Maratón Acuática Los Flamencos

Across the flat inland plains of Buenos Aires province lies Laguna de Gómez, a six-thousand-hectare freshwater expanse. Here, in the Parque Natural Laguna de Gómez on the edge of Junín, swimmers gather for the Maratón Acuática Los Flamencos, an open water competition held in the broad, placid waters of this inland basin. While regional droughts have occasionally lowered water levels across the pampas shallows, the lagoon remains a celebrated destination for swimming, with an extensive surface that leaves plenty of room to navigate.

Maratón Acuática Los Flamencos: triangular laps in December

Organized by the local athletic group Los Flamencos, open water competition has been a fixture in Laguna de Gómez since around 2012. The event gives swimmers the choice of 500, 1,000, and 3,000 meters, catering to newcomers and seasoned endurance athletes alike. In past editions, the marquee 3,000-meter race was marked out as a wide triangular course, requiring competitors to round the buoys three times to complete their distance. Rather than an aggressive dash into the surf, the start here is typically a smooth, progressive entry from the grassy lakeshore into the calm water. Once the laps are done and the finish banner is crossed, competitors linger on the lawn right by the shore. The post-race scene is classic Argentine summer hospitality, where swimmers unwind together on the grass over shared bowls of pasta with arugula, cups of ice cream, and thermoses of hot mate passed around under the afternoon sun.

The Salado River basin: Laguna de Gómez and the pampas shallows

The area forms a central link in the Salado River basin, connecting naturally to surrounding bodies of water like Mar Chiquita, Carpincho, and Los Patos. Across this basin, the water is shallow, with nearby connected lakes like Laguna El Carpincho averaging a depth of just 1.5 meters and reaching 2.5 meters at their deepest points over a soft clay bottom. Swimmers move over this smooth bed without sudden drop-offs or deep ocean trenches. The lake's most famous inhabitant is the silverside fish, affectionately known across Argentina as the 'silver arrow', which draws sport fishermen to these waters throughout the season and shares the quiet shallows with long-distance swimmers.

From eighteenth-century Salado outpost to Argentine powerboating

In the 1790s, the strategic position along the Salado River prompted the establishment of a frontier military outpost that laid the foundations for the modern city of Junín. Over time, the defensive outpost evolved as the surrounding lagoons transitioned from working waterways into recreation grounds for residents of the pampas. By 1942, organized angling took root along the basin when a dedicated fishermen's club and pier were constructed on Lake El Carpincho. Competitive water racing soon followed: in 1972, Laguna de Gómez made national sporting history by hosting the very first six-hour powerboat endurance race ever held in Argentina.

Parque Natural Laguna de Gómez: 180-meter pier and waterfront asados

The race venue is anchored within the Parque Natural Laguna de Gómez, a municipal reserve covering more than 200 hectares that stretches across three kilometers of coastline along the lagoon's southeast arm. Projecting outward into the water from the park is a remodeled pier extending 180 meters into the lake, while the Club Náutico de Junín sits on the northwest roundabout, offering dedicated infrastructure for water sports including a crane for launching boats. A paved access road winds through scenic weekend neighborhoods to reach the water, where three marked routes—the coastal path, the fishermen's path, and the navigators' path—trace the edge of the lake. The park's mature woodland is an essential refuge, providing sprawling shade and shelter for daytime campers along the waterfront.

Dotting the grassy banks beneath the trees are dozens of public barbecue grills, where families and swimmers fire up post-race asados in true regional fashion. Thanks to its picturesque setting amid the lakes, Junín attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each summer, making this tranquil park on Laguna de Gómez an ideal spot to swim and spend a long weekend outdoors.