Fitz Roy

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Lore & Background

The first Europeans recorded as seeing Mount Fitz Roy were the Spanish explorer Antonio de Viedma and his companions, who reached the shores of Viedma Lake in 1783. Argentine explorer Francisco Moreno saw the mountain on 2 March 1877; he named it Fitz Roy in honour of Robert FitzRoy who, as captain of HMS Beagle, had travelled up the Santa Cruz River in 1834 and charted large parts of the Patagonian coast. Cerro is a Spanish word meaning ridge or hill, while Chaltén comes from a Tehuelche (Aonikenk) word meaning 'smoking mountain', because a cloud usually forms around the mountain's peak. Fitz Roy is one of several peaks the Tehuelche called Chaltén. After the signing of the 1881 Treaty between Argentina and Chile, the boundary in the area was defined in 1898 by the boundary surveyors, Francisco Pascasio Moreno from Argentina and Diego Barros Arana from Chile. Huemul was declared a border landmark. The boundary was defined by the following mountain landmarks and their natural continuity: Mount Fitz Roy, Torre, Huemul, Campana, Agassiz, Heim, Mayo, and Stokes (nowadays Cervantes). In 1998, the 'Agreement between the Republic of Chile and the Republic of Argentina to determine the boundary line from Mount Fitz Roy to Cerro Daudet' was signed, defining section A and a small part of section B, with the area between Fitz Roy and the Murallón still pending.

Reader's Guide

Argentina and Chile have agreed that their international border detours eastwards to pass over the main summit, but a large part of the border to the south of the summit, as far as Cerro Murallón, remains undefined. On February 27, 2014, Chile's National Forestry Corporation created the Chaltén Mountain Range Natural Site by Resolution No. 74, which covers the Chilean side of Mount Fitz Roy and the surrounding mountain range. Fitz Roy is a popular tourist destination for hikers, as a viewpoint between the Laguna de Los Tres and the Laguna Sucia can be reached by foot from the town of El Chaltén. The total trek is around 20 kilometers for the round trip, making it possible to do the out-and-back hike within a single day, while also passing by the Poincenot campground that is run by a local association, for people who want to take more time. Notable ascents include the first ascent on 2 February 1952 by Lionel Terray and Guido Magnone via Southeast Ridge; the second ascent in 1965 by Carlos Comesaña and José Luis Fonrouge via Supercanaleta; the third ascent in 1968 via Southwest Ridge by the 'Fun Hogs' including Yvon Chouinard, Dick Dorworth, Chris Jones, Lito Tejada-Flores, and Douglas Tompkins; the first winter ascent in July 1986 by Argentines Eduardo Brenner, Sebastián De La Cruz and Gabriel Ruiz via Supercanaleta; and the first full traverse in February 2014 by Tommy Caldwell and Alex Honnold, who were awarded the Piolet d'Or.

Did You Know?

• The Tehuelche (Aonikenk) word 'Chaltén' means 'smoking mountain', because a cloud usually forms around the mountain's peak.
• The mountain is the symbol of the Argentine Santa Cruz Province, appearing on its flag and coat of arms.
• The first full traverse of Fitz Roy and its satellite peaks was completed between 12 and 16 February 2014 by Tommy Caldwell and Alex Honnold, earning them the Piolet d'Or.
• The first winter ascent was in July 1986 by Argentines Eduardo Brenner, Sebastián De La Cruz and Gabriel Ruiz via Supercanaleta.
• On February 27, 2014, Chile created the Chaltén Mountain Range Natural Site, covering the Chilean side of Mount Fitz Roy and the surrounding mountain range.