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Sarnoso Volcano beneath a mantle of clouds

Sarnoso is an extinct Middle Pleistocene volcano located in the southern part of Puyehue National Park, southwest of Lake Paraíso. Although it is not among the highest peaks in the area, it is easily recognizable thanks to its striking rocky silhouette. Sarnoso reaches an elevation of 1,662 meters above sea level and was once a stratovolcano that has been heavily shaped by glacial erosion. On its southern flank, two pyroclastic cones and basaltic lava flows can be found, and the volcano is geologically linked to the Antillanca Volcanic Complex.

The surrounding landscape belongs to the Valdivian temperate rainforest, characterized by ulmo and coihue trees, accompanied by olivillo and tineo. The understory is dense, with abundant shrubs, vines, ferns, mosses, and lichens, creating a highly diverse plant community. At higher elevations, tepa and mañío forests appear, accompanied by large coihue trees, which become the dominant species with increasing altitude.

Fuentes/Source:

Petrología y Geoquímica del Volcán Casablanca y centros eruptivos cercanos, Complejo Volcánico Antillanca, Región de los Lagos, Chile. C, Carrasco 2016.

Sociedad Geográfica de Documentación Andina 2025, Andeshandbook Cerro Sarnoso, colaborador Juan Pablo Cabbada Bergez.