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Published: November 20th 2006
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It has been quite a week. Santiago was thoroughly enjoyable. There were a good bunch of people in my hostel and we had a couple of fun nights out. I also met up with old work buddy Ali Stewart and his girlfriend Sophie and had a nice meal with them, although we had to put up with the waiter cheekily mocking our attempts at pronouncing the items on the menu.
In my remaining time up north I managed to fit in a cultural festival in Santiago´s Quinta Normal park, where there were some good bands on show and some shockers, as well as a day trip to the coastal towns of Valparaiso and Vina del Mar.
On Tuesday I left the Chilean capital and took the night bus south to Pucon in the lake district. I was quite amazed by the quality of the bus and service on board. It was very luxurious with heaps of leg room and I had to simply sit back as a blanket was placed over me and then my seat pulled back into an almost horizontal position. Usually I sleep lousily on buses, but not this time. I arrived in Pucon early Wednesday
morning and looked aghast out the window at the pouring rain. It was absolutely chucking it down, so much so that it was with some reluctance that I got up from my cosy seat and departed the bus. When I got out, I realised that not only was it raining but it was also freezing cold. Some difference from the sizzling heat of Santiago. Then I began wandering towards the town centre trying to find my hostel, being chased relentlessly by a dog. There are heaps of dogs in Pucon, and it seems that they like doing nothing better than following me around everywhere. Anyway, the hostel was closed. In fact, Pucon was closed. I couldn´t find anything open, not even a cafe, so I found shelter by the tourist information centre and chatted to 2 Israeli girls who were in a similar predicament. Eventually I was able to get into the hostel and dry up.
Thankfully the weather did quickly improve in Pucon and in turn my impressions of the place transformed. It really is a lovely little place, albeit very touristy, similar to New Zealand´s Queenstown but smaller. And the location is stunning, right by the vast
Lake Villarica and surrounded by hills and the impressively imposing Volcan Villarica, covered in snow and shining brightly in the sunshine. Apparently the volcano last properly erupted in 1984 and when it does so again Pucon will almost certainly be obliterated. It remains one of the most active in South America, but has behaved politely during my time here. Even so, I have to admit to being alarmed by the occasional war-like siren going off in the town centre.
Various companies in Pucon offer the opportunity to climb the volcano with a guide and I decided to give it a go. So I was up at the crack of dawn on Friday and met up with the 6 others in my group, a Brazilian couple, a Danish couple, an English girl and a Kiwi girl. We were supplied with all the equipment we needed - sturdy boots, crampons, waterproof jacket and trousers, hat, gloves, ice pick and a backpack to carry it all in. Climbing the volcano was a major challenge. We went up in zig-zag style, and the higher we got the tougher it became. As the day wore on the ice was melting and the snow became
softer, resulting in a few clumps of ice/snow plummeting downwards, one of which actually struck the Kiwi girl on her leg - there was blood everywhere. At that point the guide told us to be careful of the ice, with the warning coming a little late for the girl´s liking. About half way up the Brazilian couple decided they couldn´t continue and headed back with one of the guides. Soon afterwards, the Danish girl also retreated with another guide, leaving 1 guide to lead the remaining 4 of us. It was a struggle, but I was determined to make it to the summit. Finally, after a little over 4 hours´ slog, I made it to the crater with the 3 others. The crater was smouldering angrily and inhaling the sulphur was not pleasant. Still, it was just amazing to be at the top of a volcano. The only disappointment was the lack of lava on display. After such a struggle to get to the top, I decided that I was damn well going to see some lava, and so I moved around the crater to a different vantage point. There I was rewarded with a firework of lava - it was as if the volcano was saying "there you go, now you can get the hell off me".
Coming down the volcano was tremendous fun. It took only 1 and a half hours. The reason? We slid down it. The guide explained to us the technique to use for sliding down, which was basically as follows: sit down on your bum, keep your legs together and bend the knees, and use the ice pick as a brake. Sounds easy enough, doesn´t it? Well, this was my first attempt: Sit down, notice helmet is loose, tell instructor "my helmet is loooooooooose!!!".... I was off, pelting down the volcano at a ferocious speed and with hardly any control. The ice pick had little effect, there was just no stopping me. Eventually I completely lost control and tumbled somewhat dramatically head over heels, ending up diving forwards through the snow, landing in a heap with my head buried. Remarkably I was fine apart from a couple of grazed elbows. Now, while I am sure that many of you dear readers would pay good money to see footage of me with my head buried in snow, I can assure you that none is available. After my initial disastrous attempt at body luging, I got the hang of it and absolutely loved it. Hurtling down a volcano was quite a buzz, and I can highly recommend it!
That evening Ali and Sophie had arrived in Pucon and so I went out with them to explore the not so lively nightlife. On Saturday I put myself again at nature´s mercy by going on a river rafting trip. This was a thrilling ride of a different sort, spent mostly clinging on to the boat for dear life as we rode through the rapids. There were a few hairy moments, not least when I very nearly fell out during one of the more tricky sections called the "Lionness".
So, I have aching legs from the volcano climb, aching arms from the rafting, but it was all well worth it.
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