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San Martín de los Andes. Photo:
Lisandro Santos,
San Martín de los Andes
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Located by the eastern coast of Lácar lake, 635 m above
sea level, with almost 30.000 inhabitants, it is the
main tourist center of Neuquén province, and the
administrative headquarters of Lanin National Park. San
Martin de los Andes offers high quality lodging places,
becoming a good option to plan holidays at any time of
the year.  |
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Historical review
20 years after the "Desert conquest", it was founded on 4 th
february1898, 40 Km SW from fort Junín.
This region was part of the mapuche area. The zone, disputed
with Chile depending on waters division theory - the Lácar
drains to the Pacífic ocean- or on high summit’s line theory,
finally became Argentinean on 1902, after the statement
settled by Edward VII, who favoured F.P Moreno’s thesis:
applying the high summit’s line criterion on this case.
San Martín de los Andes is situated on the valley called
"Pucaullhué" (sea gull’s place) by the natives, scarcely 1.000
m from the lake’s shore and near the stream which ends in it.
It seems that the Curruhuinca cacique (chief) wasn’t glad to
be stripped off the “Chapelco plain” (today Vega Maipú) too,
as it was their best winter pasture land. He was “persuaded”
by judge Serafín Galán Deheza, from Piedra del Aguila.
San Martín de los Andes lived it’s first 30 years under the
army rhythm- it was administrated by the army until 1907- and
exploiting the woods from Lácar basin.
On 1937 the Lanin National Park was founded and, on the 60’s,
it begun to limit forestall activities. When Chapelco ski
center and Sol de los Andes hotel were built, on the 70’s
decade, tourism begun to be developed, being today its main
economic resource.
Not allowed to grow towards the Nacional Park area, San Martín
occupied Vega Maipú, along the route towards Junin de los
Andes, Lolog lake and recently the land beside Hermoso and
Meliquina lakes too.
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Argentina:
Norte Neuquino,
Caviahue
- Copahue,
Villa Pehuenia,
Aluminé,
Junín de los Andes,
San Martín de los
Andes, Villa Traful,
Villa La Angostura,
Bariloche,
El Bolsón,
Lago Puelo,
El Hoyo,
Esquel,
Trevelin.
Chile: Pucón,
Villarrica,
Temuco,
Valdivia,
Puerto Montt
- Puerto Varas.
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