Helen
We head inland for seven miles after leaving the ferry and finally getting going. We reach Puerto Aysen and find a good coffee shop. We drink coffee and catch up on the phone with friends and family, before finally leaving with supplies, and heading east to join the Carratera Austral. The Carratera Austral is a road that connects Puerto Montt in the north with Villa O’Higgins in the south. It’s about 1300km long and was only built around 40 years ago by the dictator General Pinochet. It connects some of the most rural towns in Patagonia, and I’m guessing before this time this was all done by boat. I’d imagine also before this time it was fairly rural and quiet. The road is fairly busy now and I’m hoping this isn’t going to be the case all the way down! Its pretty cloudy and cold. We find somewhere to camp and I’m asleep by 8pm, exhaustion finally setting in! It’s a cold night and I have everything on!
But it’s warmer the next day and the cloud finally clears, revealing the blue sky. We arrive at Coyhayque, the last big town south apparently. Although it’s not that big, but we find a coffee shop and sit out in the sun. It’s fairly busy heading out of Coyhayque but eventually it calms down and the landscape opens up again, revealing snow clad peaks. Although it has a slightly more landscaped feel, much of the forests have been chopped down and it almost feels a bit barren, a real difference from what we saw on our ferry journey, where the uninhabited land was very natural.
We find a great camping place next to a turquoise blue river, surrounded by blue, pink and white lupins, with snow capped mountains in the distance. We share the space with two other couples in their camper vans, but they’re set back from the river out of sight. But an hour later another cyclist joins us. He’s Sebastian, an Italian who’s been living in London for the past seven years. He’s a brewer by trade, brewing craft beer, but it’s been a difficult job since covid so he’s quit his job and is travelling for the next year. We’re not used to sharing our space with other people, this is the first time we’ve wild camped and someone else has turned up. But he’s actually a really down to earth guy and enjoyable company.
We exchange details the next morning as we leave, although I’m sure we’ll see him south somewhere. A cyclist we met in Coyhayque the other day joked that in Patagonia cyclists are like a disease, they’re everywhere! This turns out to be true, as we arrive at the tienda to get supplies there are three other cycle tourists there, and as we’re leaving another five have turned up! It’s strange to see so many all of a sudden, I think we’ve seen more in the last couple of days than we’ve seen the whole time we’ve been in South America. I wonder what the pull of Patagonia is. So far it’s incredibly beautiful but the roads are busy and it’s really expensive. We’ve certainly seen equal beauty in places these past nine months, with barely another person around.
Another ‘disease’ are the horse flies! It must be the season for them, as today during the mid day heat they were everywhere, and seem to land on you just as you’re going up a particularly steep hill. They must be attracted to the sweat! We arrive at another stunning camping location next to a river, glacial in colour and thousands of magnificent lupins. But horse flies everywhere. At one point Chris must have had enough and starts to massacre them, swiping each one that lands on him! Another cycling couple arrive and join us. I guess this maybe the way it will be now. Although, again they’re really nice, a Belgian couple cycling from northern Chile to the south. They’re actually carrying more than us, which is a first! We sit on the shore of the river eating dinner in the fading sun, and watch a deer walk down to the river for water. I watch as a caterpillar takes some time to crawl over a rock also to get some water. It’s so peaceful.
Chris has been feeling a bit sniffly the past few days and overnight he gets worse. So we take our time to pack away in the morning, chatting to the Belgian couple, Alex and Matilde, who are quite relaxed and enjoying a long breakfast. They’re travelling for seven months, mainly through Patagonia, but are really taking their time to enjoy it, doing some hiking along the way. I like their attitude, they’re very organised but also laid back. They’ve even bought two foldable camp chairs which I’m very envious of! I did consider buying some before we left but changed our minds as we thought it would be even more excess weight. However I’d definitely opt for them next time, especially seeing these two relaxing away in the morning sun whilst I hop from rock to rock trying to find a semi comfortable one!
We set off and the mornings scenery is a bit dull. Plenty of mountains but nothing spectacular like we’d been promised. I was thinking if it was all like this I’d happily finish cycling, we’ve seen far greater beauty in Peru, but then we climb a hill and round a corner and the scenery is immense. A long range of rugged snow capped mountains, some of them sitting above the cloud. We wind down a row of switchbacks and the mountains open up further, huge glaciers slipping down the peaks, rivers flowing and meeting gracefully down below. We roll downhill until we reach Villa Cerro Castillo, a small pretty village. What amazing views these people must wake up to! It’s incredible. We find a cafe and sit in the afternoon sun with coffee and home made cake. It feels homely and peaceful, and so far not the busy peak season we were told it would be. Setting off uphill to find a camping place for the night, the wind has picked up and is either in our face or at our sides, pushing us into the road. It’s a good taste of what may be to come! We finally find somewhere off the road behind a huge rock, it’s peaceful and no other cyclists join us tonight.
