VOLCANOES, LAKES, ARAUCARIAS, etc...
(South CHILE)
A few practical informations

(New trip to South Chile - December 3 to 31, 2013)
(see here our 2008 trip and here our 2012 trip)

 

Maps

Chile is a very "long" country... Not easy to draw a map...
I stiched one, here.

The blue numbers are places where we slept. Roads we travelled are also in blue.

A few practical comments on our trip :

It is again to avoid the crowds that we chose to go to this area in December (December 3 to 31) : many local tourists come during the summer vacations, January and February. We went through some very touristic areas : Pucón, of course, and also Puerto Varas, but the tourist area of Villarrica is smaller, and the cities of Chillán and Los Ángeles are not really set up for tourism (except maybe during winter ?).

CHANGING MONEY :
- We took along as much cash as we dared (euros and dollars) in order to save on bank fees (ask you bank what fees they charge : usually, there is a fixed commission, plus a fee proportional to the amount drawn or paid : these costs may add up to a sizable sum, at the end of the trip)
- You must go to Casas de Cambio to change money, and not to banks (who do not provide this service).
- ATM are readily available - but we very seldom used them, and I am not certain that all ATM will accept foreign credit cards.
- In most hotels, you will not have to pay the 20% tax if you are a foreigner - and if you pay cash (dollars is best). Pay close attention to the exchange rate applied by the hotel.

TRIP SANTIAGO-LOS ÁNGELES:
We had considered renting a car in Chillán, but we eventually decided not to trust the local agency, which did not seem to be very reliable (Europcar is not present in Chillán, contrary to some information we had). As we had already made a reservation for a hotel in Chillán, we went to that town, and went on to Los Ángeles on the next day, to rent the car from Europcar.
We made the trip by bus (semi-cama), with Tur Bus (Santiago-Chillán) then JAC (Chillán-Los Ángeles). Approximately 6 h + 2 h. Prices vary depending on day and time of the day. It is impossible to make a reservation from outside Chile, but we had no problem making a reservation on the day previous to the trip, for the going trip. By making the reservation for the return trip as soon as we arrived in Los Ángeles, we could secure a seat on the first row, on the second floor of the bus, which is very nice. The buses are very comfortable, the drivers are very cautious, and the road has very few curves : excellent trip - much cheaper than driving a rented car. The bus stops briefly on occasions, to let vendors climb aboard, who offer sandwiches and drinks.

CAR RENTAL IN LOS ÁNGELES:
I made the reservation through the Internet, with Europcar. Their offices are not easy to find, as they are outside town, in an industrial area : we had to take a taxi.
639 000 pesos for 21 days (US$ 1161, or 849 €), not knowing for sure whether the CDW is included (in any case, the CDW is covered by my credit card)... The car (a VW Gol) was almost new, in excellent condition : absolutely no problem, even on dirt roads. This car is quite fuel efficient (gas costs about 10% less than in France). We drove 2680 km.

RESTAURANTS :
In Chile, fish and shellfishes are the preferred food. Both are excellent. Peruvian ceviche is a treat. Good meat is more difficult to find.
Contrary to argentinos, chileans dine early, in the evening - and restaurants close early. It may be very difficult to find an open restaurant on sunday night (and none on Xmas eve...). Prices are almost as high as in France. Restaurants around markets are usually excellent, and quite cheap - but they are usually opened only for lunch.

SANTIAGO

 - Hotel on arrival and departure (the only reservations we made in advance) : Hotel Montecarlo (Barrio Lastarria, in front of Cerro Santa Lucia). Area very quiet, close to calle Lastarria, where many restaurants are located. AC in the room (nice, when the temperature is 35°C...). Wifi in the room. Excellent buffet breakfast (included). Very friendly reception. 44 000 pesos (US$ 80, or 58,5 €) for a double room with private bath.
- Internet connexion (Wifi)
- Several restaurants close to the hotel (one in the hotel). Do not miss the Mercado Municipal, within walking distance : excellent restaurants (lunch only)

0- CHILLÁN

- Hôtel Paso Nevado (Av. Liberdad 219). Very nice, very clean, very friendly reception. 60 500 pesos (watch out : the exchange rate for our cash dollars was quite unfavorable, but maybe we did not pay enough attention...)
- Ask for a room on the patio (very quiet) rather than on the street.
- Internet connexion (Wifi)
- The only good restaurant we found is the Centro Español, on the Plaza de Armas. Excellent - and very reasonably priced..
- We found gas canisters for our camping stove a short distance from the hotel (El Vencedor, calle Roble).
- According to what we had read, we expected to find in Chillán the largest market for arts and crafts in Chile... Not so : the items offered are cheap commercial products, of a very low quality. To be avoided. But the fresh fruit and vegetable market is quite impressive.

2- LAGUNA DEL LAJA


- The road is paved until Antuco, and still excellent after.
- We did not like much the private campground located 7km before the park entrance (some sort of zombies were walking around...)
- The park campground was closed for renovation. But the Park Ranger told us that camping was authorized anywhere, and recommended us to pitch our tent close to the laguna, behind some big rocks which would protect us from the wind : the place is splendid ! (we were not alone, as we were there on a weekend, but the other tents were well hidden).
- Campgrounds are much busier on weekends.
- We made the Los Coïgues walk, among trees and flowering brooms. Very nice.
- The short walk to the falls is also very nice (Salto Las Chilcas).

