Chile: Northwards to San Pedro de Atacama
The journey from Valdivia to Santiago would be approximately 800km, but we chose to stop a little under 200 km before Santiago. Once again, we were worried about finding a hotel in the early evening, so we phoned a couple of hotels the previous night to check availability. The first was in the Santa Helena winery, but was fully booked already, so we called the Hacienda los Lingues who had vacancies so we made a reservation.
The drive from Valdivia was completely uneventful, however it was the first and last time that it rained on our trip! The journey probably took around 8 hours including a couple of quick stops for fuel and food etc.
Reception at Hacienda los Lingues
We arrived at the Hacienda and checked in. It looked beautiful and lovely place to stay and there were a lot of cars in the car park. After being shown to our room and ordering dinner (we had to pre-order), we went on an exploratory walk around the grounds and discovered that the vehicles belonged to a film crew shooting a pilot/preview for Chile’s next novella (soap opera). Perhaps we met Chile’s most famous actors, but didn’t know… We then met the manager and one of the owners of the farm. It is owned by the original family who still live there and run the hotel.
The unkempt vegetable garden at Hacienda los Lingues
After seeing more, we realised that the hotel wasn’t quite as nice as first appearances and various parts were a little neglected. The price was very for a luxury hotel, but the service didn’t really come up to this level. The dinner was ok, but my order was different from the menu. All in all, not a place I would recommend and the price they were charging.
Our room in Hacienda los Lingues
The next day we had to get to Santiago before midday to return the hire car and check-in for our flight to Calama (the nearest airport to San Pedro de Atacama and the city that supports Chile’s largest and one of the the world’s largest copper mines – Chuquicamata). We had pre-booked flights on Sky airlines, Chile’s second biggest airline after Lan Chile. The prices of Sky were much much cheaper than Lan. The only problem with them was that don’t except foreign credit cards on their website, so booking involved phone calls and emails. It all worked out well and I’d thoroughly recommend that others consider making the effort to do this.
The flight to Calama was about two and a half ours with one stop (different cities in each direction). Once again, this was uneventful and we were met by someone that was going to provide the 75 minute transfer from Calama to San Pedro. We had pre-booked this transfer, but I don’t think it was necessary with hindsight.
A typical shot of terrain around San Pedro de Atacama
The journey was through the desert on a good road. You leave Calama and go over a mountain range which takes you to height of around 3,400 metres before dropping down into the valley between these mountains and the Andes. San Pedro is at the foot of the Andes on the far side of the valley across the salt lake (more next post). It is a town based around a natural oasis whose water source is in the Andes mountains.
Chile: Puerto Varas and Valdivia
We arrived at Puerto Varas, avoiding Puerto Montt as guide books were not very flattering about the other city in the region, in mid-afternoon. In many ways Puerto Varas is similar to Pucon: it has volcanos (3 or 4 visible on a clear day), it is on the edge of a lake and it is also a popular tourist destination. However, I would describe Pucon as being a little more ‘up-market’, but Puerto Varas is a larger city and probably has more to offer. We had decided to spend 2 nights there.
We checked in to the Licarayen hotel. Once again we were concerned about finding vacancies and this hotel had had good reviews so were pleased to find availability. However, we found it a little simple and nothing special. Breakfast was again particularly uninspiring with instant coffee and a very limited selection. I think we could have found something better, but it was close to a beach and the town centre.
A view of Llanquihue lake with Osorno (left) and Calbuco volcanos at sunset
On the day we arrived, there was beautiful sunshine which allowed for some good shots of the Osorno volcano (the closest to the city). The above was taken on our first night. The next morning, however, we awoke to fog with extremely limited visibility and no volcanos to be seen! We were a little tired anyway, so took it easy in the hotel in the morning, but when the cloud started to lift we decided to drive around the lake to get closer to the mountains as Puerto Varas itself is quite flat and not terribly beautiful.
Salto del Petrohue with Calbuco volcano in the distance
The drive to Petrohue from the centre of the town was only about 50 km. The first half is flat and fairly unspectacular, but the last section is beautiful. Fortunately, as we drove the clouds continued to lift. About 5 km short of Petrohue the paved road runs out at Salto del Petrohue. Here there are a number of cataracts and falls, even though they are not particularly high the volume and proximity to the water makes them impressive.
