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Volcano Osorno, Chile |
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March 2003
By the time we reached our first catamaran at Petrohue the sky was completely clear and the snow capped volcano glistened brilliantly in the sunlight. Azure sky, white mountain, emerald waters make this undoubtedly one of the most beautiful spots in the world. If we saw nothing else on this trip, we would have no regrets.
There are several islands in the lake that have secluded estates on them. Occasionally we caught a glimpse of an estate like the one on the left. Despite the steep grade, the clearing on the island on the right is a dairy farm. Imagine bringing in all your supplies by boat.
| Shortly after Osorno faded from our view the Puntiagudo Volcano appeared. The irregular peak is the result of its last eruption. |
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It was an ideal day for sailing. The waters were calm. The skies were clear and there was no wind save that created by the boat. I was totally relaxed on the upper deck watching the mountains silently slide by until we reached Peulla on the other side of Lake Todos los Santos.
The Lake Crossing between Chile and Argentina is series of three lakes. Passengers are bused between the lakes in short rides of about ten to twenty minutes each. The link provides more information on the Lake Crossing and more incredible photos of this beautiful area.
Peulla
This was meant to be a lunch stop but neither Myke nor I were hungry so we opted for a "Safari Tour" of the area on this strange bus.
| We officially crossed from Chile to Argentina and went through customs at this land stop. Massive Mount Tronodor with its twin peaks dominates the scene. The mountain is also unique because one of its peaks is in Chile and the other is in Argentina. |
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It was still fairly early in the afternoon but the mountains in this area were already casting long shadows across Puerto Frias.
Lago Frias is the shortest lake in the chain. In no time we arrived at Puerto Alegre bused to Puerto Blest and boarded our final catamaran to Bariloche.
Each lake is a bit different. From Puerto Blest we cruised a thin arm of Lake Nauhel Huapi that is reminiscent of fjords where mountains plunge into the water with no visible shoreline beaches. I struck up a conversation with Inga, a fellow traveler from Finland, who had been exploring Argentina since October 12th. I guess with the long winters in Finland this was just an overnight trip for her. When it got cool on deck after sunset we retired inside for a cup of hot chocolate. An insect had bitten Inga earlier that day and her finger was beginning to swell. Neither she nor I had our first aid kits with us.
We docked on the Llao Llao peninsula about 9pm. On our way back to Bariloche we passed a sign with a Welsh Dragon on it. We would check it out in the morning. Folks in Argentina don’t have their evening meal until 10 pm or later so we supped with the locals this night. Two 7.5 oz perfectly cooked tenderloin steaks with potatoes, a salad and bottle of red wine ran $7.00 total. It was one of the most perfect days ever.
