South America » Roaming Ryan

Heading South

Chile, Transportation Comments Off

Apr 162011

Chile is a big country. It is certainly possible to travel by bus but distances are absolutely vast. Before I left on my RTW trip I researched mileage redemption options within Chile in hopes of finding a cheaper and more comfortable way around. As it turns out, British Airways has a very generous mileage award for travel within Chile.

Easter Island has long been on my list of places to see and, being part of Chile, is accessible using this British Airways award on their partner, LAN Chile. At the suggestion of some friends I decided to see just how far I could stretch one of these tickets. Surprisingly, the agents at BA allowed me to piece together a very elongated routing (over 7,500 miles!) that would not only allow me to visit Easter Island but also the far south of Chile. 20,000 miles and $59 in taxes later it was ticketed.

The first flight on this ticket was from Puerto Montt to Punta Arenas in Region XII of Chile. It is a relatively short two-hour flight and, provided it is clear, you are treated to spectacular views of fjords, mountains and glaciers. Upon arrival in Punta Arenas we immediately made our way to the bus terminal to catch a bus north to Puerto Natales which is the jumping off point for Torres del Paine National Park.

Chiloé to Puerto Natales

Chiloé: Touring the Coast

Chile Comments Off

Apr 132011

On our second day on Chiloé we woke up to a thick fog and piled on a heavy breakfast at the hostel. The rain had stopped and it looked like the sun was trying burn through the fog. We jumped in our trusty Chevy and headed east to find the coastal road that stretches from the port of Chacao (where our ferry from Puerto Montt landed) to Castro which is about half way down the island.

The dirt road took us through a hilly green countryside that was covered in small farms. We passed through numerous seaside villages and stopped to see some of the wooden churches and seaweed-covered beaches. It appeared that many of the homes were involved in the seaweed industry as they had piles of the stuff drying nearby.

Quemchi, Chile

We made it to Quemchi, about halfway to Castro, by the early afternoon and realized that our progress down the coast was much slower than expected. We made a quick visit to the mirador in Quemchi to get a bird’s eye view of the village and the fish (shellfish?) farming rigs out in the bay and then hopped on Ruta 5 for Castro.

Castro, the pricipal city on Chiloé (population 40,000), was quite lively when we arrived. We pulled into a parking spot right along the main square and only had to walk a few steps to the tourist office. We have been very impressed with the tourist offices both here in Chiloé and in the Lakes District of Argentina; they know how important tourism is and the materials they provide are very good.

The first item on the to-do list in Castro was lunch. We had heard that there were some nice waterfront restaurants down by the market so we headed in that direction. Within minutes we were sitting at a nice table right by the water-facing window of a stilthouse. After spying on the food on the surrounding tables I decided to give curanto a go.

Curanto: a big bowl of mussels, clams, chorizo, chicken, pork and some sort of bread patty. Served with broth.

Curanto is a hodgepodge of shellfish, meat and potatoes. Traditionally, it is cooked in a hole in the ground but I suspect that what I had for lunch was prepared in a stew pot. The enormous bowl included a very generous serving of mussels, clams, chorizo, pork, chicken and milcaos. The mussels were absolutely massive, definitely the biggest I’ve seen and were exceptionally tender. Certainly not the chewy sand-filled things I often get around Boston. In the end, I wasn’t able to finish the entire bowl but I guess that isn’t too surprising seeing that the three ladies sitting next to us split one bowl between the three of them. The meal was an exceptional value at 8 USD.

After lunch we visited the massive chuch of San Francisco which is the largest of the wooden churches on Chiloé. Next, we headed to another section of waterfront to check out the colorful palofitos which are traditional stilt-house.

Before we knew it our time with our rental car was up and we had to return it to Ancud. I was happy that I didn’t have to wash it!

Before…

…and after!

Castro, Chiloé Island, Chile

	The Andes as seen from Chiloé	Boat in the mist
The church in the village of Lliuco	Seaweed drying in the sun		Drying seaweed
Quemchi, Chile
		Curanto: a big bowl of mussels, clams, chorizo, chicken, pork and some sort of bread patty. Served with broth.
The palafitos (“stilt houses”) in Castro			Before…
…and after!

Off to Easter Island!

Chile, Transportation Comments Off

Apr 122011

It is 8:30am local time and we are sitting at gate 25 at Santiago’s airport. At 9:30 we are scheduled to depart to Rapa Nui, one of the world’s most remote islands. We will be flying in a shiny LAN 767 complete with winglets modifications and have secured some nice exit row seats.

