Cerro La Campana
Encyclopedia
Cerro la Campana, the Bell mountain, is a mountain in La Campana National Park
in central Chile
.
The Pacific and the mountain Aconcagua
are visible from the summit on clear days.
Due to the area's expanding human population
, considerable deforestation
occurred on the previously heavily wooded areas of this mountain from approximately 1900 AD onwards. One of the significant tree species extant on Cerro La Campana is the Chilean Wine Palm, Jubaea chilensis; this endangered palm prehistorically had a much wider distribution.
When the second survey voyage of HMS Beagle
arrived at Valparaiso
on 23 July 1834, Charles Darwin
took residence ashore to explore the area. On 14 August he obtained horses and set off with a companion "on a geological excursion" to the base of the Andes
. They reached the Hacienda de San Isidro, sited at the foot of Cerro La Campana, and on the morning of 16 August after being given a guide and fresh horses they began their ascent. In his notes on the vegetation seen on the way up, including a sort of bamboo, he described the process by which sap resembling honey was obtained from the palms. In the evening they camped at a spring named the Agua del Guanaco, then on the next morning climbed the "rough mass" of fragmented greenstone to the summit, where they spent the day. A plaque on the path to the top commemorates Darwin's ascent. Darwin enjoyed the day thoroughly, writing "Chili & its boundaries the Andes & the Pacifick were seen as in a Map. .... Who can avoid admiring the wonderful force which has upheaved these mountains, & even more so the countless ages which it must have required to have broken through, removed & levelled whole masses of them?" All over the mountain he had seen attempts at gold mining, and even on the summit a small pit had been excavated. After another evening talking round their camp fire, they descended on the following day by a different route to the Hacienda, and continued on to Quillota
on their way to Santiago
.
La Campana National Park
La Campana National Park is located in the Cordillera de la Costa, Quillota Province, in the Valparaíso Region of Chile. La Campana National Park and the Vizcachas Mountains lie northwest of Santiago...
in central Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
.
The Pacific and the mountain Aconcagua
Aconcagua
Aconcagua is the highest mountain in the Americas at . It is located in the Andes mountain range, in the Argentine province of Mendoza and it lies west by north of its capital, the city of Mendoza. The summit is also located about 5 kilometres from San Juan Province and 15 kilometres from the...
are visible from the summit on clear days.
Due to the area's expanding human population
Overpopulation
Overpopulation is a condition where an organism's numbers exceed the carrying capacity of its habitat. The term often refers to the relationship between the human population and its environment, the Earth...
, considerable deforestation
Deforestation
Deforestation is the removal of a forest or stand of trees where the land is thereafter converted to a nonforest use. Examples of deforestation include conversion of forestland to farms, ranches, or urban use....
occurred on the previously heavily wooded areas of this mountain from approximately 1900 AD onwards. One of the significant tree species extant on Cerro La Campana is the Chilean Wine Palm, Jubaea chilensis; this endangered palm prehistorically had a much wider distribution.
When the second survey voyage of HMS Beagle
Second voyage of HMS Beagle
The second voyage of HMS Beagle, from 27 December 1831 to 2 October 1836, was the second survey expedition of HMS Beagle, under captain Robert FitzRoy who had taken over command of the ship on its first voyage after her previous captain committed suicide...
arrived at Valparaiso
Valparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
on 23 July 1834, Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
took residence ashore to explore the area. On 14 August he obtained horses and set off with a companion "on a geological excursion" to the base of the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
. They reached the Hacienda de San Isidro, sited at the foot of Cerro La Campana, and on the morning of 16 August after being given a guide and fresh horses they began their ascent. In his notes on the vegetation seen on the way up, including a sort of bamboo, he described the process by which sap resembling honey was obtained from the palms. In the evening they camped at a spring named the Agua del Guanaco, then on the next morning climbed the "rough mass" of fragmented greenstone to the summit, where they spent the day. A plaque on the path to the top commemorates Darwin's ascent. Darwin enjoyed the day thoroughly, writing "Chili & its boundaries the Andes & the Pacifick were seen as in a Map. .... Who can avoid admiring the wonderful force which has upheaved these mountains, & even more so the countless ages which it must have required to have broken through, removed & levelled whole masses of them?" All over the mountain he had seen attempts at gold mining, and even on the summit a small pit had been excavated. After another evening talking round their camp fire, they descended on the following day by a different route to the Hacienda, and continued on to Quillota
Quillota
Quillota is a city and commune located in the Aconcagua River valley of central Chile's Valparaíso Region. It is the capital and largest city of the Quillota Province where many inhabitants live in the surrounding farm areas of San Isidro, La Palma, Pocochay, and San Pedro...
on their way to Santiago
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
.
See also
- Adiantum gertrudisAdiantum gertrudisAdiantum gertrudis is a threatened species of fern that occurs in central South America. One locus of occurrence of A. gertrudis is within central Chile at the La Campana National Park.. A morphological trait unique to A. gertrudis is the hairs covering its fronds.-Sources:* Chilebosque * Michael...
- ChicaumaChicaumaChicauma is a mountain range in central Chile. This locale is noted for the impact of a large meteor noted in a report from the year 1916. The range is also termed Alto de Chicauma or Sierra de Chicauma. A portion of the Chicauma has been added to the La Campana National Park.-References:* Field...
- Cuesta La DormidaCuesta La DormidaCuesta La Dormida is a mountain in central Chile. Some of the forested mountain area of Cuesta La Dormida has been added to the La Campana National Park in order to achieve protection for the Chilean Wine Palm and other endangered species...
- Kageneckia oblongaKageneckia oblongaKageneckia oblonga is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to Chile. K. oblonga is an evergreen tree. It grows from Coquimbo to Malleco . Example occurrences are found specifically found in central Chile within the La Campana National Park and Cerro La Campana forest areas...
- Ocoa ValleyOcoa ValleyThe Ocoa Valley is a landform in central Chile located by the La Campana National Park. This valley is a locus where considerable archaeological recovery has taken place, yielding considerable finds of pre-European contact period...
- Persea meyenianaPersea meyenianaPersea meyeniana is a species of evergreen tree belonging to the laurel family, Lauraceae. This species is found in some forests of central Chile that face threats of destruction or deforestation; for example, P...
- Puya coquimbensisPuya coquimbensisPuya coquimbensis is a species in the Bromeliaceae family. This species is a rare plant found in certain portions of Chile including Punta Teatinos and Cerro La Campana. In La Campana National Park P.coquimbensis is associated with the endangered Chilean Wine Palm, Jubaea chilensis, which palm...
- Trevoa trinervisTrevoa trinervisTrevoa trinervis is a species of actinorhizal plant within the family Rhamnaceae; this dicotyledon flora is a shrub or small tree. The genus was first proposed by Miers in 1825, but was not fully described until 1830 by Sir William Jackson Hooker. T. trinervis is notable for its ability to fix...