Cindy's trip to Chile/Argentina
I just returned from Argentina/Chile. I have been
to Chile four times now and keep feeling the call to return. I
used to go straight to the Rio Futaleaufu and spend my days floating
down the big wave trains the Fu boats. (I’m from the Ottawa
– I’m used to wide deep rivers).
But this trip, I wanted to see more of Chile and
venture into Argentina. We flew into Buenos Aires - the Paris
of South America. I’m not one for cities, but this was amazing.
Tango shows are everywhere in old beautiful theatres. Great wine,
and amazing restaurants. You can easily order a steak that is
1 Kg!!!!
After a fine fix of the city, we fly to Bariloche.
An amazing Alpine town along the Chile/Argentine border.
This is an amazing town to visit full of activity and a great
night life. The RIO Manso is located here and for a small fee,
you can run the class III section with one of the local rafting
companies.
We then crossed the border into Chile
making our way to Pucon. Pucon is a resort town in Chile that has
all kinds of rivers in a two hour drive radius from town. It’s
a beautiful place, especially with all of the volcanoes in the area.
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European feel in Buenos Aires
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Summit of one of the many peaks
to hike
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Smoking Villarica volcano seen
from town
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When we first arrived into town, we went
to the one and only kayak shop in town for local beta, “Kayak
Pucon”. The owner Rodrigo Tushner
was incredible to us. He gave us a map of the surrounding
area and highlighted the put-in and take outs for a bunch
of rivers. Hopefully, he is working on the Guide Book to
that area because it is desperately needed.
A must have for a proper paddling tour around
here is a truck – we rented Kayak Pucon’s truck
and headed out with our map. Here are some highlights of
my road trip.
Ole’ Faithful. There is great accommodation
in Chile. Beautiful Cabanas, hotels and very nice camp grounds.
We first found the SAN PEDRO. It’s a beautiful class
III run with some cool beaches to hang out on along the
way. There is a very nice hotel right at the put in and
some from the hotel will meet you at the take-out with your
truck.
We then ventured to the RIO FUY area. This
was my favorite area. There are 3 sections of this river.
The Upper section has a lot of vertical drop to it. Lots
of scouting – very fun. It leads up to 5 beautiful
waterfalls. They were stunning to see. The Middle section
is un-runable. The National Huilohuilo Park (Huilohuilo
is a type of bird) surrounds this area and it’s worth
the small fee to walk along their trails to see more amazing
waterfalls.
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Waterfall
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Visiting Huilohuilo Park
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Waterfall in Huilohuilo Park
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After
running the Upper Fuy, we stubbled into the most amazing hotel
I have ever stayed in. It’s along the Fuy’s Middle
section near the Huilohuilo Park and was inspired by all of
the area’s volcanos and rivers.
It’s the closest
thing to a Hobit House I have ever seen. You feel like you
are in “The Lord of the Rings” movie. Everything
was so beautiful about the place. It was all around style!
That was a great night. |
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Fuzzy bathrobes!!!
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Closest thing to a Hobit House
I've ever seen
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Hotel
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Hotel
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Hotel
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Hotel |
The Lower Fuy awaited us the following morning.
Continuous and deep – my idea of river running!
After a couple of weeks in the Pucon area
enjoying some of the more classic runs, I decided I needed
to go back down to the Rio Futaleufu once again. On a bus
down to Puerto Montt we went in style: 80’s music
all the way!!!! Too funny.
After a way to short week on the Futa, I
had to start making my way back to Bariloche to catch my
multiple flights back to “The Ice Box” (Canada).
I luckily found a ride a fellow paddler (as all paddlers
do)! But he was going to El Bolson, first for some “parapente”.
I had to try! A great way to end a great trip.
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Lower Fuy
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Lower Fuy
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Lower Fuy
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On the way to Puerto Montt
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"parapente"
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"parapente"
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Instruction
