Killing Kilometres

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Woke up this morning feeling completely unmotivated. Spent the first 30 minutes just lying in bed thinking of ways to convince Chrisitie to pack her bags and head back to Tasmania.

When I broached the idea at breakfast however, she would have none of it though, so after procrastinating for an hour or so more looking up ferry timetables and airline schedules for a quicker, easier way down south, I eventually resigned myself to the inevitable and got on the bike. 9.30am ... not a good time to be starting a 100km+ day.

Today was just a day for getting to Chiloe. It turned out to be just under 80kms on a long, flat highway from Puerto Varas down to Pargua which is the jumping off point for ferries to Chiloe. It was fast, easy riding, though there was one spot where I went over 15kms without a single hill or bend in the road, and with a headwind that´s just a bit of a bore. There are also numerous shell fish factories along the road which helped keep you peddling fast ... you´ll know them because they stink like nothing else on earth. I´m sure they make pig farmers smell like florists.

No one seemed to want my money for the ferry (there´s a constant stream of them going back and forth and you just get in line and board the first one you fit on), so I got across for free sitting up the back by myself in the strong winds eating my meat paste, cheese and avocado rolls. Might not sound like it, but it was bliss.

It was another 34kms to Ancud, which somehow ticked by, although there was the obligatory headwind at the end. I was pretty weary when I stumbled into the hostel at about 16:20 ... I´d covered 108kms, averaging about 20kms/hr when on the bike. Good to see the legs have it in them.

Ancud seems a bit dreary on first impressions, but has a fantastic supermercado with a wide range of goods. Bliss. Hostel Mundo Nuevo where we´re staying tonight is also excellent. Christie tells me they´re booked out tomorrow, so much for my rest day ...


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Puerto Varas to Ancud, Chiloe
Distance: 109km, 7hours including 45 minutes on ferry. Total Distance: 703km
Weather: overcast, really strong winds from the North / North West.
Mood: From melancholy to mellow.
Route: All bitumen with wide shoulders. 15kms from Puerto Varas to toll booth outside Puerto Month, and then further 60km to Ferry Terminal (signed Chiloe). Last 34km very similar on Chiloe but a few more hills. Big hill just before Ancud (or I may have been tired) and ignore the sign which says 4km to Ancud near the top of this hill ... it´s 4km to the outskirts, then a further 4km up over a smaller hill and into the centre of the city proper.

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Photos

Proof!
I met a guy a few days later, who cyucled 110kms on his first day out from Puerto Montt. First time he'd ever been on a bike, and his last 50kms had been on dirt roads.

Today's dog shot
Christie and her dog at Casa Azul.