Day 293: La Carretera Austral – Day 4
We left our riverside oasis around 8AM that morning and drove toward Lake General Carrera. At 870KM² it is the biggest lake in Chile and the second biggest lake in South America. It straddles the border between Chile and Argentina (where it is called “Lake Buenos Aires” instead). We arrived in the lakefront town of Río Tranquillo in the late afternoon and refueled at the local COPEC. We were ahead of schedule and a little tired of just sitting in the car all day, so we decided to take a walk around town and investigate the long line of excursion desks sitting by the beach – if there are *this many* tour operators, there must be something interesting to do around here!
Sunrise in our beautiful riverside campsite
General Carrera Lake (AKA – Lake Buenos Aires on the Argentinean side)
Turns out that one of Río Tranquillo’s biggest attractions is the Capillas de Mármol (Marble Chapels) – a collection of colorful caves and formations in the lake, formed by the weathering of the water and wind against the side of the rock. We booked a 1.5hr boat ride for USD$15pp to see them – seemed a little hokey, but a good way to kill a little time and get out of the car. For some STUPID reason, it didn’t occur to us that we would be in danger of getting wet (even though the tour operator gave us each a pair of “windproof” suits) so we left our waterproof pants and bags in the car. That would prove to be a HORRIBLE mistake.
However, the initial ride out to the Capillas de Mármol was pleasant and dry as we were travelling with the current. After about 20min, we finally reached the caves – they were actually pretty cool! The original rocks were a composite of limestone and marble, but the elements had broken down most of the limestone over the centuries, leaving beautiful formations of marble and calcium carbonate behind, making for some awesome photo-ops!
We reach the town of Río Tranquillo so early in the morning, that we decide to check out the row of excursion agencies lining the lakefront
All dressed up in our wind-proof pants & jacket for the boat ride on Lake General Carrera
Igor is impressed when the boat actually drives *into* the marble caves
The surface of the caves has a gorgeous, bubbly texture
The swirls of color inside the Capillas de Mármol are simply stunning
So far, our visit to the Capillas de Mármol has been a pleasant surprise!
We were on an excited high as the boat turned around to go back to Río Tranquillo – this time, against the wind. Our tour guide (who did not speak English) said something to the effect of, “The return ride can be rough – hold on to the side of the boat if it gets too choppy. Also, you might get splashed,” or at least, that’s how Lindsay translated it to Igor. We giggled with delight at the first few bounces, and even tried to record the huge swells on the GoPro, but then shit got real. Anyone ever go to SeaWorld theme parks when they were a kid and remember the “Splash Zone” during the whale shows? Well, it was like that. Over, and over, and OVER again. We were completely drenched and freaking out about our camera which Igor tried to protect by hiding it inside both his down jacket and the tour’s windbreaker.
When we finally arrived on shore after a good 45min of constant bouncing and splashing, we crawled out of the boat like pitiful sewer rats. We dropped off our borrowed gear at the company’s yert and looked ourselves over: everything we were wearing (hats, jackets, pants, underwear, socks) was soaked. We got into the back seat of the Subaru and changed into a dry set of clothes. Even though the camera had a few drops on it, it turned on OK when we tested it so we breathed a sigh of relief that at least one item had remained safe.
We are all smiles until the boat starts heading back toward Rio Tranquillo – the rough waves completely drench us (and our camera!!!)
We change into a dry set of clothes and lay everything wet on the dash to dry as we drive away
Since we had a lot more time to stretch out our itinerary, we had been discussing which route to take. Our initial plan had been to veer off into Argentina the next day, crossing the Andes at the Paso Roballos crossing, however that would mean missing the final 250KM of the Carretera Austral. Since we had tons of time, we decided to change our plans and drive all the way to the end. But before we could do that, we needed to get in touch with Igor’s mother, as she had been tracking our progress via the GPS Spot daily (sometimes it seemed she was tracking us hourly – she had an eerily up-to-the-second knowledge of where we were at all times…). If we suddenly started driving in an unexpected direction, we would get panicked emails asked if we had been kidnapped. J We were feeling cold and hungry and decided to get a hot meal at a restaurant in town that had Wifi, so we could send an email with our new route info.
So, January and February are the HIGH SEASON in Chile (it’s their “July & August” – height of the summer). Today was a MONDAY (not a weekend and not a holiday). Despite this, only TWO restaurants in town were open for lunch at 1PM – everything else (including the minimart) was closed. REALLY GUYS? Whatever, fine – we check out both places. Even though both of them had a “Wifi” symbol on their windows and had a strong signal coming from their location (which we could see on Igor’s phone), both turned us down when we asked for the code as we tried to order lunch. You know what? We’ve had it with this town. We would rather eat our cold apples and chips on the road then patron either of you overcrowded cafes.
Getting the hell outta Río Tranquillo. However, our anger at Río Tranquillo starts to lift as we drive round the edge of the lake. No doubt, Lake General Carrera is incredibly beautiful (especially from afar!)
Look at that water! It’s so blue, we have to remind ourselves we are not in the tropics, and those dark patches are shadows of clouds, not coral reefs
Teal blue water from the glacial run-off in Lake General Carrera
Lake General Carrera – seriously, we just can’t get enough of it!
Finally crossing the bridge and leaving the lake as it narrows into a river
About an hour down the road we made a detour to a charming little village on the other side of the lake called Puerto Guadal, hoping to find an open café with Wifi. We didn’t see anything, so we pulled into the town grocery store and asked the kid behind the counter, “Is there anywhere in town that has Wifi?” He looked at us like we were stupid and slowly said, “Sí.” Lindsay tried to clarify, “Is there anywhere were *we* can use the Wifi?” Again, “Sí.” The kid smiled and told us to give him our phone – he signed us into his store’s Wifi, free of charge! Now there’s the Chile we know and love! While Igor typed a note to his mommy, Lindsay ran around the store picking up enough groceries for the next three days – now that we weren’t crossing the border, we didn’t have to worry about our fresh fruit and veggies getting confiscated.
Stopping for more groceries in Puerto Guadal
Why did the chicken cross the road? To get back to her chicks!
Everything seemed to be going our way at last! We continued down the road for a few more hours. Near sunset, the landscape started to get really dramatic, so we pulled over and took out the camera to take a picture…only the camera wouldn’t turn on. We’ve been using this camera pretty heavily during the last year and this isn’t the first time it went on the fritz – usually taking the battery out and putting it back in again does the trick. Lindsay opened the camera to bounce it, but made a terrible discovery: Water. Inside the camera. FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK. Somehow, some water must have slowly seeped in since our boat ride that morning! Even worse, we’ve already turned it on and taken pictures several times that afternoon, so the hardware has probably fried!
We pulled into the next town of Cochrane and bought a bag of rice, desperately hoping a night in the rice bag would suck out any remaining water. With our fingers crossed and hoping for the best, we continued our way south, pulling over when we found another secluded campsite off the side of the road.
More dramatic scenery as we continue our journey south – too bad we have to take these pics on the cell phone L
We find another secluded campsite off the road and enjoy a healthy dinner of tomatoes & beans with an avocado sandwich