Carretera Austral 1 (December 20 to December 31)

"Carretera Austral": A name like a mystery. In almost every overlander conversation about South America you will find it. And it is worth it. A fascinating and fantastic remote area in the south of Chile crossed by hundreds of kilometers on gravel roads.

We started our trip on "Carretera Austral" in "Chile Chicco". The "Carretera" is not just one road going North to South but has side roads, one coming from Chile Chicco. This part of the "Carretera" follows the Lago General Carera and it is fascinating from almost the first minute on.

After the first 150 km we arrived to "Puerto Guadal", a small village at the shore of the lake. Some 20 years ago, before this part of the "Carretera Austral" was built, this village was just reachable by boat. The pace there is totally relaxed, just in summertime a few tourists are coming enjoying the lake and the surrounding mountains.

Going further south, the Rio Baker is coming from the Lago General Carrera and is the leading stream down to the pacific ocean. It is famous for its turquoise color and sometimes very turbulent currents, a paradise for rafting tourism. Lots of other streams from the mountains and glaciers with gray water due to the sediments are joining the Rio Baker creating fascinating views, canyons, and waterfalls are present everywhere.

Finally the Rio is going to some fjords of the pacific ocean at "Caleta Tortel", a tiny village built completely on wooden walkaways between water and steep mountains.

This is a region with tempered or cold rain forest and consequently, it was raining when we were there. So, everything is green and fresh there, trees and plants are growing extensively, the clouds are hanging dark and deep, creating an amazing, obscure atmosphere.

After a walk in the rain forest, following wooden walkways and deep muddy passages, having company as almost everywhere by a dog aside our car, we turned around and went back on the Carretera in North direction.

We stopped in the village Cochrane, seeing a rodeo by chance, where two gauchos on horses are trying to bring down a cow in the arena, called "media luna". These arenas are found in almost every village.

Seeing, how the gauchos are "playing" with the animals and spectators are cheering gave same bad taste in the mouth, but on the other side, slaughtering for the "fun" of eating meat could result to the same sensation. The night we stayed at a small parking lot in front of a small ferry crossing the Rio Baker. Again we were fascinated by the color of this river and the ferry which is working just by the current of the water, without any external power supply. By clever steering and the fixation to a river crossing wire rope, the ferry carries up to two cars for free to an area where maybe just a few hundred people are living. The next morning we went into the "Parque Nacional Patagonia", one of the countless national parks in Chile (and also in Argentina) for a 20 km hike to several "Lagunas" and beautiful views to the mountains.

From there we followed again Rio Baker to the north for some hundred kilometers we drove already in the other direction some days ago. At the intersection where we came from Chile Chicco we went westward of the Lago General Carrera, finding once again a fantastic place for sleeping and enjoying the morning

before seeing the absolut incredible "Catedral marmol" close to "Puerto Rio Tranquillo".