The lake at Petrohue
If you carry on along the road you come to Petrohue where you can catch a ferry to take you to Peulla and cross the Andes to Bariloche in Argentina. This would be a beautiful trip, and one I would like to do, but we didn’t have time this trip. Maybe one day we will make it in the reverse direction from Bariloche. Despite not being able to make the crossing, we still found Petrohue to be very beautiful being on the edge of lake, close to Osorno volcano and the source of the Petrohue river that flows over the falls mentioned above. There are places to stay if you want. It is also possible to take a day trip to Peulla by boat from Petrohue, but as we arrived in the afternoon, it was also too late to do this.
The next morning, we left Puerto Varas to start the long (~1000 km) drive back to Santiago. We decided to stop twice en-route. The first would ideally have been around half-way, but we couldn’t find anything that looked interesting in our guide book so elected to stay in the city of Valdivia which is described as ‘cosmopolitan’.
A view of the river from our hotel
It was a relatively short drive of just over 200 km up the main highway with a 50km turning to the left (west) towards the coast. We mistakenly thought we would see the Pacific Ocean and a proper beach, but alas no! As for cosmopolitan, the only evidence we discovered for this was a Macdonalds and a Chinese restaurant. To say we were disappointed is a total understatement. The pictures may paint a pretty picture, but most of the town was very very different.
We stayed at the Naguilan hotel. The hotel was again clean and comfortable with a slightly better breakfast than a lot of the other hotels, but it was a 20 minute walk from the town centre and located in a poor neighbourhood with a dock for fishing boats a short distance away. Whilst I wouldn’t say don’t stay here as the grounds and hotel are pretty, there is a modern and what appears from the outside to be a much better located hotel in the city centre.
Elephant seal or Sea lion basking in the sun
The only other thing apart from an old submarine of indeterminate age and origin that I found interesting in Valdivia was a group of Elephant seals/Sea lions (I don’t know which) that played in the river close to a fish market and hauled themselves out of the river to bask in the sunshine.
Chile: Santa Cruz to Pucon
Following the previous night’s New Year’s ‘festivities’, we got up fairly early, had breakfast, checked out and hit the road around 9:30 a.m. for our 750 km drive south. Unsurprisingly, the roads at this time on New Year’s morning were pretty much deserted.
Santa Cruz is about 40 km west of Chile’s main north-south road 5 which is part of the Pan American highway. Rather than taking the shortest route back to this road, we allowed our GPS to direct us along some country lanes to join the main motorway further to the south. We drove past many more fields of grape vines, but also corn and other crops. I imagine that these crops were Chile’s main produce before Chile’s wine industry really started growing 20-30 years ago.
About an hour later, and only one small error in our GPS’s directions, we were on the main highway heading south at 120 km/h but still with a good 7 hours drive in front of us and no hotel reservation at our intended destination. We had read that this road was good, but I was sceptical, to say the least having got used to Brazilian roads. However, the descriptions were right, the road was excellent and easily up to european standards. From Santiago to Puerto Varas/Puerto Montt it is at least 2 lanes in each direction. The only ‘problem’ were the tolls. There is a toll booth about every 80-100 km and the cost for the whole one-way trip (Santiago to Puerto Varas) was something in excess of 20,000 Chilean Pesos (£25/US$40). Apart from comfort/petrol/gas/food stops, we only stopped once to see an attraction described as a ’small Niagra Falls’ in our guide book.
Salta del Laja
Salta del Laja is a waterfall about half way between Santiago and our southernmost destination of Puerto Varas. We had read about it a little before travelling and had been considering it as a possible overnight stop on the way back. However, we decided to stop on our way south. It was a good decision as the town is very small and extremely touristy. Despite this, the falls were quite impressive but nowhere near on the scale of Foz de Iguacu or even Niagra. For anyone taking a similar journey as us, I would suggest stopping, but only for a short break to stretch the legs etc. It is only a very short diversion from the main road and even used to be visible from the old road before construction of the motorway.
A view of Villarrica volcano from Pucon towncentre
After our stop, we drove straight to Pucon eager to find accommodation. We arrived at Pucon early evening and set about finding a hotel. The first place we enquired was fully booked so we started to get concerned. However, we walked around the main square and found the Hotel Huincahue which had a room. It was quite a nice place with the exception of breakfast which was put out (covered) the night before!
Pucon is a town on the edge of a mountain lake and in the shadow of Villarrica volcano. It is in a really beautiful location with some stunning scenery around. It is reportedly one of Chile’s main holiday destinations. Perhaps consequently, Pucon has a good range of restaurants. We chose an Italian, but found it disappointing. This was not unusual in Chile.
