The submerged forest of Lake Traful is a unique sight that is located on this large lake in the Nahuel Huapi National Park (map marking the spot). Events like the one that created this forest show how the scenery is constantly evolving.
The lake is roughly 24 km (14.7 mi) long and 3.5 km (2.2 mi.) wide. It has a northern arm that heads deeply into the mountains. Its surface covers 72 km2 (29 sq. mi.) and its maximum depth is 340 m (1,115 ft.). It is set at an altitude of 720 m (2,360 ft), and it flows eastwards along the Traul River into the Limay River.
No strange reatures have been reported in this lake.
The Sumbmerged forest in Lake Traful
The steep slope of the Andean mountains that form the valleys where the glacial lakes were formed, are relatively unstable and can undergo landslides. Ancient tectonic faults were the origin of the depressions along which the ice sheets advanced during the Ice Ages. These masses of ice carved u-shaped valleys with very steep slopes.
When the ice melted 12,000 years ago, organic and inorganic sediment accumulated on the bare rock and plants grew in the this soil. Nowadays, coihues, lengas, ñires, and also the Cordilleras cypress (Austrocedrus chilensis) form the dense forest found in the Andean mountains.
Under special conditions, a section of forest and the soil beneath it can slide down the mountain. This depends on the adhesion between soil and bedrock and is usually triggered by an earthquake. The mighty earthquake of Concepción (Chile) that took place in 1960, jolted a portion of the hillisde of Cerro Bayo (also known as Alto Mauida) and caused it to slide downhill into the lake.
The trees remained standing, underwater on the north coast of Lake Traful, on the western side of Península Grande, opposite the village of Villa Traful.
It is a small forest made up of some 50 or 60 cypresses whose roots are 20 m (70 ft.) below the water level.
Patagonian Monsters - Cryptozoology, Myths & legends in Patagonia Copyright 2009-2025 by Austin Whittall ©
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