Boarding the Chaiten-Castro ferry
March 4-12
The Carreterra Austral highway begins in Puerto Montt and runs 1240km to Villa O'Higgins in southern Patagonia. As far as I am aware, it is not possible to continue on from Villa O'Higgins towards Puerto Natales because the mountains of Torres del Paine are in the way. Therefore to drive the length of Chile you must take a dip into Argentina, and this detour starts well before O'Higgins.
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| At home in the car |
Not a problem for us as we were only planning to drive the first 240km of the highway, much of which is actually on ferries, before taking another ferry west to connect back to Chiloe island. A map? Sure...
Having left Puerto Varas on Friday morning, we drove through Puerto Montt to join the Carreterra and continue the 40 mins on to our first ferry, crossing the Reloncavi estuary from La Arena to Puelche. We stopped along the way to take a walk in the Alerce Adino National Park, a pleasant 3km route through dense, temperate rain forest, complete with boardwalks, waterfalls, and streams. We made it to Hornopiren and our little cabana in time for dinner.
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Alerce Adino National Park. Alerce is a species of cyprus tree.
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The ramp to our first ferry, liberally adorned with the evidence of the long corporate reach of our favourite beverage purveyors
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| You have to look hard to spot where we are going to land this thing |
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| Hornopiren harbour during a pleasant evening break in the rain |
Saturday was a day off and, new day, new national park, this time Hornopiren NP. There being not a lot of choice of trails, we took off, crossing the funky suspension bridge complete with inch thick steel cables and crumbling wooden deck, and headed into the muddy forested trail. Mud was the theme of the day. Constant, thick, wet mud. It seemed to keep the kids happy and preoccupied. The trail continues 9km until you reach a lake with a campsite. We didn't make it that far and caught only glimpses of the valleys and mountains around us. Nevertheless, consensus had it that this had been a thoroughly fun family foray, definitely enhanced by the pretty, clear river at the end where we could clean our muddy boots and enjoy some lunch.
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Mud
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| Mud? What mud? |
Sunday was a rainy day. The forecast called for 50-75mm and it seemed that we got all of that. This was to be our day of cruising northern Patagonia's fjords; a glorious sail through this majestic landscape. And it was, albeit with views restricted to a few hundred metres and a perpetual rain haze softening the dramatic outlines of the hills. I guess it is fortunate that the main channel was narrow enough that we could see both sides despite the rain. And perhaps we had the added bonus of endless torrential waterfalls crashing down through the steep, forested hillsides.
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| A day for playing with monochrome options |
After 3.5hrs the ferry docks at Leptepu, a tiny solitary ramp. From here everyone disembarks, drives in convoy the 16km dirt road to the other side of the penisula, boards the next ferry that takes a further 45 minutes to cross to Caleta Gonzalo. The torrential rain that had peristed all day abated shortly before the ferry made its final approach to the ramp but in so doing gave to way to a strong onshore wind. It took three attempts for the ferry to get into the port and a few disorietating moments as we sat in cars unable to see much but the sky and the steep hills towering above us. It is then an hour's drive on to Chaiten where we would spend the night, dashing into our cabana through the endless rain.
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| Blue sky! |
We received a message that our ferry the following day was rescheduled from 10am to 3.30pm which would give us a more relaxed morning and perhaps allow a little time to see the town if the rain let up. It did, so we walked up to the river and marvelled at the extraordinary landscape.
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The river's new course, somewhat encouraged by the large retaining wall
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In 2008 the Chaiten volcano, some 10km to the north, had erupted, not only sending a 50km high ash plume off into Argentina but also setting off a lahar, which washed through Chaiten, destroying much of the town. A lahar is a slurry of pyrotechnic material, laced with rock, mud and water. It buried houses, reformed the seafront, and left the river to find a new path through the town.
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| Horses, horses everywhere |
There is a small museum in the middle of one of the destroyed sections of town. Several houses have been left, partially submerged, roofs caved in, and a network of footpaths has been cut through the debris. At one point the government was planning to relocate the entire town, but a new administration committed to rebuilding on the original site, and here stands Chaiten today, complete with revamped ferry port and a beautifully developed waterfront promenade, with gazebos, playgrounds, exercise stations, and even a black sand volleyball court. On a sunny day...!
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The preserved wreckage of the destructive volcanic slurry
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| The newly developed waterfront... would be beautiful on a sunny day |
The ferry from Chaiten to Castro takes 5 hours and transports you from the northern outer reaches of Patagonia with its rugged, steep-sided, deeply forested hills and mountains, to a distinctly gentler lanscape. Chiloe is an island but between Chiloe and the mainland to the east lies the Chiloe archipelago so the ferry is never that far from land.
For part of the journey we were buffeted by headwinds and a sturdy swell, but as soon as we started navigating the narrow channels of the archipelago we enjoyed a sedate tour through a landscape that one friend of mine said was reminiscent of Wales. With the rolling hills, abundant farm fields, and kaleidescope of greens, I can see his point.
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| Dinner with a view on the Chaiten-Castro ferry |
Shortly before reaching these channels we were treated to a magical dolphin show, with a pod of maybe 30 appearing out of nowhere just a few meters from our starboard bow. They played and danced before apparently disappearing under the boat to continue their joyful journey south. That's where I saw them - hundreds of meters away in the distance! Having accompanied Toby to the bathroom, I was still washing my hands and missed the whole close up experience. I have Felicity and Crystal's first hand account to go by.
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There was some sizeable swell as we crossed the middle of the channel
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| Night falling on our 5 hour ferry crossing |
We planned this little road trip weeks ago as the ferries get booked up. I wanted to see some of this part of the world and the combination of driving a little of the Carreterra as well as cruising the fjords and crossing the Chiloe channel was really appealing. Despite the weather, it did not disappoint. We saw some of the small communities dotted around this landscape, experienced the ruggedness of the mainland and distinctive changes that emerge as you approach Chiloe. Perhaps the rain added to the adventure, valleys hanging under wisps of cloud punctured by cascading vertical rivers, the deep green of the forest rendered a near monochrome enigma.
We won't visit the northern deserts of Chile on this trip but it is extraordinary to think that we have seen so much variety already in much less one half of this country.
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