An early evening on Pucon's beach
Apart from the beautiful scenery, Pucon also offers a beach. However, as you’ll note from the picture above the sand isn’t golden, instead it is black from the volcanic rock. We didn’t feel tempted to go for a swim, but there were many who do. The other principal attraction in Pucon is an arts market where locals sell all types of things. It is found on the main square and was open the evening we arrived, but closed the next morning as we left too ‘early’ (about 11 a.m.). In fact, we discovered (different to Brazil) that the Chilean day starts late and ends late perhaps as a result of the daylight hours and being on the western side of South America.
Villarrica volcano at the end of the dirt road near Panguipulli
After a quick walk around the town to take some pictures (the ones with sun!), we drove the remaining 250 km or so to our ultimate destination: Puerto Varas. However, once again we decided to start the journey with a scenic detour via Conaripe and Panguipulli. About 40 km of the road was on a dirt road around a lake which we didn’t realise when embarking on it. I don’t like dirt roads much, but this one was suffering just for the views and in truth the road was in very good condition. However, once we were back on the main highway, the stunning scenery was nowhere to be seen. We got to Puerto Varas mid to late afternoon.
As before you can see more photos here and you can read Eneida’s account in Portuguese.
Our trip to Chile (part 1)
Having some time off and some air miles that were about to expire, we asked ourselves “Where shall we go?” Answer: Chile.
The next question was where, specifically. We decided that we would like to visit Santiago, the wine region including some wineries, the south for the scenery and the Atacama for its uniqueness.
Our first night, the night of 29th December, was spent in the Holiday Inn hotel adjacent to the terminal building of the airport having arrived at around 2 a.m.. The next morning, having picked up our reserved hire car (thankfully it was pre-booked as none of the companies had cars left), we drove around 200 km south to the town of Santa Cruz, the main city in the Colchagua Valley – one of Chile’s premium wine production districts.
We had decided to spend about 2 days here. The hotel we chose was Hotel Casa del Campo, a small family run hotel with lots of charm. The owners were incredibly friendly, even driving us to a restaurant as taxis were hard to come by. The only drawback with this hotel was that it was on the outskirts of town and you needed to drive everywhere which wasn’t so convenient for New Year’s Eve given the dearth of local taxis!
The town of Santa Cruz itself is quite small and doesn’t have a huge amount to do. But it does have wineries which are probably some of the best in Chile. Time only allowed us to visit three: Viu Manent, Montes and Clos Apalta, but they were all of differing character.
A horse pulled carriage ride through the vineyards of Viu Manent
The first, Viña Viu Manent, is one of the oldest producers of wine in the valley and has some of the oldest vines – its speciality being Malbec with vines dating back around 100 years. Formerly, its product was for private/personal consumption of the estates owners, but it now sells internationally as well as domestically. It is one of the smaller wineries, but probably my favourite. The tour encompasses the vineyards, history, a horse pulled carriage ride to the production facility through some vineyards and terminates with the wine tasting.
A view over Viña Montes winery and its vineyards
Our second stop was at Viña Montes on the morning of New Year’s Eve. This was the largest of the wineries we visited and was described by our guide as a medium size Chilean winery. Our impression was that it is more of a factory than a family winery. However, the wine produced here was excellent including an excellent Carmenere. The tour consisted of a van drive up onto a hill overlooking the valley and in particular their vineyards. The tour was followed by a trip around the winery itself including the underground facility where they play music to the wine ageing in oak barrels. As always, the tour concluded in the shop with wine tasting.
A view of the fermentation vats at Clos Apalta
The final winery was Clos Apalta. This is one of the newest wineries, but perhaps produces the highest quality wines which have received awards. Here the tour consisted only of a tour of the winery itself followed by tasting. The winery is built over a number of floors and the whole production process is done by gravity with the grapes entering at the top, being put into the oak fermentation vats, before being piped down into the cellars into French oak barrels. The entire emphasis here is on the quality of the wine produced. We finished this tour early afternoon of New Year’s Eve.
So, hot to celebrate the arrival of the new year. There were basically 2 options: the main hotel in the centre of town, or the casino a couple of blocks away. We didn’t fancy an expensive set meal in the hotel so elected for the casino, also having spent the previous New Year’s at a less than marvellous party in a hotel in Egypt. However, on this occassion, I think the hotel may have been a better option as the casino was totally empty. The party only started after midnight but we had to leave soon after the clock struck 00:00 as there was a long drive to Pucon facing us the next morning!
Steve
For more pictures, please see our gallery.
For Eneida’s account of the trip, please see the Portuguese version!
Must see places in Brazil
I’m often asked by friends and students “What do British people think of when they think of Brazil?”. I have to say beautiful beaches and women, carnival, the amazon rain-forest and crime.
