Llifen to La Junta

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After our pleasant stay in Valdivia, we headed east to Lago Ranco for a short climbing trip outside the village of Llifen. The drive along the lake was among the most beautiful any of us have ever done. The access to the climbing area was through a hot springs, which was undergoing some construction, and after we chatted with the guys for a couple minutes we made our way down the dirt and grass road to the crag. We got very humbled by our first few climbs. Comments like ”This looks like an easy climb” quickly turned into grunts and groans as we got picked apart by the overhanging walls. Seemingly perfect in-cuts turned out to be nasty slopers. Into the afternoon we met a nice elderly rancher whose property we were on. He welcomed us and was excited to tell us about the land. After a tough day we headed down the road to find a camp site, after some beautiful side road exploration we stumbled into a nice green patch protect by trees and set up camp. We returned the next day hopeful for some more success. The old man greeted us early as he was watering his cows by the rock wall as we crossed gracefully on logs strategically placed throughout the muddy bog. With an exorbitant amount of coffee in our veins we were excited for the day ahead. The wall provided us with more fun, and we all took advantage of the creative routes. We climbed all day and, well, we drank coffee all day. Hydrate or die. That night we cruised to a riverside campsite outside of the town Rio Bueno. The next day (October 14^th) was a big travel day. Driving to Puerto Montt, loading up on Pan, then continuing south to a ferry which took us across a fjord and landed us on a gravel road 40 kms North of Hornopiren; our destination for the night. We drove all around the area before settling in at a riverfront campsite. Although we didn’t fancy the 5,000 peso charge for camping on this lady’s property, we quickly forgot about it as we jumped in the river and set up a fun slackline. The sound of the river was beautiful as we built a big fire to roast our newly acquired hot-dogs. Stuffed in a piece of bread and topped with cheese, onions, and mayo; the meal was delicious and we all ate big that night. The morning was cold as we broke camp and headed for the ferry. Games of rummy and hackey-sack sessions passed the time til we boarded the ferry set for Parque Pumalin, just north of Chaiten. Once on board we met a nice guy from Colorado who knew a lot about the area and filled us in with some good tips. We also met some nice lads from the university who were very interested in our plans down here. More games of rummy followed until we reached our final destination. The surrounding area was dense with green forest and the clouds were sitting low this afternoon. We pulled into the first side road which turned out to be a great campsite with the river nearby and picnic tables set up under small wooden shelters. We hiked to a waterfall that evening, then cooked up a typical meal of rice and beans with obnoxious globs of hot sauce. Morgan and Joe slung up their hammocks in the shelter, while Lucas slept soundly under them. Until Next time.

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Photos

COFFEE
One of our many cups of Coffee at Llifen

Climbing at Llifen
Luke climbing one of the better routes at Llifen

Rummy for days
Playing rummy in the van on the ferry to Chaiten

Slacking in Hornopiren
Slacklining at our camp near Hornopiren while waiting for the ferry.