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El Toro is the southernmost Six Thousand Metre Peak in the Atacama Region. On the border with Argentina, it rises high up above its
neighbours and is located approximately 150 km from the city of Vallenar. It belongs perhaps more to the mountain system of the
Coquimbo Region than the system in the Atacama Region. Its southern position in the Atacama region does not permit it to be
considered as a volcano as this is a geographical feature that does not exist at this latitude.
Despite its distance from the rest of the well-known massifs of the Atacama, El Toro has a special place in the world of high mountain
archaeology. Its importance and fame are due to it having been an oratory and a sacrificial site for the Incas. This fact was discovered
in 1964 when two Argentine mountaineers from the Club Andino Mercedario found at the summit the body of a young indigenous
man, known as “The Mummy of El Toro”, in a perfect state of conservation. The body of the sacrificial victim was, it seems, a “chasqui”,
or messenger, aged between 18 and 20. This differentiates it from the bodies found on Llullaillaco, who appear to have been Incan
nobles. Due to this, some hypotheses say that the sacrifice carried out at the top of El Toro would have been of a prisoner of war, offered
to the mountain in fertility rites that were practiced in those times. The body is in the Museo Arqueológico de San Juan in Argentina. |
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The access route to El Toro is quite clear but with a final approach
that needs at least a two day walk. From Vallenar, take the road
that leads towards the town of Alto del Carmen and continue in an
easterly direction towards the village of El Tránsito where the paved
road ends. Follow the dust road until arriving at the Junta Valeriano
sector where it is recommended to leave your vehicle and from
where the approach begins through the valley of the Valeriano River,
with a walk of roughly 50 km.
There is a vehicular route that continues a little further from Junta
Valeriano towards the east along the south bank of the Valeriano
River and which eventually turns into a well-marked path that runs
alongside the fields in the area surrounding the river.
Continuing on this path, you arrive at a point where the valley narrows
and deepens and where it is necessary to cross the river for the first
time. The path changes banks several times and some stretches are
of poorer quality, but is easy to follow.
The path continues east and passes through the area of the Laguna
Chica Gully and through a similar valley, until you arrive at the Los
Pozos Gully. This place is recommended for establishing the ApC,
as this is the middle point between Junta Valeriano and Laguna
Valeriano, which is next to the final destination. From here, the
valley opens up again and the path becomes lost in the large river
bed, but the direction to follow is always along the Valeriano River.
After the walk from Los Pozos you arrive at Las Juntas del Encierro.
At this point, the river runs from south to north and it is possible
see how it forks into two gullies. If you look south, which is the
direction you have been walking, the gully to the right (west) is
called Cajón del Encierro, which gives the IGM map that describes
the area its name. To the left (east) the valley of the Valeriano River
continues and this is the route you should continue on.
Follow the valley until you come to a small marsh that is caused by
a natural spring. From this point, the valley becomes progressively
more open, the path disappears and you should continue following
the riverbed until Laguna Valeriano. This takes approximately half
a day. Continue through the valley until arriving at the Vicuñitas
Gully that runs to the east until the foot of the El Toro Mountain.
Fresh water runs through this gully and it is a good place to set up
BC at 3,800 m.
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From BC, you walk up the gully in the direction of the El Toro massif.
The route is clear, but without any paths. After a stretch that forces
you to go up through some quite gentle scree slopes, you arrive at
C1 at 4,650 m. From here the route goes directly up a very loose
scree slope with a gradient that becomes very steep. This scree slope
is a large couloir full of stones that ascends towards the south and
allows you to arrive at a small pass on the west ridge. Here it is
possible to set up HC at 5,400 m. From here you can clearly see the
route towards the summit.
The ascent to the summit is via the west ridge where you have to
climb some large rocks to access the west slope. The terrain here
is quite firm and covered by some snow fields. The slope finally leads
you to a long ridge that runs north to south over 6,000 m. You pass
several false summits before finally reaching the real summit after
a walk of approximately two km.
The descent follows the same route as the ascent.
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• No special permits are required to climb El Toro but you should
inform the police in the settlement of Conay, 60 km from Alto
del Carmen, of your expedition, giving them a letter showing
participants, nationalities, passport or ID numbers, details of
activities and specific itineraries, dates, route and a map of the
area. As the mountain is on the border, foreigners must ask for
permission from DIFROL (www.difrol.cl).
• The best transport option is to take a 4x4 vehicle. See appendix
for recommendations.
• The route from Vallenar to Junta Valeriano is beautiful and it is
worth leaving a day especially for visiting the area.
• It is recommended to take equipment and clothing suitable for
high altitude mountaineering. As part of the equipment it is
recommended to take an ice axe and crampons.
• It is recommended to take mules to transport the equipment
during the approach. Jorge Campillay is a muleteer who offers
this service. He can be contacted through the Municipalidad de
Alto del Carmen.
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