Biking the Carretera Austral- Week 3

12/20-12/26

Day 15

We began the day around 8 am, eating a quick breakfast and washing it down with some coffee. We were only 5-10 km past the hot springs from the day before. We checked the tide table and it was supposed to be low tide until 10. We decided it was too cool of an opportunity to miss and that we would ride back to them. 

It was a misty, cloudy morning but I was able to sneak a peak at the hanging glacier in the near distance before it was permanently covered by clouds. We hopped on our unloaded bikes and rode through the steady rain. I sped down the road as quickly as I could in an attempt to warm myself up. I only wore my crocs, shorts and my rain coat over my bathing suit. I figured there was no point in getting all my clothes wet before I even started biking north. 

It could have been perceived as such a miserable day. Yet, it felt so fun to be speeding down the road on a mission. It was a neat perspective retracing some kilometers and getting to ride in between the sea and cliffs of constant waterfalls. 

When we arrived there were three Chilean women in the hot springs. It wasn’t as hot as I would have liked but it was super cool. It was just this line of rocks separating this thermal area from the sea. Across the channel there were mountains with low hanging clouds clinging to the sides. The pool was directly under some trees with green moss providing a bit of shelter from the rain. There were thermals of bubbles coming up from the ground and we all circled around those various warm areas. The French couple also returned and it was a tight squeeze for all of us. It was kind of humorous to be out there on such a rainy day all huddled in a luke warm pool of water, trying to catch the heat of the thermals being released. An hour or so later the tide starting coming in, and with it, colder water. One by one we begrudgingly got out and back on the bikes. 

Nick and I took our time packing up our things and left the campsite a bit after 12, unsure of how far we would go that day. It depended on the weather and our ambitions and tolerance for misery.  

We rode 20/25 km to Puyhuapi, riding along the coast in the constant rain. At one point the skies really opened up and it came down rather hard for about 20 minutes, leaving us entirely soaked to the bone. It was a really unique and charming section of road despite how wet it was. 

Upon arrival we got out of the rain and ate some empanadas, then went to a fancier restaurant and ate this crab dip we had gotten back in Tortel. We met and talked with another biciclist, Sara, from British Colombia and then decided to bike another 35 km as the rain was letting up a bit. We bought a couple beers and some snacks and headed out. 

The clouds still hung low but the sun peaked out as the terrain changed to mountainous jungle. It was super nice riding through the rolling green hills of constant ups and downs. The beers helped us pass the time and kilometers and before we knew it we were at our goal. It rained a bit the last ten km but not too bad. We arrived at another paid campsite where we had a covered shelter next to a river. The woman had a massive vegetable garden and was super kind. 

Day 16

We rode an easy 10 km into town and drank some mate and resupplied a bit of food. We took a 2 hour break and left in the afternoon. It was another rainy day but not as bad as the day before. 

It was another beautiful day of ups and downs through green mountains. It was the longest day of the year in Patagonia summer. I could feel the end nearing and felt a bit sad about it. I love this lifestyle so much, the simplicity of it all. Eating, sleeping and moving myself forward. There’s something so primal about it. On one side it’s so easy, but on another it’s very challenging. The obvious physical challenge but then all the other things, feeling like there’s other things that your missing out on, missing friends, missing family. 

We ended up in a free campsite next to some converging rivers. 

Day 17

It was a late start to the day as the morning was filled with rain and we couldn’t bring ourselves to get up and out of our tent. We didn’t end up getting up until around 10/11, I ate my breakfast and drank my coffee in the safety and shelter of the tent while Nick had his by the river. We left camp around 11/12 and rode 2 miles into the town of Villa Santa Lucia. 

The Carretera Austral continued north but there was a side road that led to Futaleufú, a town renowned world wide for its white water rafting. We considered taking a side trip there but wanted to get more information before doing so. We ate some empanadas and mini pizzas and eventually found a rafting outfitter and made the reservation for the following day. It was one of the top ten places to raft around the world so we figured we couldn’t miss this opportunity. 

Finally around 2 pm we began the 77km to get to Futalefu. We began the day with some fun downhill sections although it was gravel and quite wet so a bit sketchy. We then rode along side Lake Yelcho which was followed by some ups and downs, riding through enormous green and cloudy peaks that surrounded us. 

The rain started 20/30 km in but didn’t last long. We were motivated by the potential of empanadas at km 15 but it turned into km 45, then turned into disappointment as the house that sometimes sold them did not have any available that day. 

After that we decided we were done with the day, it was around 5 and we had 32 km left and no desire to bike. We tried to hitch hike for a bit but there wasn’t much traffic. After a while we gave up and continued up the hill. A red truck soon was approaching from behind.-We have a mixed feeling about red trucks, as most speed by dangerously close with no regard for our well being.- But this red truck slowed and pulled over as we eagerly stuck out our thumbs mid hill while riding our bikes. 

It happened to be three boys from the U.S who were in town for a month to kayak the river there. They helped us load our bikes up and took us the rest of the way into town. Upon arrival, we ate more empanadas then found a secluded part of town to set up camp. 

