Chile

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Click above to see Chile videos and on the pictures to see the photo albums!
Puerto Natales
March 2012
Excitement level was high as we finally reached infamous Patagonia after 40 some hours on a bus.  High priced kayaking kept us on land patiently awaiting future possibilities of glacier views.  Again we unpacked, put together and did maintenance on our bikes ensuring that everything was set before our bike journey  began.  Two days turned into four in order to organize and prepare everything. 
Biking to Torres del Paine
March 2012
We were ecstatic as we pedaled off with fully loaded bikes (Jennifer was so excited she fell at the first go), knowing it was time to put much preparation behind us and just enjoy.  It was the start of many firsts: unpaved Patagonian roads, carrying a heavy load (on the bike potty brains), ridiculous jaw dropping views, genuine Chilean hospitality, wild roadside camping and thirst quenching pure water straight from the glaciated streams!
Torres del Paine
March 2012
Leaving our bikes behind in a campground, we headed out to trek and were reminded how wonderful it is to be in low elevation...no headaches.  Staggering views of jagged mountains, massive amounts of ice, crystal blue glacial waters and out of this world clouds accompanied our trekking in Torres Del Paine National Park.  The sounds of thunder turned out to be ice breaking off the mountain top and cascading down like a waterfall.  Guanacos, sunny skies fading away to pink and purple over the mountain tops, and distant views ended our our stay. 
Carretera Austral...
Villa O'Higgins to Cochrane
April 2012
After two nights of dinner with a slew of bikers and hitchhikers in O'Higgins we hit the road again for beautiful yet challenging mountain passes that turned wet and windy at times but rewarded us with long downhills, beautiful waterfalls and gorgeous views. As the mountains got steeper so did our learning curve on navigating the rough roads. After a few days of frozen toes, Matt’s broken rack and a debacle with a missing bag (that was found!), we found refuge for 3 days in a small cabana with a wood burning stove in the tranquil port town of Caleta Tortel. 
Carretera Austral...
Cochrane to Coyhaique
April 2012
As we biked along the Northern Icefield we experienced four seasons in one day, encountered vibrant rainbows, hurricane force winds, and unbelievable Caribbeanesque glacial lakes.  Autumn has reached its peak, the trees various colors are now contrasted by snow covered hills.  We met farmers along the way who offered their stables for shelter and a landowner who not only provided a warm bed, but also the freshest BBQ of our life!
Carretera Austral to Lake District
May 2012
We decided to head north faster due to the increasingly cold nights and cycled to Puerto Aysen to catch a cargo ship to Puerto Montt.  We went from gravel and glaciers to pavement and volcanos.  We hit pavement for the first time and doubled our daily miles...pavement really can make you fly!  Our biking took a pause as Jennifer got so confident and overzealous about speeding along that she lost control coming down a hill and hit it hard on the pavement.  Only some bad bruising and a concussion, but this kept her off her bike for some time. We enjoyed operation relaxation at a cabin and thermal baths in National Park Puyehue and watching documentaries and films.
Chiloe
May 2012
We headed to Chiloe from Puerto Montt and enjoyed time in Castro and Isla Quinchao.  It was a slow going sleepy time in the off season with delicious kuchen (cake) and fresh fish.  The views of the mountains in the northern Carretera Austral and the Volcanos of the lake district were spectacular as we ferried  across to Isla Grande de Chiloe.
Santiago and Valparaiso
June 2012
Off by bus from Pucon to Santiago, really hoping to escape the rain.  We spent longer than planned in Santiago where we enjoyed conversations about Chile, music, language and life, and a bike ride with our fabulous couchsurfing friends Dante and Jesus.  Also drawing us for longer was great folk, jazz and blues music in bellavista and a bbq hosted by our friend Alejandro who introduced us to grilling green pepper and egg!  Wandering the streets to view art and architecture, and sea creatures by the pacific ocean kept us busy and entertained in Valparaiso.
La Serena and Elqui Valley
June/July 2012
Hot pink sunsets, chilly beach, sunshine, blue skies and Dante and Jesus' friend as a host defined our stay in La Serena.  Elqui valley gave equally spectacular sunsets, good quality dirt roads to bike on, incredibly clear nights with ridiculous stars and vineyard after vineyard hugged by the mountains.  Something we greatly enjoyed was a visit to the Observatory Mammalluca where we had a two hour tour of the stars from a passionate astronomer.
San Pedro de Atacama
July 2012
While Jennifer headed north to San Pedro, Matt headed south, back to Santiago to spend time with Bombay friend Andrew.  San Pedro was like landing on another planet with desert, strange eroded hills and volcanoes.  A trip to Valle de la Luna was phenomenal as was a great bike ride to see sunset outside the town and watching the Saint Carmen celebration.  Unfortunately, Jennifer had a bought of altitude sickness which kept her in bed for 2 days and unable to go to the lagunas....next time...