Tag: camping

Riding Stats (Link to Tom’s Strava)

Accommodations (daily mileage, elevation, etc.)

Route Tracker (track our southbound ride on a Google Map)

It rained again last night and the forecast is for rain today. As cyclists either emerged from tents pitched inside or mats and sleeping pads on the floor of the shelter, we were all hoping for the same – no rain.

Wayne (from the UK) who I like to call Mr. Ambassador of the Carretera Austral (this is his third time riding it) knows his way around the camp kitchen. He pulls fresh produce and kitchen gadgets out of his packs like a pro to prepare his meals.

Ralph the elder of “the brothers” made a batch of mate and shared. Mate is a Chilean loose leaf type hot tea sipped through a straw. Ralph taught us the art of mate – do not stir, and when finished, say “gracias” and pass. Don’t say “no”. Despite the look on my face, it’s very good. I taste a lemon flavor. Would def try again!

And in a moment not nearly as special as sharing a mate with the brothers and Tom, the camp kitty caught a mouse and proudly placed the dead creature at my feet while I was making breaky.😂

The ride was a bit tough on challenging climbs and rocks but the rain held off. Although we begin each day with prayer, we know it’s the prayers and encouragement from y’all that’s working for us. We give thanks for all of you. 😘

We rolled past waterfall after waterfall as the glaciers melted high above us. The clouds and gray day made it look like the mountains were weeping as streams of water flowed from the snowpack above. They were simply stunning. I’ll never forget it. And the flow of water is so powerful at times, it sounds like ocean waves. If you are in a car or on a motorcycle, you miss that.

Our last night on the Carretera Austral will be spent in a bunk house in an Eco Camp with an inviting cocina. Perfecto!

Click on the image below to view today’s video:

Riding Stats (link to Tom’s Strava)

Accommodations (daily mileage, elevation, etc.)

Route Tracker (track our southbound ride on a Google Map)

Our extra day was spent in Cochrane buying food and fuel for the last stretch. We also did laundry for the first time – and for the first time ever, PAID someone to do it. That’s what is done here if you need cloths cleaned quickly.

Southbound from Cochrane, cell, WiFi, electricity and supplies are sketchy. We are ready for the final push!

Today was nothing but pure Patagonia with majestic mountains, big water, blue sky and clear air. It might have been the loveliest weather day we have experienced since we started riding almost three weeks ago.

We are in Patagonia, and in a place after which the familiar clothing company was founded and named in 1973 by American climber Yvon Chouinard.

I remember reading in “A Wild Idea” that Doug Tompkins and Chouinard and a hand full of other guys who named their group the “Fun Hogs” set out to climb Mount Fitz Roy (located in southern Patagonia near the Argentina/Chilean border) and one of the most difficult granite peaks in the world. The successful climb of Fitz Roy and the hardships endured profoundly impacted Chouinard. It’s an unforgettable story – pretty sure there was a movie made as well.

For him Patagonia was wild and mysterious. It represented adventure, exploration and unspoiled nature soooo why not name a company in the spirit of a place?

As an aside, Chouinard and Tompkins were lifelong friends and in fact, Chouinard was with the group of kayakers on Lake Chelenko when Tompkins had his fatal kayak accident.

We have shortened our riding mileage to accommodate the rough riding surfaces – lots of washboarding and rocky gravel. Good thing is… there is less traffic so we are liking that.

We were having a bit of a time finding a place to camp this evening. Our first choice looked a bit sketch so we peddled on. Our second choice was a wild camping spot by the river (good water source) but it was too close to the road for comfort.

On iOverlander Tom discovered another camping spot up the road and we snagged it.

It’s a husband and wife operation and if only we could communicate with them in Spanish beyond simple phrases. Their lifestyle here looks so different from ours and I have so many questions. They warmly welcomed us and explained everything we needed to know in Spanish.

Being the rule followers we are we want to be sure we don’t offend or disregard their instructions or customs. Their smile says it all tho. I think we are “doing things right”

Thanks so much for your encouragement, comments and prayers.

Click on the image below to view today’s video:

We took the day off from riding bikes to rest, resupply and kayak! Austral Bikes recommended the inn where we are staying and they also offer kayak tours to and through the Marble Caves soooo hard to pass that opportunity up.

Lake Chelenko, the largest lake in Chile and second largest in South America, is also home to some of the most beautiful rock formations. In summer when the glacier fed lake is high due to melting snow, the caves are accessible by water.

Luis, our tour guide clarified that Lago Carrera and Lake Chelenko are the same however most prefer the name Lake Chelenko as the Tehuelche people who were here first named the lake as such. Chelenko means “stormy waters”.

We had an absolutely glorious morning to get out early on the water and want to share a short video from the visit.

The accompanying song is titled “Doug’s Theme” in memory of Doug Tompkins.

Riding Stats (link to Tom’s Strava)

Accommodations (daily mileage, elevation, etc.)

Route Tracker (track our southbound ride on a Google Map)

Just a short ride today but kind of a hectic one as we left town. We peddled alongside lots of airport traffic. In just a couple weeks or so, we will be in one of those shuttles headed to the airport. But for today, we peddled.

We’ve been told to begin stocking up on food and pesos since the farther south we get, the more remote we’ll be. Food will be harder to come by and cash is king (credit cards not accepted.) We had two things on our to-do list in Coyhaique and we weren’t able to get either done. 😫

Google Maps isn’t as reliable here as in the states. That’s been a bit of a challenge. Google Maps will indicate where a store or restaurant is on the route when there isn’t one.

