The Greater Patagonian Trail Section 11, Cerro Dedos, 4-5/1 2026

An Introduction to the Greater Patagonian Trail (GPT) can be found HERE.

4 January — Sunday

I’m back to Guallali, ready to embark on GPT Section 11. It is a surprisingly windy night and morning. But I do not mind, it is nice with a soothing breeze during the midday heat. 

The first part of section 11 goes up and down a dirt road leading into the valley. Due to the strong counter winds and the very dry dirt, I’m constantly walking in dust clouds. At noon the wind died down. Unfortunately, at this time I have left the road and are now walking on cattle trails taking me deeper and deeper into horsefly territory.

I’m suffering badly from all the horseflies. There are even two new species of horseflies now. I take comfort in the fact that the hike is amazing, especially if it were not for all the horseflies. 

Considering my previous foot problems, and that this is the heaviest I have carried so far, I had already decided to take it easy today. Aiming for a nice campsite only about 26 kilometers from the start.

The campsite is indeed very nice, but I’m there relatively early and the sun is still gazing. I have three options: (1) Push on another 10-15 kilometers as it is unlikely I will find a campsite at the ridge I’m about to hike. (2) Sauna in the tent. (3) Suffer from horseflies while waiting for the sun to settle. I chose option (2). And let me assure you the tent becomes really warm, I’m sweating liters. Overall, still a good day, but I’m really hoping the horseflies situation improves in the coming days. As it is now, it is more or less impossible to take a break. 

5 January — Monday

As I awake, I mentally prepare for the onslaught of horseflies awaiting me. However, as exited the tent, there were no horseflies. They were away on other adventures, but it did not take long until they had become aware of my presence and the onslaught began. 

I continued on the GPT 11 regular route before diverting, taking a shortcut to link up with GPT 12. The shortcut is pure cross-country hiking. It runs along narrow ridges, over boulder fields, and especially large sections of steep gravel. The gravel and the dirt under it is so dry that it has little to no strength, in other words, it is extremely slippery. One bad step and you will be sliding down several meters. It is times like these that I wished my backpack was slightly lighter as the current weight interferes with my agility. The swarming horseflies are also a significant distraction, leading to a few bad steps. All in all, it is a challenging short-cut, but the views are stunning and I always enjoy a challenge. 

I connect to GPT 12 at around noon. Thereby, I finished GPT 11 and am continuing hiking immediately onto GPT 12.

My Route With Campsites