Lanín
Interesting facts
- The first recorded ascent was made in 1897 by Rudolf Hauthal, and Nelly Frey de Neumeyer became the first woman on the summit in 1939.
- The Spanish explorer Basilio Villarino sighted the volcano in 1782, calling it Cerro Imperial and noting a different name used by local people.
- In Mapudungun the mountain is called Pillañzegüñ; the origin of the name Lanín is uncertain, with one interpretation being "the dead rock".
- Radiocarbon dating points to an eruption around 560 AD, give or take 150 years, and the crater it left is thought to lie buried beneath the summit glacier.
- In February 2017 instruments detected seismic movements inside the volcano, the first sign of activity ever recorded in historical times.
- With a topographic prominence of about 2,630 metres, it ranks among the world's ultra-prominent peaks and is the highest point of Chile's Araucanía Region.
- From the east it can be seen near Zapala and Piedra del Águila, almost 200 kilometres away across the Patagonian steppe.
- Its oldest known rocks are dacite lava flows split into columns, possibly dating from the Late Pliocene or Early Pleistocene.
- Lanín's lavas are richer in alkalis than those of neighbouring Villarrica, suggesting that the volcanoes draw on different parts of the mantle despite standing in one line.
- Since 2008 Mapuche communities have held an annual rewe ceremony at the foot of the north face, and many Mapuche do not climb the sacred mountain.
Why it is worth it
Lanín is the kind of mountain children draw: a near-perfect, ice-capped cone rising alone above lakes and forests of monkey-puzzle trees on the border between Argentina and Chile. At around 3,750 metres it towers over the lower ranges around it, so that it can be seen from far out on the Patagonian steppe to the east and, on the Chilean side, from as far as Temuco. Its image appears on the flag and coat of arms of the Argentine province of Neuquén and is invoked in its anthem, and it is a sacred mountain for the Mapuche.
Geologically Lanín is the easternmost of a line of three large stratovolcanoes running northwest to southeast, with Quetrupillán in the middle and Villarrica at the far end; the alignment is thought to follow a fault beneath them. It is by far the quietest of the three in historical times. Its oldest known parts may go back to the Late Pliocene or Early Pleistocene, and most of the volcano is built of basalt. When it last erupted is not known, though it is thought to have been within the last 10,000 years; a newspaper reported an eruption after the 1906 Valparaíso earthquake, but the report was later disputed. Glaciers cover its southern face, while those on the northern side have largely melted away since the 1980s.
The summit sits on the continental water divide, which is why the border runs across it under the 1881 treaty between the two countries. The mountain lies within two protected areas, Lanín National Park in Argentina, to which it gives its name, and Villarrica National Park in Chile, with Lake Tromen to the north and Lakes Paimún and Huechulafquen to the south. The usual climbing route starts near Lake Tromen and the Mamuil Malal border pass, and another begins beside Lake Huechulafquen; ascents are regulated by the Argentine park service and gendarmerie.
A Mapuche legend tells that Pillán, the spirit who lived on the summit, sent fire and storms when a tribe climbed his mountain, and was calmed only when the chief's youngest daughter was given to the crater, after which the volcano fell silent.
Getting there
On the Argentine side the bases are Junín de los Andes and San Martín de los Andes, the latter about 59 km away; on the Chilean side the nearest town is Pucón, about 55 km away. The Mamuil Malal pass at the volcano's northern foot links Junín de los Andes with Curarrehue in Chile. The nearest airport is Aviador C. Campos Airport (CPC), serving San Martín de los Andes, about 58 km away; in Chile, La Araucanía International Airport (ZCO) is about 127 km away.
On these lists
From the encyclopaedia
Lanín is an ice-clad, cone-shaped stratovolcano on the border of Argentina and Chile. It forms part of two national parks: Lanín in Argentina and Villarrica in Chile. As a part of the flag and anthem of the Argentine province of Neuquén, it serves as a symbol for the region. Although the date of its last eruption is not known, it is estimated to have occurred within the last 10,000 years. Following the 1906 Valparaíso earthquake a local newspaper reported the volcano to have erupted, but a work published in 1917 by Karl Sapper disputed this.
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