Cerro Castillo
When waking up, always bad weather.
We take the road under a light rain which has the advantage of reducing the dust on the roads of ripio.
Despite this, the road is in very poor condition and we are very surprised that this road known to the world is so poorly maintained.
Once on the spot we go to the tourist office, where again the very young staff does not know their region. We are glad to have the traditional guides
The good weather makes its appearance during our lunch. Then we go to visit the " Museum-School " which traces over the years the life of the different tribes.
Then a short walk along the Ibañez river, leads us to stone walls that were the land of the Tehuelches
These nomadic hunter-gatherers inhabited the steppes of Patagonia 5,000 years ago. The rock walls still bear traces of their passage: hand prints made with pigments mixed with blood.
It’s not as impressive as the Argentinian site " Cueva De Los Manos ".
We stay there for the night where we enjoy a magnificent view.
Puerto Rio Tranquillo / Marmol
Before leaving this charming little village, we visit the "Maqui Falls".
To access it you have to pass between wires because there is no door ... The path follows the river through woods to the falls which form several levels.
Back in the village, we are stopped by roadwork . One of the workers tells us that access is closed until 3 p.m. It’s only 1:00 pm!
By chance, a car arrives behind us and once the driver is informed of the traffic stop, he takes his phone and a few minutes later the road is reopened ...
We leave immediately on the " carraterra austral ", always in ripio but of good quality.
The landscape is also beautiful and diverse.
We arrive at "Puerto Rio Tranquillo" to discover a village without interests. However it is an important step to visit the valley "Exploradores", for an optimal approach of the glacier of the lago "San Rafael" and the "Capilla de Mármol".
The weather is deteriorating in the afternoon and the weather forecast for the next 3 days.
We are looking for the two sites to visit. For the glacier " San Rafael " the excursion lasts 9 h (between bus, boat) and for the "Capilla " the excursion lasts 3 h (boat)
Considering that the weather is not favorable, that the prices are exorbitant and do not want to miss a site to see, we decide for the second.
We spend a quiet evening rocked by gusts of wind and some showers.
The next day the sky is dark grey and the lake is not inviting ... not great for an excursion!
We have an appointment at 9 am at the agency who gives us a blue rain cape and a life jacket.
Then we board our boat to reach the Cathedral and the marble chapel.
These are erosion-induced geological formations located under two islets. A magnificent spectacle that plays with the brightness of the day and the reflections of the waves.
It’s not raining, but the temperatures are low and the wind is freezing.
Back to the ground, being frozen , we take refuge in a small restaurant to warm ourselves. We order the menu " Del Dia ".
The rest of the day we spend in the camper to work on the site and videos
Puerto Guadal
Very quiet night and this morning as yesterday the sun is present.
We return to Cochrane, to take the southern carreterra.
The journey is hellish, the road in ripio is absolutely difficult and our companion suffers a lot.
We decide to stop early in "Puerto Guadal" to escape the noise inside the camper.
With panoramic views of the mountain ranges surrounding Chile’s largest lake, this is a must-see destination for fly fishermen.
Its position with its large sandy beach gave this village the nickname of «pearl of Lake Carrera».
Here as in other villages, our telephone operator, "Claro" is non-existent. We buy another SIM card from "Entel" that works.
When reading the various forums in this part of Chile, we can catch " Entel ".
Calluqueo
On the advice of our friends we plan to visit the " Glacier Calluqueo "
Located at the foot of Mount San Lorenzo, it is a huge mass of ancient ice descending on the western slope of the mountain.
At its base there is a beautiful lagoon called "plumbing" (result of the large amount of sediment that the waters carry from the top of the hill).
To get there, we drive on a road in ripio, not to make a change.
We pass through a fabulous landscape that follows the "rio" in a plain with mountain contours and snowy peaks.
But the most spectacular spectacle that is offered to us is the profusion of "Lupin" of mauve, pink and white color which forms a very colorful carpet throughout the valley and the foothills.
At the end of the road, we park and start the hiking trail to the glacier.
Our friends had warned us : the start of this trail begins with the crossing of a river with high flow ... On pebbles ... The water is cold and the passage very difficult.
We rise and begin our ascent towards the glacier. We do not go to the end but we approach it closely to admire this bluish ice cluster.
We spend the late afternoon admiring this magical place and decide to stay there for the night
Cochran
We disembark at " Puerto Yongay, hamlet of 3 houses.
We planned to go to "Villa O'higgins" and then to "Caleto Tortel" two small villages each accessible by a different road in ripio, rather narrow and steep.
