On the road after Chalten, we headed across the boarder (via Paso Raballos) back to Chile and the Carretera Austral. This part of our journey is one that we were both looking forward to: this infamous road in Chile spans from Villa O'Higgins winding through Patagonia ending in Puerto Montt. The road is filled with auto, bike, and foot travelers and changes from paved to gravel roads over its 1240 kilometers. Many times we felt like we were driving through a postcard!
One of our first introductions to the Carretera was seeing the Rio Baker and its confluence with the Rio Neff. Kirk got out the fly rod and caught a beautiful trout for dinner!
We boated in the turquoise waters of South America's second largest lake, Lago General Carrera, to see the Marmol Caves.
A favorite side adventure was checking out Valle Exploradores outside of Rio Tranquillo. The road westward takes you towards one of Chile's ice caps (which you can't go on without a guide, apparently). We were able to get some great views though!
After a brief stint in the town of Coyhaique, we headed back southwards, this time via ferry, to Chile Chico to check out a climbing area we had heard about. On the boat over (which we made by a margin since we didn't have reservations!) we met Russian-born Canadian Artem and invited him along for the adventure. And, adventure it was! La Pyramide is a basalt plug that has been compared to Devil's Tower. It was certainly worth hiking the unblazed trail but the winds were brutal on the last (sleepless) night.
Heading around the Lago General Carrera again (still beautiful!) we headed towards Futaleufu which is another step off the Carretera, and totally worth it. We did a full day raft trip down the "Futa" with a team of expert guides. Unfortunately we don't have any photos because the camera would've been ruined in the class V & IV rapids.
Continuing north we took several ferries and drove through Parque Pumalin to arrive at Puerto Montt, where the Carretera ends.
In one of the books we have in our "library," it talks of the true journey: not without challenge, risk, and a little bit of the uncomfortable alongside and intermingled with beauty and joy. On this stretch of our trip we definitely experienced a true journey and adventure.
Continuing north we took several ferries and drove through Parque Pumalin to arrive at Puerto Montt, where the Carretera ends.
In one of the books we have in our "library," it talks of the true journey: not without challenge, risk, and a little bit of the uncomfortable alongside and intermingled with beauty and joy. On this stretch of our trip we definitely experienced a true journey and adventure.
