Sunday, December 29, 2013

Magical Mystical Chiloe

Saturday, we drove down to the end of Ruta 5, about 1 1/2 hrs, and drove onto the ferry to Chiloe. pronounce chill-oh-way. This island was settled by a tribe of mapuche indians and then the spanish arrived in 1567. The spanish and indians intermarried and developed their own culture separate from Chile. The Jesuits arrived in 1608 and built many churches all over the archipelago. Many of the churches are still standing and there is a tour you can make of the most popular ones. People farm & fish and cater to tourists here. Not much else to do! There are some towns and shopping.
You can click on the map and zoom in. the beaches we went to are northwest of Ancud.



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Ver mapa más grande


Here is the ferry - 4 of them were going back and forth all day and its not even the busy season.
No waiting, you just drive right on- pay the ferrymaster $20 and relax.



There is an outside viewing deck for tourists. The trip is around 1/2 hr. across the Chanel de Chacao.
All these heavy trucks and buses make me nervous! but this is the only way to the island.
Our first stop was the penguin beach. Boats go out to the small islands off the coast to view the magellanic & humboldt penguin breeding grounds. I think this is the farthest north they go. Look hard because they blend in well with the rocks.
Lots of chicks but most parents are out fishing to feed all the hungry mouths!





This rock split in the 2010 earthquake
Voila! now 2 islands!


Thomas is having a great time! as we all did

Cool caves all along this rocky coast


Beautiful rolling hills and farmland


This is the most awesome beach ever!
Miles and miles of sand - just a few houses and we only saw one guy on the beach. he was scuba diving for kelp.
We drove down on the beach and explored several caves, one of which is in this big rock
Lots of shells and interesting rocky areas


Lots of flowers blooming like this thistle
You can bet we'll be back! Next time - the church tour and the capital of Castro.


3 comments:

  1. Surprised to see thistle so far from Scotland. Really neat finding the spinner for the yarn. I really think the whole wool to thread thing is amazing as well. I laughed out loud about the great new sheep escape! Been doing a lot of research online and I have met a gentleman in conception at the BMW motorcycle dealership. I am trying to find a motorcycle to buy. I think buying a car would be a good idea as well. Been thinking about getting a small office in the nearest town where internet is superior to be able to conduct business abroad as well. Just a few ideas. God bless you all and keep you safe and free. Taxes here have become outrageous. My health insurance went up 400+ per month and my deductible doubled for the same plan I had last year and this is group coverage. What's the medical deal down there. DO you have to buy health insurance or is it like in Uruguay?

    E

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  2. I saw a lot of BMWs at the square in Puerto Octay the other day. They were touring with a van following them. The bikes had on/off road tires for traveling on gravel roads. I think you will want a 4 door 4 wd truck. Diesel is best. You see them more than any other vehicle. Remember it rains 90 inches a year here so motorcycles are cool but maybe too cool ( and wet).
    Health insurance is a whole post to come. Much cheaper.

    Jim

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  3. Aidan would never come out of the caves! He loves rocks/crystals/shells and so do I. How cool is that to go exploring the caves! Wow.
    Lisa

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