With the program having ended, it was time to decide how to start the second half of the South American adventure. After some very minimal research and a general idea of wanting to see Patagonia, I decided to hitchhike the Carretera Austral - the single, mostly dirt road in southern Chile that connects most of the rural towns of Chilean Patagonia.
I arrived to Chaitén in the beginning of January, home of Parque Pumalin - the first major national park of Patagonia, founded by the creator of the North Face, Douglas Tompkins. Parque Pumalin is a wet, densely vegetated area that somehow boasts both giant, tropical plants and hidden mountain glaciers. Who says you can't have it all??
After Chaitén, I headed to Frutaleufú. Although it is apparently one of the greatest places to whitewater raft in the world, I stayed dry and just found a few nice hikes.
From Frutaleufú I went to Puyuhuapi, a cute fishing town right next to Quelat National Park, home of the unique hanging glacier. This suspended mass of ice is definitely up there on my list of favorite glaciers.
The next major stop after Puyuhuapi was Villa Cerro Castillo. By this section of the Carretera, the climate had totally changed and the humid, rainforest became a desert. Villa Cerro Castillo has one of the most popular hikes of Patagonia, and this 4,000 foot climb left me breathless in more ways than one!
After Cerro Castillo, I decided to backtrack a bit to go to Chile Chico. On the way, I stumbled upon a small town's festival where I learned about some local customs (gambling).
From Cerro Castillo, I started a couple-day trek into the heart of Patagonia National Park. This 30 mile trail through mountains, valleys, and glaciers was the perfect summary of everything Patagonia has to offer.
From the end of the trail, I hitched to Puerto Rio Tranquilo. From this little town on the coast of Lago General Carrera, one of the biggest lakes in South America, I took a boat tour through the Catedrales de Marmól, a one of a kind series of water-eroded marble caves.
After the caves, I continued south, making a stop in Puerto Bertrand. There I ran into a tv crew for a Chilean travel channel doing a series on Patagonia. They wanted to interview me, so I'll try to find it to show you when it airs hahaha.
From there, it was more or less a straight-shot to the end of the Carretera. Along the way, I got stranded at a ferry stop for the night with 7 other guys who had been biking the Carretera. One of my last hitchhike rides was with an incredibly kind family and their son Guillermo, giving me a final little reminder of why I decided to stay in South America in the first place.
One month and 28 hitchhike rides later, I finished the Carretera. I have just arrived to my next destination after 8 days straight of traveling and overnight buses. My next leg of the trip is in Rurrenabaque, Bolivia as a volunteer in an animal rescue. I plan to stay here for 6 weeks, so I can't guarantee another blog post for a bit... but I think you're all used to that by now
xoxo,
Colin
