Baker Channel, also known as Calen Inlet, is a channel of

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

located in the Tortel, Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Region. The Baker River discharges into Martinez Inlet, the northern part of this large estuary. It penetrates the mainland about and opens into Tarn Bay at the south-east corner of the

Gulf of Penas The Gulf of Penas (''Golfo de Penas'' in Spanish, meaning "gulf of distress") is a body of water located south of the Taitao Peninsula, Chile. Geography It is open to the westerly storms of the Pacific Ocean, but it affords entrance to several nat ...

. Merino Jarpa Island lies wholly within this great estuary, while at its mouth lies a group of smaller islands, called Baker Islands, which separate it from Messier Channel. Baker Channel also receives the waters of the

O'Higgins/San Martín Lake The lake known as O'Higgins in Chile and San Martín in Argentina is located around coordinates in Patagonia, between the Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Region and the Santa Cruz Province. General information The lake has a su ...

through the

Pascua River The Pascua River is a river located in the Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Region of Chile. In spite of being a short river, its drainage basin is the seventh-largest in the country due to the great size of the O'Higgins/San Martí ...

. The lake's far-reaching fjord-like arms extend approximately from lat. 49° 11' to 48° 22' S. Its north-west arm is that which drains into the mentioned river. The calving front of Jorge Montt Glacier, which is the northern glacier of the

Southern Patagonian Ice Field The Southern Patagonian Ice Field ( es, Hielo Continental or '), located at the Southern Patagonic Andes between Chile and Argentina, is the world's second largest contiguous extrapolar ice field. It is the bigger of two remnant parts of the P ...

, reaches the Baker Channel. A number of icebergs can be seen in this area. The channel marks the northern border of the

Bernardo O'Higgins National Park Bernardo O'Higgins National Park () is the largest of the protected areas in Chile, covering an area of in both the Aysén and Magallanes and Antártica Chilena regions. Management of this and other national parks in Chile is entrusted to the ...

, and is home to the Katalalixar National Reserve on Merino Jarpa Island.

References

Straits of Chile Bodies of water of Aysén Region {{Aisén-geo-stub

See also

References