Day 18

We woke up early to eat breakfast and go rafting! We went down some class 3-5 rapids and it was so much fun. The river is so powerful but we had a very capable guide who made it super easy for us. It made me miss white water sports and gave me the desire to get back into them. 

After the river we had a big snack spread- (part of the reason we decided to pay the extra $10 for our rafting company along with the free photos). We then returned to town and did some shopping and eating until leaving around 5pm. We biked to just outside of town and began trying to hitch. We were unsuccessful for an hour until a local offered to take us 15 km down the road. We accepted then started biking from there, hitching unsuccessfully for the rest of the evening. We made it about 30 more km. Near the end of the night Nick realized he had a flat tire but just kept pumping it up until we could find a spot to camp. Around 10 pm we found a spot to set up camp near a river and called it a day. 

Day 19-Christmas Eve

We woke up to a strong wind capsizing our tent. We got up around 7:30 knowing it would be a long day. We still had to get back to the route of the Carretera Austral and wanted to get 60 more km north to Chaitén to spend Christmas there. Nick fixed his tired after we got packed up and we debated hitch hiking for a bit but no cars were passing so we decided to bike. Just then another red truck came by and pulled over for us. 

The local Chilean fishing guide told us he was in a hurry to pick a client up from the airport and we loaded our bikes as fast as ever and were on the way. He was actually going all the way to Chaitén but we wanted to bike so we just had him drop us off at the interesection in Santa Lucia, where we got off the Carretera to go to Futaleufú. 

There was a group of boys from New Zealand who were biking down to Ushuaia. We hung out with them and ate a couple more empanadas and left town by 10.  We had a long long climb out of there that lasted two hours but the long section of downhill made up for it. Later, we continued slightly downhill for a while following rivers and cutting through forests. We were maintaining a great pace and stopped at a bridge for a snack then had 12 more miles to lunch. 

It was a hard 12 miles just because I was so tired and there was so much wind. We had a quick lunch in the parking lot of the national park, as it seemed that it was closed that day. Then we left to do the last 10/15 miles into Chaitén. 

It was such a beautiful ride into town, the mountains were enormous. My butt was hurting so bad though so it felt like it was taking forever as I maintained a standing position for the entirety of the bike ride into town. 

We arrived at 4pm and my first order of business was to lie in the grass in defeat. We then looked and found a spot to stay for the next two nights. We wanted a hostel with other people to celebrate Christmas with but couldn’t exactly find what we were looking for. We got a spot with some other people but were on our own for Christmas dinner. We got some food to make for the next couple days and I enjoyed a walk down to the beach and looking out at the ocean. Chaitén is a super neat town with huge volcanoes in the back and sitting right on the ocean. 

Day 20- Christmas

We enjoyed sleeping inside and having a big breakfast of eggs and potatoes and a relaxed morning. We drank a bunch of coffee, watched some Christmas movies, and exchanged gifts. Later, we made a delicious Christmas dinner consisting of ribs and vegetables and enjoyed being inside for the day and night. 

Day 21

I woke up hearing a huge storm outside my window. I was so thankful to be inside in a cozy bed. I took a cup of coffee in bed and later packed my things. We made a big delicious breakfast, had some more coffee and then went to the supermarket to grab some last minute things. We put on all of our rain gear and got ready to brace the weather and left around 1. 

The rain took a brief pause as we began our day. We listened to an Elton John album that Nick had downloaded which helped pass the time.

We remembered there was supposed to be another roadside hot spring coming up and eventually found it. It was just a little pool on the side of the road, almost just looking like a ditch with little bubbles coming sprouting out. Putting a hand in, it didn’t seem to be very warm but we thought we’d give it a try. At first we just stood in it and it was super underwhelming, very luke warm at best. It started raining again and was quite cold just standing there. I decided to get in all the way as I thought it might be nice, but it was not very enjoyable. We got a lot of weird looks as cars whizzed by. We didn’t stay too long and it was rough getting out and putting all my clothes back on when I was cold and wet. 

The rain got a lot harder as we got back on our bikes. We were back on gravel for the stretch to the next ferry and had some climbing to do. But what goes up must go down and the climbing was followed by a big downhill. It was super fun but kind of dangerous with the wet gravel. All the water splashed back onto me as I sped down the road, leaving me wetter then ever and soaked to the bone. 

We eventually arrived at the port and there was a long line of cars waiting for the ferry. We had bought tickets for the morning and planned on sleeping there but got there just in time to take the last boat. However, they don’t allow bikes on the last boat of the day so we had to find a truck to take our bikes and another truck to take us across. There is a small ferry crossing then the cars must drive 10 km across an island, then a long four hour ferry crossing. Nick and I got to ride in a huge semi for the 10 km crossing. Then, as we waited for the second boat we finally changed out of our soaking wet clothes.

Once on the second boat, we went upstairs where there was a cafe and a bunch of couches. We bought a hamburger and then both passed out on the couches. It was already 9/10 pm. We woke up at 2am when the boat arrived and went downstairs to get our bikes out of the back of the semi trailer where we stored them. We waited for all the cars to leave the boat then pushed our bikes up the port. It was still raining so we found the first place with a roof which happened to be a coffee shop on the pier and layed out our sleeping stuff and went to bed.