3- LAGO RANCO

 From Laguna del Laja, we intended to drive until Cochamó, to take advantage of the excellent weather forecast, but we left a bit late, and we had to make a stop, in Lago Ranco.
- Hosteria Phoenix, on the lake shore : perfect. Very friendly reception. We even could dine there, even though it was getting quite late.

4- COCHAMÓ

We camped at the end of the dirt road, in order to leave early in the morning for La Junta.
- The campground is a bit primitive, but OK for one night.
- Don Claudio, the very nice owner, advised us to rent horses for the trip, particularly since we had only small backpacks to carry our camping gear. Claudio called Ciro to arrange the trip.
- The path to La Junta is not very steep, but the path is not well marked, and heavily gouged by the (frequent) rains and the horses. Approximately 3h (with a horse), 13 km.

5- LA JUNTA

- Fantastic lawn, surrounded with steep granite cliffs, not unlike Yosemite Valley (and just as high !).
- Shelter, restrooms, showers (almost warm !) : a delight ! (and, of course, very few people...)
- There is also a refugio, a few minutes away, where one can find food and shelter, but we did not visit.
- We made only one walk, Matelandia. Almost at the top, we turned around at a tree trunk on which we were supposed to walk across a furious torrent. The track is well marked, but one has to walk over roots, etc... : we hesitated to try other walks...
- Having found a horse to carry our tent, we went down on the next day, for fear of not finding another occasion (visitors are not very frequent, at this time of year !).
- The walk down was quite easy, the weather perfect : a delight ! Taking all our time (and many pictures !), it took us about 6 h.

6- PUELO

- Camping in a private campground, at the entrance of Puelo. All you need (shelter, clean restrooms, hot showers...). Excellent. But the "tavanos" came ! These enormous horseflies come out with the sun, and will never leave you alone. The problem is that their sting is very unpleasant.
- Internet connexion in the public library, in Puelo.
- On the next day, we drove to the boat crossing the Lago Tagua-Tagua, and we waited for its arrival, keeping busy with the tavanos... A couple of young chileans quit the fight and decided to go back to the valley. We did the same : a fisherman having told us that tavanos are scarce in Chiloé, we decided that it was a good time to go visit that island, particularly since the weather forecast was still excellent.
Too bad for the Tagua-Tagua valley : it looks like the place is beautiful... We should come back...

7- COCHAMÓ
(Actually, we spent 3 nights in Cochamó before driving to Puelo)
- Hosting in the house of Ciro Vivar, who led us to La Junta. The board on the roadside says that Ciro organizes cabalgatas, but in fact, he does much more than that. His site gives all the details. Ciro and his wife Ida treated us as if we were part of their family, cooking delicious meals, chatting for hours, etc... We left them reluctantly (after three nights !). The view on the Estuario Reloncavi and the Yate volcano, from his house (and from the sleeping room !) is breathtaking : it must be, by far, the best view from Cochamó. An address not to be missed under any circumstance !

Yes... A tiny village at the end of a 20 km dirt road, a farmer living essentially from his sheep and hens...

and yet, he has an excellent Internet connexion, and he knows how to use a computer...

8- PETROHUÉ

In 2012, we were a bit frustrated : after a glorious welcome by a superb rainbow, we had to watch the rain fall for hours... We could hardly see the Osorno volcano, yet very near.
In 2013; we camped in the "usual place"... and the weather was perfect...

9- PULELO Rural (Chiloé Island)

- Hospedaje Ariela Bahamontes. Perfect. Very nice, in the open country, annex to a school. 10 000 pesos p/p, breakfast included.

10- CUCAO (Chiloé Island)

- Excellent paved road from Chonchi
- The Park campground (privately operated) is superb. The tent sites are completely surrounded with trees.
- Few walks : we went to the Sendero Lahuén and the Sendero El Tepual, and we walked on the beach.
- On Sunday afternoon, a grilled lamb is prepared by the camp owner, a genuine "asado"...

11- TENAÚN (Chiloé Island)
- Hospedaje de Agroturismo Mirella Montana Perez. Very nice. Mirella also serves excellent meals. She was very busy getting ready for Xmas, and we could not talk much.

12- CURARREHUE

- We did not like much the Pucón campgrounds (the one located right at the entrance of the town looks nice, but we found it to be a bit too close to a busy road...). We then went on towards Curarrehue, then Puesco. And we found a dream place, not very well advertised on the left hand side of the road. It is located exactly half way between the two villages, 10km from each. Restrooms, hot showers, picnic tables, large shelter, etc...
- We walked to the Laguna Huenfuica (Sendero Lagos Andinos). The walk is very nice, with views on the Lanin volcano, but we were very frustrated with the laguna : the water was high, and access to the beach was impossible as it was under water.

1- LOS ÁNGELES

On the way in, we did not overnight in Los Angeles, as we only collected the rental car.
- On the way back, we stayed at the hôtel Oceano . Can you see it on the picture ? On the left... It is barely visible... But, inside, it is perfect ! Modern, very quiet. Perfect !
- Restaurant Italia Pizza (they have more than pizzas...) : excellent ceviche !
- Restaurant "Se llama Peru" (San Martin 327) : excellent peruvian food, very nice patio, and authentic ceviches (cebiche is a peruvian specialty).
- Restaurant in the municipal market. Also excellent (lunch only).



Contact