December 2025 – For the fifth time in just three years, I returned to Chile to pursue my passion for climbing volcanoes — this time accompanied by my two youngest children, Anna and Troels, as well as Andreas, my daughter’s boyfriend.
We divided our adventure between two contrasting regions: the lush south around Pucón and Osorno, with its dramatic, snow-capped cones, and the arid, high-altitude expanses of the Atacama Desert around San Pedro de Atacama in the north.
Together, we summited six remarkable volcanoes:
- Volcán Puyehue – featuring a stunning 2.4 km-wide, glacier-filled crater.
- Volcán Osorno – the symmetrical “Fuji of South America,” eternally snow-capped and overlooking turquoise lakes.
- Volcán Villarrica – Chile’s most active volcano, often with a glowing lava lake in its crater (though we saw only dense smoke during our climb).
- Volcán Jorquencal (4,978 m) – a straightforward near-5,000-meter peak, perfect for acclimatization in the remote desert.
- Volcán Lascar (5,592 m) – northern Chile’s most active volcano, with nested craters and a history of powerful eruptions.
- Volcán Chiliques (5,778 m) – a striking, seldom-visited symmetrical stratovolcano, long dormant but with subtle signs of life detected in its crater.
Returning from this trip, I have climbed and summited 17 Chilean volcanoes, including four that exceed 6,000 meters and including the highest volcano in Chile and the world, Ojos del Salado (6,893 meter).
I want to thank Felipe Malverde Ortiz from Antü, Rios y Montañas for being our guide on Volcán Osorno and Volcán Villarrica. I also used Felipe in November 2023 when I climbed other volcanoes around Pucón .
I also want to thank Lautaro Bustamante from CHUCARO Turismo Aventura for all the support with the last three volcanoes in Northern Chile. He was our driver and guide for all the climbs, he came with his very well equipped 4×4 capable for reaching the volcanoes, and he served the most delicious outdoor breakfast prior to every climb.
Volcán Puyehue
We kicked off our volcano-climbing trip to Chile with Volcán Puyehue (2,236 m / 7,336 ft), located in Parque nacional Puyehue. This active stratovolcano forms part of the larger Puyehue-Cordón Caulle Volcanic Complex and is renowned for its impressive 2.4 km-wide summit crater, filled with glaciers and snow, creating a breathtaking amphitheater-like feature.
Though the complex has a history of significant eruptions—most notably from the nearby Cordón Caulle rift zone in 1960 (shortly after the massive Valdivia earthquake) and a prolonged event in 2011–2012—Puyehue itself has remained relatively quiet in recent decades, making it a popular and accessible hiking destination.
We tackled the summit unguided, following a trek on the AllTrails app. It proved a demanding introduction to the trip: a round-trip hike of about 21 km with 1,950 meters of elevation gain and loss through forested sections, volcanic terrain, and steep scree slopes. We reached the summit in just under five hours, rewarded with panoramic views into the vast crater and across the surrounding Andean lakes and peaks.
Volcán Osorno
We summited Volcán Osorno (2,652 m / 8,701 ft), the second volcano of our trip to Chile. This iconic stratovolcano in the Los Lagos Region rises symmetrically on the shores of Llanquihue and Todos los Santos lakes, often called the “Fuji of South America” for its near-perfect cone and glacier-clad, snow-covered summit.
One of the most active volcanoes in the southern Chilean Andes, with 11 recorded eruptions between 1575 and 1869, it has remained dormant since then but remains a striking landmark dominating the Lake District landscape.
Starting from the ski area on its slopes, the climb involves a demanding 1,500 meters of elevation gain (up and down) over volcanic scree and glaciated terrain. We reached the summit in just under five hours, rewarded with panoramic views over the lakes and neighbouring peaks.
Volcán Villarrica
On my second attempt, we successfully summited Volcán Villarrica (2,860 m / 9,380 ft), making it the third volcano of our trip to Chile. I had tried to climb it back in November 2023, but the summit was closed due to high volcanic activity at the time.
Volcán Villarrica is Chile’s most active volcano and frequently features a visible lava lake in its crater. During our ascent this time, however, we only encountered thick smoke rising from the crater rather than any glowing lava.
To save energy for a potential ascent of the demanding Volcán Lanín (3,747 m / 12,293 ft) the next day — a grueling climb with around 2,500 m of elevation gain — we took the old chairlift for the first 300 m up Volcán Villarrica. Unfortunately, poor weather with thunder and low visibility forced us to cancel the Lanín attempt.
Volcán Jorquencal (4978)
We summited Volcán Jorquencal (4,978 m / 16,332 ft), our fourth volcano of the trip. It’s one of the lower peaks in the Atacama Desert and served mainly as an acclimatization hike. The ascent is straightforward—an easy trail with moderate steepness and less than 400 meters of elevation gain to reach the summit.
Volcán Lascar
Our fifth volcano of the trip was Volcán Láscar (5,592 m / 18,346 ft), the iconic active stratovolcano rising dramatically near San Pedro de Atacama in northern Chile’s Central Volcanic Zone.
I had first summited it back in December 2022, but I was eager to return so Troels, Anna, and Andreas could experience its otherworldly nested craters—six overlapping summit depressions filled with persistent fumaroles, sulfurous vapors, and an almost alien landscape that feels straight out of another planet.
As the most active volcano in the northern Chilean Andes, Láscar has a long history of eruptions dating back thousands of years, with over 30 recorded events since the mid-19th century, including a major explosive eruption in 1993 that sent ash plumes across South America. It continues to show vigorous degassing and occasional small explosions to this day.
Popular among high-altitude trekkers in the region (often considered one of the most climbed peaks accessible from San Pedro de Atacama), the standard route is non-technical and starts high, involving roughly 700–800 meters of elevation gain to reach the true summit—making it a challenging but rewarding day hike with proper acclimatization (as we all had by now).
Volcán Chiliques
Our sixth and final volcano of the trip was the remote and seldom-climbed Volcán Chiliques (5,778 m / 18,957 ft), a symmetrical stratovolcano rising dramatically south of Laguna Lejía in the high Atacama Desert near San Pedro de Atacama.
Long considered dormant with no historical eruptions, Volcán Chiliques features lava flows of possible Holocene age and a perfectly circular 500-meter-wide summit crater.
This challenging ascent has no established trail — just relentless steep slopes of loose lava boulders, scree, and soft sand that demand careful footing. We began at around 4,550 meters and gained over 1,200 meters in elevation, reaching the summit in exactly six hours.
The reward was extraordinary: a breathtaking crater containing not just one but two small, ice-free lakes, nestled in an otherworldly landscape. The upper reaches were also dotted with striking nieves penitentes — tall, blade-like formations of hardened snow and ice sculpted by intense sublimation in the cold, dry, thin air unique to high Andean environments.
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