It’s raining and the weather forecast does not predict an improvement for 3 days.
Knowing that we will be forced to return to Puerto Yongay on each visit, we decide to go up to "Cochrane" where the weather is better ...
The road in ripio is of good and bad quality, but the beautifull landscapes, that we cross aténus the difficulty of the driving.
Arrived safely, we find the "Fanny Family" welcomed us with a prepared lunch ... Super nice ... We end up at a glacier before splitting again.
We stay by the river for the night.
The ferry
Today the weather is gloomy, we finish our last purchases including shopping to replace our " clothes ".
As requested by the shipping company, we arrive at the port at 6:00 pm for check-in.
We are surprised, there are few campers and even fewer trucks.
We wait 1 hour and a half before the start of operations, It starts with the measure of the vehicle by a manager. Then, with the quotation, you have to go to the counter to pay the bill.
We have 1 hour to wait before boarding. We are among the first one to enter the ferry in reverse!
Gradually the ferry is filled and at 21:00 all vehicles and passengers are on board ... Our departure is scheduled for the next day at 5:00 a.m.!
Our neighbour tells us we can plug in electricity ... Good news, we’re going to save gas.
Around 1:15 a.m., the ferry is running ... The cruise can begin.
This cruise is not what we thought it would be.
During the entire crossing, the weather is very cloudy with untimely showers and strong winds.
We hardly can see fjords, hills or cliffs and the sea is a bit turbulent ... It tangue!
To finish in beauty, we are parked next to a truck whose protection and amarage straps tremble day and night by the violence of the wind ... Very difficult night for Christophe.
After the first breakfast we take in the cafeteria, we can have our next meals in the camper ... Like other passengers we will get our trays in metal " prison style " ... However the food is good.
Time is slow, fortunately we are settled in our camper van in which we can have a normal life.
It is not the same for other passengers condemned to sit on the semi-sleeper seats in the lounge ... Not really glamorous.
Departed in advance, we arrive with 10 hours delay!
We were unlucky, the "Fanny’s family" took the same ferry 6 days before us and the sun was there ... Which changes the atmosphere completely.
Laundry story
Laundry is part of our daily routine. Having no washing machine on board, we must wash our clothes either in "Lavomatic" or give them to conventional laundries.
In the first one we have machines available to wash and dry.
In the second one we give our laundry and collect it washed, dried and folded.
Prices vary from one country to the other and the quality of service is not always up to our expectations.
Before taking our ferry, we drop off our laundry in the morning at a laundry to pick up later that day.
At the appointed time, we go to the laundry and present our ticket. The manager brings us our bag.
We immediately notice that it does not contain our linen but other clothes.
She starts looking for our stuff in her whole store .... In vain!!!
We immediately understand that she gave our linen to another client. But which one? Impossible to know. When depositing she does not ask for a phone number, just a first name!!!
We decide to wait until the next day, hoping that the client returns our laundry before our departure in the evening.
The next day around 11:00 am we go to the laundry ... and what we feared most happened ... No one came to bring the laundry.
We ask her what the solution was ... Only one is possible ... Reimbursement of lost clothes.
We had already noted the missing clothes which allowed us to assess our loss.
We Immediately go to the shops to replace lost laundry by taking pictures of the labels. Back at the laundry, the manager reimburses us without discussion.
Puerto Natales
The rest of our odyssey continues in Chile along the "Carretera Austral" which goes up along fjords and lakes.
To join this raod, we have two options:
* Take Route 40 in Argentina and cross the border to "Villa O'higgins" : a trip of 1,000 km over several days
* Take a ferry that connects " Puerto Natales " to "Puerto Yongay " in two days.
We choose the second option.
Only one shipping company offers this maritime route created in 2016, with departures every 6 days. (cf: Chile cargo)
We have booked our trip for december 12th.
Meanwhile we prepare our motorhome for this crossing. We do a fairly complete supply for the following days and update the site
Carretera Austral
The mythical National Route 7, better known as Carretera Austral, stretches from Puerto Montt to Villa O'Higgins for a distance of 1240 km.
It consists essentially of a track made of "ripio" rather narrow and not always well maintained.
You have to take a ferry in different places to cross lakes or fjords.
An incredible variety of landscapes gives it an undeniable charm.
It is a concentrate of Patagonia: the Andes and its volcanoes, the Pacific and its fjords, lakes, forests and glaciers.
The construction of the Carretera Austral began in 1976, with the main objective of connecting the different villages of these isolated regions of Chile.
It was completed in 2000.
ROAD BOOK 194
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