The Chilean Andes are a land of volcanoes and lakes
The waterfall was the largest I’d ever seen. I was sliding down a wire that was approximately 50 feet (15 m) in the air, and I was going about 30 miles per hour (48 km/H) through the trees.
A white light occurred, and I heard the roar of falling rocks to my left. However, it would be necessary to postpone the waterfall. The tree was approaching at me so fast that I completely forgot how to brake.
THE LAKE DISTRICT OF CHILE RESEMBLES THE SWISS ALPS
Canopy climbing, or “canoeing,” is a growing (though bit mad) sport in the Lake District of Chile. A region of verdant valleys, towering volcanoes with cone shapes, and emerald lakes, the Lake District may be found 650 miles (1,046 km) south of the capital Santiago at the foot of the snow-capped Andes Mountains.
Most of the area has a landscape reminiscent of the Swiss and German Alps. Since many of the first settlers were German and still speak German, it can also sound like that.
I found myself in the heart of Chile’s first national park, Parque Nacional Vicente Pérez Rosales, which was established back in 1926. And I was shaking with fear. Canopying is traversing a canopy of trees 40 to 50 feet (12-15 m) in the air by means of a climbing harness and two small pulleys tied to wires strung between the branches.
The term “canopying” refers to the fact that you are quite high in the trees, in the “canopy” of the trees.
For the following “station,” a wooden platform perched high on a tree, you simply sit in your harness and let gravity take its course as you slide down the wire for about a quarter mile (400 m), across streams and through forests.
Squeezing the leather clenched in your palm around the wire slows you down. It’s rudimentary, but it does the job.
CANOPYING IS AN EXHILARATING WAY TO SEE THE COUNTRYSIDE
One British competitor said of the eight-station canopy course that it required “more bloody courage than anyone has ever exhibited without getting a medal.” Completing the course takes an average of one to two hours. The advertising claims that it gives you “a good quota of adrenaline.” The experience is exciting and a great way to see the sights.
Wow, southern Chile really does have some stunning rural places.
The greatest inland width of Chile is about 277 miles (445 km), and its length is about 2,880 miles (4,635 km). We have a piece of land barely the size of Texas rolled into a pencil nearly four times the length of California.
On its eastern border with Bolivia and Argentina, Chile is separated by the massive Andes Mountains.
Cruce de Lagos, often known as the “cruise of the lakes,” takes travelers from Chile to Argentina over the Andes Mountains, and so, we had to stop by the national park on our route there.
The full-day tour features stops at three different lakes resembling fiords and being surrounded by volcanoes and waterfalls.
Motorcycle Diaries, released in 2003, depicts Che Guevara’s journey across these mountains. The indigenous Huilliches of southern Chile have been using this passage through the Andes for centuries. Later missionaries from the Chiloe Jesuits utilized this same lake crossing to get to their new locations.
In the early 20th century, a young Swiss explorer named Ricardo Roth Schütz recognized the tourism potential of the lakes route. It could take several days to row across one of the lakes, which was the only option available back then.
The current business run by the Roth family’s heirs has shortened the time it takes to travel the 188 kilometers (117 miles) between Puerto Montt, Chile, and the Argentine ski town of Bariloche.
It’s one of the most scenic routes in South America, yet most tourists can’t get off of their buses or boats to take photos. The settlement of Peulla, with a total population of 120, served as our halfway point and home for three nights.
PEULLA HAS AN END-OF-THE-WORLD FEEL TO IT
There’s a solid reason why Peulla feels like the end of the world. The location is not exactly convenient. There is only one method to get there from the west, and that is to take a boat across All Saints Lake (Lago Todos Los Santos), which is often considered to be the most beautiful lake in the area.
Two hours are required to sail across the lake, but the views are nonstop the whole time. Charles Darwin, while aboard the Beagle in 1835, witnessed the eruption of the volcano Osorno to one side. Looking in the opposite direction, you can see the 11,450-foot (3,490 m) volcano Tronador.
The two lodges at Peulla are located about a half mile (400 m) from the ferry terminal. Vicente Pérez Rosales National Park encompasses 2,512 square kilometers (970 square miles), therefore development in the town is restricted. Built in 1896, the historic Hotel Peulla features 76 rooms decorated in a Swiss Alpine style.
There is a great view from the bar’s outdoor deck, where you can sit and stare over mountains and hear the constant roar of a nearby waterfall, but the hallways and several of the public areas are a bit dreary.
The 260 annual days of precipitation combine with the rugged topography and relative isolation of the area to ensure that you are never more than a stone’s throw from a gushing waterfall.
In 2006, the 45-room Hotel Natura Patagonia, which takes its design cues from Switzerland, opened next door to the Hotel Peulla. The rooms are decorated with local woods and offer cable TV and WiFi, while the lobby is home to a wood-burning fireplace and floor-to-ceiling windows with a view of the Andes.
There is a fine selection of Chilean wines to pair with the steaks and seafood served in the restaurant.
We began the day with canopying and then transitioned to horseback riding. With our horses splashing in the shallow Rio Negro, we looked like dashing gauchos as we rode to the foot of the Andes.
Condors and kingfishers soared overhead, while the noise of a waterfall carried on the wind from the high, snowy peaks.
If You Go
The Lake District is a favorite vacation spot for Chileans and visitors from all over the world since it provides a gentler Andes Mountain experience than Patagonia. You should bring rain gear because the climate is similar to the Pacific Northwest of the United States. The months of October through March are peak travel time.
There are multiple daily flights from Puerto Montt’s airport to Santiago. Located at the southern end of the Pan American Highway, a network of international routes that stretches from Alaska to Chile, Puerto Montt is a rough fishing hamlet. Fishing and seafood are Puerto Montt’s claim to fame.
The pleasant tourist town of Puerto Varas may be found about 19 kilometers (12 miles) to the north, on the shores of Lago Llanquihue. Puerto Varas is a charming town with trendy stores and cafes, brightly painted houses, and a casino that belies the city’s secluded setting.
The Chilean government hopes that the casino would attract more visitors to the area. From either city, you can embark on the journey to the Cruce de Lagos.
Cruce de Lagos Tours
Day tours, overnight trips, and various packages to Peulla and other destinations are available from either Puerto Montt or Puerto Varas on TurisTour.
During the off season, a single room at the Hotel Peulla will run you US$ 107, while a comparable accommodation at the Hotel Natura Patagonia will run you US$ 131.
