The hiking season runs from December to March; before setting out, fill in the National Park's mandatory trekking registration and check the trail status, as it can close because of snow or bad weather.
