Huanquihue Group, Volcanic group in Neuquén Province, Argentina

The Huanquihue Group is a set of young basaltic stratovolcanoes in the Andes of Neuquén Province, Argentina, about 40 km west of Junín de los Andes, south of Lanín volcano. It lies south of Epulafquén Lake and north of Lolog Lake. Huanquihue volcano itself is eroded, while the El Escorial cinder cone was active in the Holocene; its lavas form a peninsula in Lake Epulafquen. The La Angostura cinder cone, with three craters, forms a peninsula separating Lakes Epulafquen and Huechulafquen.

The Huanquihue Group's activity is dated by tephra layers: a black trachyandesite tephra linked to Huanquihue yields ages of 4028–4212 BP, and varve counts in Lakes Villarrica and Calafquén tie compositionally similar Huanquihue scorias to a VEI-3 basaltic trachyandesite eruption in 1591. Oral tradition also reports an eruption at the end of the 17th century. El Escorial cinder cone has Holocene activity, and one of its tephras overlies a formation erupted 1400 BP.

The name Huanquihue is pronounced [waŋˈkiwe]. Oral tradition records an eruption at the end of the 17th century, and tephras in Lakes Villarrica and Calafquén, probably from 1591, match Huanquihue scorias in composition. The cone La Angostura, with three craters, forms the peninsula between Lakes Epulafquén and Huechulafquén.

The group lies about 40 km west of Junín de los Andes, south of Epulafquén Lake and north of Lolog Lake, with the Reigolil-Pirihueico Fault to the east in Chile. Access is overland from the Argentine side; the cones sit in open Andean terrain where conditions change fast. Plan for the weather and go with someone who knows the route.

The El Escorial cinder cone created a natural peninsula jutting into Lake Epulafquen through its ancient lava flows, permanently reshaping the region's water system. This geological modification demonstrates how volcanic activity fundamentally altered the landscape and water distribution of the surrounding area.