📷 Laja Falls

Laja Falls (Saltos del Laja in Spanish) is one of the well-known Chilean landmarks. It is a group of 4 waterfalls located on the Laja River in central Chile, in the Bio-Bio province. There are many small villages and towns around, of the larger ones, you should focus on the town of Los Angeles, and in general the nearest settlement is Puente Salto del Laja (apparently arose around the bridge over the river, hence the name), the waterfalls are located very close to it and they can be seen even directly from the bridge — this applies in particular to the main waterfall.

The height of this most famous and highest of these 4 waterfalls is relatively small — 35 meters, you can see it in the photographs. However it is extremely picturesque and makes a great impression due to its width and canyon. The other three, located on other branches of the river, are 20-25 meters high. The second waterfall is located not far from the first (a little east) and was previously also visible from the bridge, but now it is covered by overgrown trees. It is accessible from the Hotel Salto del Laja. The way to the third waterfall, as I heard, takes about half an hour, and to the fourth, which is called Salto Chico, there seems to be no free access — only if you are a guest of a nearby accommodation, for example, the Cascada Salto Chico Camping Y Cabañas.

We arrived here in the evening and therefore managed to see only the main waterfall. You can look at it from different points, starting from the bridge, where you can see it from afar, then as you approach you can see at the same time it and a small gorge, where the water rushes, and then you should go straight to its foot and look from this angle. In hot weather, people swim here, but we were in a cooler time, so everyone just walked around. You can not come very close, but rather close to the place where the water falls. There are many large stones around, some of them, like this one, obviously had something cut out earlier, but now all the details of the images have been erased.

After the lower observation point, you should definitely climb the path higher and look at it from there. So, on the left side, you can go almost right up to the river, the fences fencing the cliff take care of your safety.

Oh, and by the way, I forgot to mention: even on the way to the very first observation point, you will definitely have to walk past the shops with local handicraft goods and souvenirs, so take care of your wallets: some of them are really very cute and cause a strong desire to buy and take home something - just for memory :)

It seems to me that if you visit all the waterfalls and take a leisurely stroll and even swim in the river, then it is quite possible to spend the whole day here. Or even spend a couple of days in a hotel, the windows of which overlook the water cascade.

It's better to watch the photos in high resolution.