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National Park and Reserves |
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The national parks of Argentina are one of the country's principal
lures, encompassing the gamut of ecosystems and scenery that exist here,
from arid dry chaco thornscrub to subtropical jungle, from high Andean
peaks to Atlantic coastline. Though some parks were established purely
for their fabulous scenery, many others - especially the more recently
established ones - were created to protect examples of different
ecosystems. In addition, some protect important archeological or
geological sites. The parks vary in size from the minuscule botanical
reserve of Colonia Benítez in Chaco Province, less than a tenth of a
square kilometre in size, to the grand and savage Parque Nacional Los
Glaciares in Santa Cruz, which covers some six thousand square
kilometres.
These national protected areas fall into four different categories -
Parques Nacionales, Reservas Naturales, Reservas Naturales Estrictas ,
and Monumentos Naturales - but the distinctions between them have little
relevance to the tourist, although it is as well to be aware that a
monumento natural is used to refer to individual species, such as the
native Patagonian Andean deer, the huemul , as well as to places. More
relevant to the tourist are the different degrees of protection that
exist within the parks: strict scientific zones ( zonas intangibles )
that are not open to the general public, zones with routes of public
access that are otherwise under full protection, and buffer zones where
locals engage in certain limited forms of sustainable exploitation (such
as forestry and the hunting of introduced species). The situation is
complicated by the presence of indigenous communities in some parks,
while in others there are enclaves of privately owned land which even
guardaparques (rangers) must ask permission to enter.
The most famous parks of all are the subtropical Iguazú in the
northeastern province of Misiones, with its famous waterfalls, and the
great Patagonian parks that protect the lakes and subantarctic forests
of the mountainous border with Chile - most notably Nahuel Huapi , by
Bariloche in Río Negro Province, and Los Glaciares , near El Calafate in
Santa Cruz, with its twin attractions of the Perito Moreno Glacier and
the Fitz Roy trekking sector. Lanín , with its famous volcano and monkey
puzzle forests, Los Alerces and Perito Moreno (distinct from the glacier)
are two other mighty Patagonian Andean parks, and in Parque Nacional
Tierra del Fuego the Andes meet the Beagle Channel. One of the easiest
national parks to access from Buenos Aires is El Palmar , in the
province of Entre Ríos, a savannah plain studded with graceful native
palms. Famous for its cloudforest are the northwestern mountain parks of
Baritú, Calilegua and El Rey . Geologically fascinating are the
spectacular canyon of Talampaya in La Rioja Province, and the Bosques
Petrificados (Petrified Forests) in Santa Cruz.
In addition to the national parks, Argentina has an array of provincial
nature reserves and protected areas, the most exceptional of which is
the Península Valdés , on the coast of Chubut near Puerto Madryn. Valdés
is one of the country's leading tourist attractions and the most
reliable of all destinations for seeing wildlife. Its marine mammals are
the star attraction, principally the southern right whales which come to
breed here. It is also one of the finest places to see the animals of
the Patagonian steppe. Another good place for spotting this wildlife is
at Punta Tombo , also in Chubut Province. This reserve is most famous
for sheltering the largest colony of Magellanic penguins on the
continent. The Esteros de Iberá swampland in Corrientes Province, is
good for spotting cayman and capybara as well as a remarkable variety of
birdlife. In Mendoza, the Parque Provincial Aconcagua was set up to
protect South America's highest peak, while Ischigualasto in San Juan
protects a famous, desertified lunar landscape with bizarrely eroded
geological formations.
Information centres and park administration
The National Park Headquarters at Santa Fe 680 in Buenos Aires (Mon-Fri
10am-5pm; tel 011/4311-0303) has an information office on the lower
ground floor, with introductory leaflets on the nation's parks, though
some are occasionally out of...
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Visiting the parks
All national parks have routes of public access, though many of the ones
in more isolated areas - Baritú, Perito Moreno, and Santiago del
Estero's Copo, for example - are not served by any public transport or
even tour vehicles, and the only way of...
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