Laguna Garzón - The most natural untouched resort near Punta del Este, Uruguay

Laguna de Garzón is the area along the coast that comes next to José Ignacio. The famous beach resort of Punta del Este, Uruguay, is said to begin at Punta Ballena and to end at José Ignacio, about 60 kilometers ahead along the coast (although the city of Punta del Este properly is just the city concentrated around the Peninsula.

The area called Garzón begins at the "Laguna Garzón", or Garzón Lake, some few kilometers after José Ignacio. The Laguna Garzón is the natural division between the provinces of Rocha (where Garzón lies) and Maldonado (where Punta del Este lies). Garzón also lies on the oceanic coast, but unlike the beaches from Punta del Este, these are huge peaceful and tranquil beaches where you may not see another tourist in kilometers. Nevertheless, the area I prefer to focus on now is the one on the opposite side of the road, around the lake. This is one of the very few beach resorts that still remain virtually untouched by urbanization. One of the reasons for this is that the people from Rocha have been complaining against the construction of the bridge, because they insist it would cause masses of tourists to flow into Rocha and thus transform it into another noisy city. So, although the Ministry of Transportation provides a raft-transportation from one side to the other of the lake for free (for people and vehicles), this still works like a psychological barrier for many tourists to turn around instead of going any further. However, the beauty and peacefulness of the whole natural environment is inspiring and unique. Just a few sand streets are made for cars to go around. For most of it you need a jeep. The autoctonus flora from that area is still virtually untouched, and the few houses that have been built there are dispersed from each other by a half a kilometer from each other, among the trees, sand dunes, forests and bushes. And usually they try have a privileged view of the Laguna Garzón.

The whole environment is also ideal for trekkers, because of it's natural beauty and the peacefulness. Although during the summer it gets too hot due to lack of tall trees. And during the winter it can get swampy and muddy in many areas, due to the lack of roads and infrastructure in that untouched natural beauty.

To preserve the environment and the cleanliness, it is forbidden to camp. However, as a trekker you can just spontaneously decide to spend a night there and then leave early in the morning, if you find a shelter where to lodge.