We found a couple mini marts and made do but couldn’t locate a money spitter. It’s just crazy getting out of a big town and even a greater challenge with inaccurate Google Maps.

We rolled into El Blanco about 3pm, set up our tent and then headed to the only restaurant in town, a very small roadside food stand.

We weren’t at all sure of what we ordered but it was very tasty and the gentleman was happy to chat it up with us in Spanish. He spoke to us like we understood and we kinda did. A little.

Rain is coming in tonight and tomorrow’s a longer ride with the Cuesta Diablo on deck. Sooo…we may delay our start tomorrow.

Click on the link below to view today’s video:

Riding Stats (Link Tom’s Strava)

Accommodations (daily mileage, elevation, etc.)

Route Tracker (track our southbound ride on a Google Map)

New Spanish vocabulary word: ripio

The fire that Jose built in the wood burning heater in the community room was incentive enough to get out of our tent on this chilly 40 degree morning. Today would be our longest ride with the most elevation and on ripio (gravel).

These stoves/heaters are at the heart of every hostel and campground community room and common throughout Patagonian homes as well.

I made breaky in the community room while Tom took down the tent. We said our thanks and goodbyes to Jose and were on our way.

During the ride, again the mountains gave way to vast landscapes. We climbed a good bit getting to our highest elevation thus far on the trip and then bombed down some sweet descents. Tom got some good video on the GoPro today.

The ride got rough near the end. The “nice” ripio turned nasty with thick gravel and traffic increased throwing up a lot of dust and rocks. Not fun but grateful that wasn’t the whole ride.

Coyhaique is a major hub on the Carretera Austral and the capital of Chile’s Aysén Region. Almost every cyclist, hitchhiker, kayaker, and traveler eventually funnels into Coyhaique as it’s the last large city on the Carretera Austral south of Puerto Montt where the Southern Highway began. The further south we ride, the more remote it will be.

Although Coyhaique is surrounded by the most pristine wilderness areas, the city is among the highest in air pollution in Latin America due to the wood burning stoves. As such, the city has both a frontier and an urban feel to it.

It seems like it would be a good place to take a rest day but we are eager to get back on the road and save a zero day in case of bad weather. We’ve learned that Patagonia with all her beauty can throw challenging weather at us at any time.

Digs for the night? We went all in at the Patagonia House. It. Was. Spectacular. And in every sense of the word.

One more tidbit. I finished listening to the audiobook entitled “A Wild Idea” by Jonathan Franklin about the life of Doug Tompkins. Spoiler alert… Tompkins did wayyy more than found The North Face.

Click on the image below to view today’s video:

Riding Stats (link to Tom’s Strava)

Accommodations (daily mileage, elevation, etc.)

Route Tracker (track our southbound ride on a Google Map)

We’ve now got 500 kilometers behind us on the Carretera Austral, not quite half way but a milestone to be sure! And we’re not rushing through the ride.

Today was a day of changing landscapes. Yes there are still mountains that surround us but they have made way for plush valleys, ample forests and scenic river beds.

One of the best things about today was finding this fabulous campground. Jose was so friendly and accommodating; it was clean and his wife just opened a restaurant next door. Perfecto! Sooo tasty for our Valentine dinner.

There is a simple community room with a wood burning stove and kitchen.

Banos etiquette: we have learned (taking pics of signs posted in the Banos and using the camera app on Google Translate) toilet paper (no matter your bathroom business) should not be placed in toilets. Instead there are covered trash cans in the bathrooms. Also many times it’s BOYTP (bring your own TP). Hence the importance of a TP stash. Jose however has this huge roll of TP available for campers. TP stash preserved!

Lots of pics from today’s riding on the video below and our Doggo of the Day.

Tomorrow we head for Coyhaique one of the largest cities on the Southern Highway for a resupply and an inside stay.

Also, the Balmaceda regional airport is located near Coyhaique. Once we finish our ride in Villa O’Higgins we take a couple bus rides back to the Balmaceda airport and fly to Santiago and then on to Lima. So essentially from here on out, we will see the scenery a second time going the other way from a bus seat.

Happy Valentine’s Day to all!💖

Click on the image below to view today’s video:

Riding Stats (Link to Tom’s Strava)

Accommodations (daily mileage, elevation, etc.)

Route Tracker (track our southbound ride on a Google Map)

We continue to be amused by the laid back doggos that populate southern Chile. This is our Dog of the Day and he was waiting for us as we left our cabana this morning.

After a food resupply in Chaiten and once the rain ended we jumped back on the Carretera Austral about 11am. It was an easy day riding with a tailwind on pavement all day under cloudy skies.

About 12 miles past Chaiten we saw the iconic remains of a WWII-era plane.

It was the fuselage of a Douglas DC-3 military transport aircraft that made an emergency landing (not a crash in combat) in the mid 1970’s. The Chilean owned aircraft experienced a mechanical failure on a flight between Palena and Puerto Montt and the pilot managed to land the plane safely nearby. The plane was damaged beyond repair and was subsequently abandoned.

This site has become something of a roadside attraction and, over the years, the fuselage was even repurposed by a local resident as a small home after being moved a short distance from the original landing location.

So far Patagonia’s landscapes seem severe. The weather is fickle and the skies, meditative. It’s also mysterious, yet inviting. Patagonia you have multiple personalities.😂

We’ve planned an even shorter day tomorrow with two inches of rain forecasted, dropping temps and a mountain pass on deck that includes a 10 mile climb. 😉

Click on the image below to view today’s video: