Bernardo O'Higgins National Park
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Bernardo O'Higgins National Park is the largest of the Protected Areas in Chile, covering an area of 3,525,901 hectares. The park is named for General Bernardo O'Higgins, first head of state of the Republic of Chile. Los Glaciares National Park (Argentina) and Torres del Paine National Park are its neighbours to the east, Laguna San Rafael National Park is located to the north, the Alacalufes National Reserve to the southwest and the Katalalixar National Reserve to the northwest.
The park includes a great part of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field. One of its main attractions is the glacier Pío XI, from which enormous ice blocks periodically spall. The Pío XI glacier is the largest glacier of the South hemisphere outside of Antarctica, covering an area of 1,265 km², advancing over the past 50 years by more than 10 kilometers; one of its tongues measures approximately 6 kilometers. The ice face of the glacier is approximately 75 meters in height (about 30 floors of a conventional building) and the falling ice generates waves exceeding 10 meters in height; significant enough to rock larger vessels.
It is located approximately between 48º and 51º 38' South Latitude (between the Baker Channel and the northern part of the Fjord of the Mountains. The Central-East Area of the Park is subject to a territorial dispute between Chile and Argentina. The highest summit is the Lautaro volcano at 3,607 meters. Other summits include the Mount Fitz Roy, the Cerro Torre and the Cerro Riso Patrón. The elevations are lower in the southern part of the park, but the scenery is still spectacular. The highlight of this zone is the Mount Balmaceda (2,035 meters), beautified by the glaciers Balmaceda and Serrano.
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