Pilcaniyeu

Pilcaniyeu is the seat of the department of the same name, 60 km from Bariloche, and a Tren Patagónico station. It has 1,118 residents (2022 census). Its name comes from the Mapuche “pilcan” (ducks) and “niyeu” (place): “duck lagoon”.

Climate

Cold and humid, with about 750 mm of precipitation a year, much of it as snow. January averages 17 °C (record high 36 °C) and July 0 °C; the lowest temperature on record is −28 °C.

History

The village grew where two trails opened by the first peoples met; today they are National Routes 40 and 23. Indigenous groups displaced by the army settled there, along with European and Syrian-Lebanese immigrants. Ranches, mostly for sheep, spread around it; the wool travelled by cart to the port of San Antonio Oeste to be shipped to England.

Distances: 60 km from Bariloche · National Routes 40 and 23