Dealing with the last first, there is undoubtedly serious crime in Brazil, particularly in the big cities. However, and I hope it stays this way, I haven’t personally had experienced this. In fact, I’ve been told several stories about people going to the UK and having things stolen that weren’t stolen in Brazil. I think with some common sense and staying away from certain neighbourhoods, then there isn’t a huge amount to worry about.
Devil's Throat, Foz de Iguaçu
With regards my other answers, they are true, but there is so much more that Brazil has to offer. For example, the beaches aren’t just Copacabana, Ipanema and Leblon in Rio de Janeiro. Brazil has about 2800km of beaches and, in my experience, most of them are spectacular and many exceed the beaches I’ve seen in other parts of the world.
So, apart from the beaches, where would I suggest visiting.
Foz de Iguaçu/Itaipu
Itaipu Dam with spillway open
Foz de Iguaçu (or Iguazu in Argentina) should, in my opinion, be considered as one of the natural 7 wonders of the world, however, Itaipu Dam is considered by American Engineers to be one of the engineering world. Where else, within a few kilometres travel, can you see TWO such sites.
Foz de Iguaçu is a huge waterfall which is over 270m long, consists of upto 275 individual falls with a drop of approximately 82m. It is on the Iguaçu river which delimits the border between Brazil and Argentina. The Devils throat is quite spectacular. On the Argentinian side you can get almost to the very top of the falls, whilst from the Brazilian side you can take a boat and travel to the base of the falls.
The Itaipu Dam was ‘jointly’ built by the Paraguayan and Brazilian governments but was mostly funded and constructed by Brazil. It dams the Paraná River just above where it meets the Iguaçu River. The convolution of the 2 rivers marks the border between Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil, which is unique in the world as well!
The dam generates 20% of Brazil’s total electrical needs and all of Paraguay’s. It is possible to take a tour of the dam which includes the control centre, a drive over the top and base of the dam. If you are lucky, like we were. you can see excess water being released down the spillway, but this is only about 10% of the days.
For more pictures of both these sites, please see our photos.
Ouro Preto central square
Colonial towns such as Ouro Preto and Tiradentes
These are historic cities founded by the Portuguese colonizers which are in the state of Minas Gerais (where we live). They give a glimpse into early life of Brazil. In my opinion, many of these towns and cities are quite similar but a visit to one or more is a must.
Ouro Preto (black gold) is today on Unesco’s list of world heritage sites. It was the focal point of Brazil’s 18th century gold rush and gold can still be seen today decorating many of the numerous historic catholic churches. It is set in a valley and was once the state’s capital until Belo Horizonte was built.
Rio de Janeiro
Most people know of Rio so this is very brief. It is really beautiful city and has many attractions such as the harbour, the lagoon, Sugar Loaf, beaches such as Copacabana and Ipanema and of course Corcovada (where the famous Christ the Redeemer is to be found). There are many many other attractions, great restaurants. I currently rate Rio as my second favourite city in the world.
The above are all places we have visited. The ones below come highly recommended and are on our list of places to visit.
Fernando do Noronha
Fernando do Noronha is an island archipeligo about 350km off the northeastern coast of Brazil. In many ways it is the Atlantic’s Galapagos with the upwelling of water drawing much marine life. However, it doesn’t have as large a diversity of terrestrial animals as does the Galapagos Islands. It is regarded as the best diving in Brazil, a fact I have yet to test.
Bonito
A river in Bonito
Bonito is famous for its crystal clear rivers that are a result of a natural filtration. It is being preserved to keep its pristine natural beauty. Activities include walking/treking and swimming/snorkeling/diving in the rivers and caves to be found in the area.
Amazonia
The amazon is a river basin surrounded by rainforest and is located in the countries of Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Surinam and French Guiana. The region and diversity is so varied that I’ll mention only a few things that I’d like to see and do. In no particular order, see the confluence of the Rio Negro and Amazon river, swim with the river dolphins and experience the rainforest and jungle.
The Pantanal
The Pantanal is the world’s largest wetland covering an area of around 140,000 sq km. It is renowned for its bio-diversity. It is also easier to spot the wildlife in the Pantanal than in the Amazon as there are less hiding places. As Bonito, it is predominantly located in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul. There are thousands of different vertebrate species to be found there.
Lençoís Maranhenses
Lençoís Maranhenses
This is a region covering 1000 sq km of in the northeastern Brazilian state of Maranhão. Despite heavy rainfall, it is a region largely devoid of vegetation with many discreet sand dunes and lakes.
As and when we visit these places, we’ll write more.
So you see Brazil isn’t just Rio, beautiful people and crime. It has far more to offer.
20 January, 2010 | Written by Steve | Comments: Add comment