Cueva Fell, Archaeological cave in Magallanes Region, Chile.

Cueva Fell is a sandstone rock shelter carved into the walls of the Rio Chico canyon in the Magallanes Region of southern Chile. A natural ceiling of lava conglomerate forms the roof of the shelter, protecting the ground beneath it from the elements over a very long period of time.

The first excavations at the site began in 1936 and uncovered five separate layers of human occupation, each one belonging to a different period. This sequence showed that people returned to this shelter repeatedly over a very long span of time.

The cave is the type site of the Fell's Tradition, named for its fishtail points: leaf-shaped stone blades with a narrow, flared stem. Excavations from 1936 onward also yielded stone scrapers, choppers, discs, bone tools and several hearths in the lowest layer. The site takes its name from the Fell family, owners of the Estancia Brazo Norte where the cave lies; Junius Bird renamed it, having first called it the Río Chico shelter.

The site sits in a remote part of Patagonia and reaching it requires planning ahead and working with people who know the area well. Visitors should arrange the necessary permits before setting out, as access is not open without prior authorization.

Layer V, the oldest occupation level, held hearths and fishtail points of the Fell's Tradition together with bones of extinct species: the maned wolf (lobo guará), the ground sloth Mylodon and American horses. No human remains were reported from this layer. Radiocarbon dates place it between about 11,000 and 10,000 years BP.