Amy has informed me that the distance from Santiago to Rapa Nui is equivalent to the distance between Punta Arenas and Arica which are Chile’s southernmost and northernmost cities – 3760 km or 2336 miles. We departed Punta Arenas yesterday morning just after their first snow of the year and we are definitely looking forward to the warmer weather on Easter Island.

Stay tuned this week for posts and photos of our time down south which included a spectacular day at Torres del Paine National Park.

Lighthouse on a Foggy Night

Chile, Transportation Comments Off

Apr 122011

Colorful boats in Ancud, Chile

Ancud and Chiloé Island are absolutely verdant so it is no surprise that they get about 300 rainy days each year. Our first full day in Ancud was just that. Somewhere between a drizzle and a mist. The good news is that it was light enough to be tolerable for some sightseeing around town.

Wooden models of the UNESCO churches

One of the priciple attractions on Chiloé are the UNESCO listed wooden churches that dot the island. There is a nice little museum in Ancud that discusses the very clever carpentry techniques that were devised to build these impressive structures. Another draw of the island is the scenic coastline that is dotted with colorful houses.

Since we only had two full days on Chiloé, we once again opted to rent a car to see some of the surrounding countryside. Seeing the island using public transportation is certainly doable but it takes a bit more time. We picked up another Chevy Corsa (the budget car of choice in S. America I am learning) from a local rental argency for about 50USD for 24-hours which included a generous 450km. Our little hatchback included my newly-appreciated feature: power steering!

Pink fog as the sun sets

Despite the setting sun, we decided to make a dash for the Faro Corona (lighthouse) at the end of the Lacuy Peninsula west of town. We made it there about 30 minutes after sunset and found ourselves in front of a closed gate at a dead end in the road. A guy in a naval uniform came out and told us that the visitor center had closed a few hours earlier and that we should come back the next day. Bummer, we thought.

Just as we were about the jump in the car for the hour drive back to town, his commander leaned out the window of one of the buildings and shouted something along the lines of “oh, just let them in!” A short while later one of the officers was giving us a private tour of the facility. It was foggy and drizzly but that made the lighthouse even more spectacular.

We learned that the lighthouses are staffed by naval officers who are on a four month rotation. The man showed us photos of some extremely remote lighthouses where he had been stationed in the past. One of them was perched on a jagged rocky island somewhere in the middle of nowhere, only accessible by boat then helicopter. What a crazy place to live! In addition to maintaining the lighthouse and fog horns, the officers are also responsible for tracking ships once they depart for the open ocean. If they don’t come back on schedule then help will be sent.

Ancud, Chiloé Island, Chile
Colorful boats in Ancud, Chile	Penguina by the sea				The sun sets on our first day in Ancud
	Amy enjoying the view from the sunroom at the hostel.	Wooden models of the UNESCO churches		Some crazy carpentry
A kingfisher	Man gathering seaweed. He said it was for use on your hair or scalp.	Steamer ducks and gulls	Lawn mowers	Pile of sleepy dogs

	On the way to Lacuy Peninsula	Pink fog as the sun sets		Xenon lightbulb for the lighthouse

Across the Andes

Argentina, Chile, Transportation 2 Responses »

Apr 112011

4-lane highways. Welcome to Chile!

The day after our trip to El Bolsón it was time for us to cross the Andes to a new country for the both of us – Chile! One of the classic ways to cross is the famous “cruce de lagos” which is a full day of switching between buses and boats as you trace your way across the mountain range. Unfortunately, this trip is quite expensive and from what we read the quality of the experience is highly weather dependent. To save some precious pesos we bought a Bariloche to Puerto Montt bus ticket for about 30USD each from the ever-present Via Bariloche.

A foggy morning at the top of Cardenal Antonio Samoré Pass.

I had visions in my mind of a harrowing 14,000ft mountain pass on a gravel road but in reality the Cardenal Antonio Samoré Pass is pretty tame: below 1300 meters and beautiful tarmac the whole way. About an hour of the journey is spent on border formalities and most of that was on the Chilean side. Chile is very protective of their agriculture and import bans on fruits, vegetables and animal products are strictly-enforced. At the border they completely unloaded the bus and ran all the bags through the xray. Meanwhile they have a working dog sniffing the ins and outs of the bus. It was impressively thorough, I have to say.

Our bus on our boat.

Within thirty minutes of our arrival in Puerto Montt we were already on another bus headed south to Ancud on Chiloé Island. The total journey (8 USD) takes about three hours and maybe 30 minutes of this are spent on a drive-on, drive-off ferry. Cruz del Sur, the bus company, also operates the ferries so the timing is nicely orcestrated and wait times are minimal. The water crossing was smooth and we even managed to spot a few penguins. We pulled into Ancud around 5PM and made our way to an excellent hostel (Hostal Mundo Nuevo) on the waterfront that was to be our home for the next three nights.

