Ever since arriving in Chile, we have experienced difficulties in posting updates on our travels.
Therefore, we will wait until after our return home to post photos and descriptions of the amazing things we have done and seen.
Brief overview: We started on the archipeligo of Chiloe, where the highlight was kayaking at dawn on the Puntra River; then we went to the Lakes District, where the highlights were walking on top of Osorno Volcano (overlooking Calbuco Volcano, the one that erupted earlier this year), trekking around Lago Todos Santos and near the Cochomo Valley; and then flying, busing and vanning to the iconic Torres del Paine National Park, where we trekked among the granite spires and valleys for six days with a group of seven others who we now count among our close circle of friends.
Today is a travel day back to Santiago. Then tomorrow we depart for Easter Island.
If you have been following along, we apologize for the lack of posts. We promise to bore you to tears with some phantastic fotos once we return.
In the meantime, if we do not get the chance to post any updates before Turkey Day, know that we are thankful to count you as family or friend, and we wish each and all a warm holiday.
Sunday, November 22, 2015
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
Vamos a Chiloe!
We set the alarm for 6:30 a.m. ... and then overslept until 8.
We had one hour to re-pack, leaving our backpacking stuff in storage, scarfing breakfast, then catching our taxi back to the airport. In the meantime, we had a delightful conversation with a couple from Brisbane, Australia. In talking with them, we reminded ourselves that we want to visit their part of the the world for a scuba diving adventure.
With our backs and butts still sore from yesterday's flights, we flew yet again, first to Puerto Montt, and then to Castro.
Once on the ground, we drove (and ferried) to Achou, to see the oldest wooden church in the region. These wooden churches are part of the local identity. They may not have the grandeur of a cathedral; but they certainly have an intimacy that make them special.
We then drove the 90 minutes to our home for the next 2 nights in Chepu, on the northwest coast of the island of Chiloe. It's 15 kilometers off the Panamerican Highway, on a dirt road.
If you look up Chepu Adventures in the dictionary, you'll see a picture of heaven.
It overlooks the Puntra River, which was inundated by the tsunami following the 9.5 earthquake in 1960 (the biggest ever recorded). Since the river valley sunk 2 meters, the invading saltwater killed the local forest, yet the dead trees still stand.
Our hosts, Fernando and Amory are two of the lovliest people you can hope to meet. Funny, friendly, engaging and caring, their personal purpose is to live peacefully and with as little a footprint upon the Earth as possible. They are who we aspire to be.
They collect all their water from cisterns (it's probably the best tasting water we've ever had). Many of their showers have three-minute shutoff timers. All their electricity is generated by a wind turbine and solar panels. And they tell us often how important it is to simply stop, close our eyes and listen to nature.
Oh, and Amory is a great cook, and they serve rockin' organic wine. Our kind of people.
The next morning, we were supposed to go for a morning kayak through the sunken forest. But because it was raining, we instead had a leisurely breakfast, and then Fernando drove us the 6 kilometers to the coast and dropped us off so we could hike the massive beach and then walk the road home.
Imagine our delight that on a beach that is more than a mile long, we were the only ones. And we saw no other footprints. We'll let the photo do the talking.
We had one hour to re-pack, leaving our backpacking stuff in storage, scarfing breakfast, then catching our taxi back to the airport. In the meantime, we had a delightful conversation with a couple from Brisbane, Australia. In talking with them, we reminded ourselves that we want to visit their part of the the world for a scuba diving adventure.
With our backs and butts still sore from yesterday's flights, we flew yet again, first to Puerto Montt, and then to Castro.
Once on the ground, we drove (and ferried) to Achou, to see the oldest wooden church in the region. These wooden churches are part of the local identity. They may not have the grandeur of a cathedral; but they certainly have an intimacy that make them special.
We then drove the 90 minutes to our home for the next 2 nights in Chepu, on the northwest coast of the island of Chiloe. It's 15 kilometers off the Panamerican Highway, on a dirt road.
If you look up Chepu Adventures in the dictionary, you'll see a picture of heaven.
