The road from Rawson deposits you onto a beach that feels like a neighborhood secret—because it is. While neighboring Playa Unión draws the day-trippers, Cangrejales remains the domain of locals who value elbow room over amenities. The sand stretches in both directions, punctuated by tufts of coirón grass bending in the relentless Patagonian wind that scrubs the air clean and carries the scent of kelp and salt.
“This is where Rawson residents escape the escape, a second-tier beach that values space and simplicity over spectacle.”
Crashing wave at sunset
You'll notice the families first: multi-generational groups who've claimed the same patch of shore for years, their windbreaks staked deep against gusts that can scatter napkins and flip hat brims. Children wade into the cold Atlantic shallows while grandmothers pour mate, the ritual as constant as the tides. The water temperature hovers around 15°C even in summer, bracing enough to keep swims short and purposeful.
The beach's appeal lies in its refusal to perform. No palapas, no rental stands, no amplified music—just the drum of waves on packed sand and the occasional truck rumbling past on the coastal track. Bring everything you need in a cooler, stake your claim between the tide line and the dunes, and settle into the unhurried rhythm that defines this stretch of the Chubut coast.