Dinner at the hostel.

Bariloche to Chiloé Island
A foggy morning at the top of Cardenal Antonio Samoré Pass.	Amy crashed out on the bus to Puerto Montt.	4-lane highways. Welcome to Chile!	Our bus on our boat.		Penguins!
Pulling in to port on Chiloé	Hostal Mundo Nuevo – a wonderful waterfront hostel in Ancud	Dinner at the hostel.

A Day Trip to El Bolsón

Argentina Comments Off

Apr 092011

We woke up way too early to catch an 8 o’clock bus to El Bolsón. The small hippy town is a couple hours south of Bariloche and is known for its thrice-weekly market. We had to take a taxi to the bus station because we couldn’t find a collectivo going the right direction. There were plenty going in the opposite direction, much to my annoyance.

We had seats right up front which allowed us to enjoy the 20 or so feet of visibility thanks to a thick morning fog. The driver seemed to have things well under control though and we arrived safely right on schedule at 10AM. The market was supposed to start at 10AM but since this is a hippy town and an Argentine town, the schedule was a bit more flexible.

Amy had a vegetarian (calabaza) milanesa sandwich from the vegetarian sandwich stand.

After a bit of coffee and tea (and wifi stealing) at a nearby bakery we ventured out to check out the offerings. In particular, Amy was on the hunt for vegetarian goodies. She was a bit disappointed to find only one stand selling vegetarian food. Nevertheless, she turned up a nice calabaza (butternut squash) milanesa sandwich on whole wheat bread. I went with the more typical and popular fair food: papas fritas and empanadas.

After walking the market a few times to admire the goods, we decided to hike up Cerro Amigo to enjoy the mirador. It was an easy 45 minute hike and we passed some very nice mountain homes properly outfitted with horses grazing nearby. The view from the top allowed us to see the entire city and the mountains across the valley.

El Bolsón, Argentina
		What to do with a dead tree? In a hippie town, you carve it into a awesome sculpture!	Weird hippy contraption/art	Scenes of Patagonia captured on sugar packets.	Very large milanesa sandwiches seemed to be the most popular food item at the market.
Amy had a vegetarian (calabaza) milanesa sandwich from the vegetarian sandwich stand.	We saw walnuts on trees all over town.		Wood bowl carving
It is fall in El Bolsón	Amy’s dream house along the walk to a mirador.
A jeep with Alberta plates! Turns out that the guy has a website: www.theroadchoseme.com

San Martín de los Andes

Argentina Comments Off

Apr 072011

San Martín de los Andes proved to be a smaller and quieter version of Bariloche. Like Bariloche, it is situated on the bank of a nice blue lake and is completely surrounded by pine-covered mountains. I guess it doesn’t come as much of a surprise that the surrounding forests and parks are the main attraction.

A photo of me taking a photo.

On our first morning we climbed the Mirador Bandurrias for a view of the town and the far eastern end of Lake Lácar. It is an easy 45 minute hike from the edge of town once you find the trailhead. There are a couple houses near the top and an old lady that charges you a couple of pesos to enter (private property?) but it is certainly worth it. The views were spectacular and the old ladies’ goats were also fun to watch. I gave one a crab apple that I found on the trail and he seemed very pleased with it.

Volcán Lanín – 3776m

Later that day we hopped in the car and drove north to Lago Huechulafquen to get a peek at the Lanín volcano. It was late in the day so we opted to not enter the park (around $12 per person) but were still able to see it from the windy shore of the lake.

On day 2 in San Martín we headed west on a dirt road that hugs the north shore of Lago Lácar. The road goes all the way to Chile but we only wanted to go as far as Yuco Park to check out the lake shore. We rolled into the park in our tiny Chevy Corsa and discovered a couple dozen other vehicles in the parking area: all of them were SUVs. At first I thought that perhaps I had misjudged the quality of the road on the way in (it was dry and mostly downhill).

Arrayanes trees

It wasn’t until a few minutes later, when we came across a group of 40 or so American/Canadian tourists, that I put two and two together. Their guides were packing up their fancy catered lunch and they were all piling back into their SUVs. The way I had it figured, they were each traveling two to a vehicle. That’s an environmentally conscious way to tour a national park. Either way, after the group left we had the place more or less to ourselves. It was gorgeous.