It overlooks the Puntra River, which was inundated by the tsunami following the 9.5 earthquake in 1960 (the biggest ever recorded). Since the river valley sunk 2 meters, the invading saltwater killed the local forest, yet the dead trees still stand.
Our hosts, Fernando and Amory are two of the lovliest people you can hope to meet. Funny, friendly, engaging and caring, their personal purpose is to live peacefully and with as little a footprint upon the Earth as possible. They are who we aspire to be.
They collect all their water from cisterns (it's probably the best tasting water we've ever had). Many of their showers have three-minute shutoff timers. All their electricity is generated by a wind turbine and solar panels. And they tell us often how important it is to simply stop, close our eyes and listen to nature.
Oh, and Amory is a great cook, and they serve rockin' organic wine. Our kind of people.
The next morning, we were supposed to go for a morning kayak through the sunken forest. But because it was raining, we instead had a leisurely breakfast, and then Fernando drove us the 6 kilometers to the coast and dropped us off so we could hike the massive beach and then walk the road home.
Imagine our delight that on a beach that is more than a mile long, we were the only ones. And we saw no other footprints. We'll let the photo do the talking.
Playa Aulen
Fernando and Amory
Monday, November 9, 2015
Bienvenidos a Chile!
Whew! After 11 hours of flights (and two hours in the Taxi from Hell) we finally made our way to our B&B in the heart of Santiago.
We dropped our things in our room, then walked 10 minutes down a quiet, graffiti-lined, street to a delightful, balcony restaurant overlooking a small square that is popular with photographers taking portraits of brides and grooms. Since this was a Saturday night (after the weddings), we got to watch two photo sessions from our perch.
We had what can best be described as Fancy Clams -- they were topped with parmesean cheese, broiled -- and very delicious -- then a mushroom pizza. Both paired with a $12 cabernet from the Colchagua Valley.
About the Taxi from Hell: Our recommendation to you is to spring for your own taxi. We made the mistake of taking someone's recommendation to use a shared van. What could have been a 20-minute ride turned into two hours, mostly because our driver didn't know where our place was, and therefore didn't know that our dropoff should have been the first one. As it was, with our backs and butts tired of sitting, we got a tour of several neighborhoods that most tourists don't have the "opportunity" to see.
When we got back to our B&B, there was a nice group in the living room and we struck up conversation. It turns out they are from Los Angeles -- and were leaving at 3:45 in the morning to take the very same Patagonia trek that we take next week ... small world. We told them to leave the good weather for us.
Sorry that it took so long for our first blog post. We've had some wi-fi challenges and other technical issues. We expect we've taken care of those issues, and hope to be in more regular contact.
Here's a photo from the balcony restaurant.
We dropped our things in our room, then walked 10 minutes down a quiet, graffiti-lined, street to a delightful, balcony restaurant overlooking a small square that is popular with photographers taking portraits of brides and grooms. Since this was a Saturday night (after the weddings), we got to watch two photo sessions from our perch.
We had what can best be described as Fancy Clams -- they were topped with parmesean cheese, broiled -- and very delicious -- then a mushroom pizza. Both paired with a $12 cabernet from the Colchagua Valley.
About the Taxi from Hell: Our recommendation to you is to spring for your own taxi. We made the mistake of taking someone's recommendation to use a shared van. What could have been a 20-minute ride turned into two hours, mostly because our driver didn't know where our place was, and therefore didn't know that our dropoff should have been the first one. As it was, with our backs and butts tired of sitting, we got a tour of several neighborhoods that most tourists don't have the "opportunity" to see.
When we got back to our B&B, there was a nice group in the living room and we struck up conversation. It turns out they are from Los Angeles -- and were leaving at 3:45 in the morning to take the very same Patagonia trek that we take next week ... small world. We told them to leave the good weather for us.
Sorry that it took so long for our first blog post. We've had some wi-fi challenges and other technical issues. We expect we've taken care of those issues, and hope to be in more regular contact.
Here's a photo from the balcony restaurant.
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