Magma

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We left Puerto Natales on 30 April and took a bus to Punta Arenas. This is another town in Patagonia where you feel at the end-of-the-world and stuck in time-warp. There wasn't much to do here, so we got another bus and travelled 28 hours north until we reached Osorno. Bri and me have decided to go our separate ways, so I headed to Valdivia, which is a tranquil student town in the Lake District area. I passed a day wandering around the local fish market. The fishermen throw handouts to huge sea lions that come right up on to the promenade. I witnessed a fight between two drunks. One of them was losing, so his wife came over with a wooden bat and proceeded to whack the other guy on his leg which happened to be covered in plaster. The police came over and let it carry on.

I then took another bus up to Pucon on 5 May, which is the adventure capital of Chile so I am told. The main thing to do here is climb Volcan Vallarrica, which I did today. It was immense. You have to go with a guide and be kitted out in full mountaineering gear: mountain boots, crampons, waterproofs, helmet, gas mask and ice axe. It was a 6 hour hike to the top and I was struggling to move one leg after the other - it probably hadn't helped that I did a 50km bike ride the day before. Once we reached the top, we put on our gas masks and had a look at the crater. The volcano last erupted in 1994 and we were told that we would be very lucky to see some magma. We stood poised with our cameras, waiting for something to happen. I'd given up interest and went to look elsewhere. Just as I turned away, the crater exploded. Huge amounts of magma came bursting up, I tried to get a photo, but amongst all the excitement, it came out blurred and mis-composed. Getting back down was a doddle. We strapped on what on can be described as an over'sized nappy and slid all the way down.

The next day I hired a kayak and worked my way round Lago Villarrica. The lake is almost perfectly still, so there wasn't much chance of me capsizing. It was such a peaceful day and I felt truly isolated from everything. That evening I went to one of the natual thermal pools in the area. I went to Los Polones and to get to the pools you have to descend into a steep valley, which is not easy in the dark, especially when you forget to bring a torch. It was the perfect remedy for aches and pains from the last two days. The water was 34 degrees and I stayed there for a couple hours, lying back and gazing at the stars.

My last day in Pucon. I went to hike around Parque Huequehue. The main trail goes through ancient araucania forests, passing a series of beautiful lakes. Araucanias are known as monkey-puzzle trees and are the weirdest looking trees I have seen. The branches resemble monkey tails covered in triangular spikes. I got back to Pucon and caught the overnight bus to Santiago.

11 hours later I arrived in Santiago. Chile has been burning a hole in my budget, so I decided to head back to Argentina and work my way up to Bolivia from there. I was in Santiago for no more than an hour, before catching a bus to Mendoza. It was a 5 hour ride which wasn't very enjoyable as I had to sit within earshot of a loud American woman.

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Photos

Kayaking on Lago Villarrica
Muy tranquilo