San Martín de los Andes
The town as viewed from the mirador. A short 45 minute walk from the center.	…and the view in the other direction down Lake Lácar.	A photo of me taking a photo.	San Martín has a nice selection of dogs. Here is a particularly furry model.	The central plaza (either Sarmiento or San Martín, I can’t remember which.)
They have strange pine trees in these parts.				Volcán Lanín – 3776m
La costa de Lago Huechulafquen	The next day back on Lago Lácar		Arrayanes trees	More arrayanes trees
				Our own private beach
	A hummingbird! Check out what happens when he turns his head…	Yep, it is red when viewed from the front. Same bird.	The view from our room at Siete Flores Hosteria. Got this place for $40/night thanks to a groupon deal in BsAs.	Killer breakfast with all sorts of locally made jams.

Birthday Dinner

Argentina Comments Off

Apr 052011

My main: Trout Navarra

Last week, Amy treated me to dinner at a little place we read about called El Mesón in San Martín de los Andes. The restaurant is in a small house that is just off the main street. We showed up at 9PM, about the time the dinner crowd starts in Argentina, and found the place completely empty. We were eagerly greeted by the owner and shown to a table.

The Lakes District in Argentina is known for its trout so I wanted to have that as my main course. For the starter, we picked out some sort of toasted bread covered in smoked eggplant, red peppers and anchovies. The owner surprised us by comping a plate of salmon and trout ceviche along with some homemade mint liquor at the end of the meal. I was one happy (and stuffed) camper on my birthday! There are more pictures below (those of you reading via email subscriptions will have to visit the web site).

An entrada complements of the owner! Trout and salmon ceviche and caprese salad skewers with toasted bread.

I am sorry that there haven’t been more regular posts over the past few days but we have been very busy touring Chiloé Island here in Chile. I hope to pick up the pace over the next few days!

Birthday Dinner at El Mesón
One of the best restaurants in town is actually in a small house on a side street.	The dining room was ready for guests but we were the only ones that night.	Birthday boy considers the options.	Amy shows her sparkles…	…and is always planning. How to take over San Martín here.	An entrada complements of the owner! Trout and salmon ceviche and caprese salad skewers with toasted bread.
Our actual entrada: a big piece of toast with smoked/marinated eggplant and red pepper topped with anchovies.	My main: Trout Navarra	The trout was sauteed with garlic and topped with crispy ham. On the side: veggies and a twice baked/fried potato.	Amy’s main: grilled veggies	A cafe to finish and afterwards some delicious homemade mint liquor on the house. Almost in a food coma by this point.

Siete Lagos

Argentina 1 Response »

Apr 022011

After a brief one-night stay in Bariloche to get our bearings we rented a newish base-model Chevy Corsa. When I say base-model, I mean it. No aire acondicionado, no power locks, no power windows and, best of all, no power steering. Good times! On the plus side, it did have a Sony radio that could receive AM, FM and shortwave. Renting cars in Argentina is pretty easy with a US drivers license though you do have to be cautious of the prices. They may be higher than advertised (~10%) if you aren’t paying cash.

Setting out from Bariloche we followed the famous Siete Lagos drive to San Martín de los Andes. The drive is less than 200km but it took us a good six hours. Part of this was due to the fact that you have to stop every 5-10 minutes to enjoy the views. Another reason was the condition of the dirt road which comprises about one third of the route. We had to be cautious with our vehicle’s generous 8 inches of ground clearance through areas where there was construction. The great thing is that there were very few other cars out that day. Based on the number of companies hocking tours of the route, I gather that the road is packed with tour buses in high-season.

Along the way we quickly lost track of the number of lakes we had seen or their names so I’m not even going to try to reconstruct that for you. I think the photos below will give you the general idea though.

In the next few days I will be posting more about our time in San Martín de los Andes including my special birthday dinner. We are back in Bariloche now but will be saying goodbye to Argentina tomorrow as we plan to take a morning bus across the Andes to Puerto Montt in Chile. After a hopefully brief connection we will be off to the town of Ancud on Isla Chiloé.

Siete Lagos Drive
Ruta 231 heading north out of Bariloche	Our base model Chevy. Stick shift with no power steering.


		A lizard!

Bahia Bustamante: Wrap-up

Argentina 1 Response »

Apr 012011

One final post on Bahia Bustamante before the blog moves on to the mountains of Bariloche. We spent our last day at Bahia exploring the nearby peninsula in our tiny VW Gol. The terrain on the peninsula is quite varied: scrub land, sand dunes and tidal pools. There are also three landing strips, a solar-powered lighthouse and the ruins of many small buildings. The pictures below tell the story better than I can so I will just leave it at that!

It was sad to leave Bahía Bustamante but we had a bus to catch later that night from Comodoro Rivadavia. From a backpackers standpoint, Bahía Bustamante was definitely a splurge ($110/night plus rental car expenses) but we felt that it was certainly worth each and every centavo. We would highly recommend it to other travelers!