The next day is a complete contrast to the one before, and gives us a taste of how wild Patagonia can be. Within two miles of cycling uphill we see the sign I’ve been dreading to see, ‘Fin Pavimento’. From here on the rest of the Carratera Austral and possibly the rest of our journey south will be ripio! I can’t say I’m a big fan of ripio, but to be fair this one so far is actually in fairly good condition, not too lumpy, not too much washboard. The problem is the amount of traffic on the road, 4×4’s fly past, motorcyclists, trucks buses and cars, all churning up dust for us to eat! It’s hard work and can start to make you feel quite angry when you see a truck flying towards you at 50mph, the driver completely oblivious to how much dust he’s creating. Along with this is the headwind! Strong gusts making us work hard just to average 3mph. Then comes the rain to finish us off!
But we get some shelter in a bus stop for lunch and the sun pops his head out for a while in the afternoon so we get some views. It is atmospheric, wild and beautiful. I would have loved to have seen the area before it became so popular with campervans and tourists. We manage 28 pitiful miles all day before finding a place to camp beside a river. Still raining I throw up the tent while Chris cooks, then we dive in to get out of our wet clothes and get warm. It’s nice lying in the tent listening to the rain and the river. Chris dozes off! I eat chocolate!
We’ve been discussing lately whether we want to actually reach Ushuaia or would we be happy to get to Puerto Natales or Punta Arenas. Ushuaia was always our goal but once you leave Puerto Natales, it’s almost 500 miles of expansive pampas, with strong gusting winds pretty much guaranteed, and little shelter. Some cyclists have said it’s not very beautiful in comparison to the rest of Patagonia. I’d be happy to get there and so would Chris, but after weather like today I’m not sure I’d want to go through even worse for potentially two weeks or more! Currently the jury’s still out!
Today was a better day. After a cold and rainy morning, the sun finally comes out mid-morning and it’s fairly dry for the rest of the day. It’s Sunday also, so the road is quieter and it’s surprisingly flat. We follow a glacial river for most of the day, meandering through forests and crossing streams. The weather is changeable but the wind is on our side, at one point we see a beautiful low rainbow, hugging the trees below. We make great progress and by 2.30pm we find a nice green space by the side of the river and decide to camp there for the night. There are craggy mountains in the distance with some snow still on their tops, and a glaciated mountain further away. Quite a few of the trees have been felled but there’s not much in the way of houses around here, it’s fairly remote. It’s very much like Scotland. We have a swim in the river, actually it’s a very quick dip as it’s pretty cold but it always makes me feel a bit fresher! We’re getting close to Puerto Tranquillo, a touristy town where you can visit the marble caves, but here it’s very peaceful with only a few locals around. We fall asleep to the sound of gentle raindrops on the tent.
Puerto Tranquillo, when we arrive the next day, isn’t actually as busy as we’d been told it would be. It’s small with shops and restaurants dotted around randomly. We find a campsite on the outskirts of town and I have a really hot shower, it feels so good! We meet up with Jenna once again. We last saw her in Salta, northern Argentina, sat in the hot morning sun having coffee with her. It’s great to see her again, and I’m completely inspired that she’s cycled the whole way since then, managing to catch us up whilst we’ve taken a bus and a ferry to make up some miles! She’s very laid back and has an easy feel, someone you could really trust. She’s heading to Ushuaia and thinks she’ll get there in three weeks. I’m amazed as I think it will take us at least six. Although she’s cycled today what has taken us two and a half days to cycle. She re-motivates us and gives me hope that we can reach Ushuaia. I feel a slight sadness when we part the next day. It’s strange really, I barely know her but I feel we have a shared journey, and we don’t know if we’ll see her again.
We are going to have a day off but the weathers good with forecast rain tomorrow, so we head off. It’s good weather with a tailwind, we undulate all day, generally following the huge Lago General Carratera, at almost 1000km square! The colour of the lake is a stunning turquoise, glacial mountains becoming the norm. We camp alongside Lago Bertrand, have a swim, cook and relax. After last nights disturbed sleep in a noisy campsite, camping in nature again feels more normal, and so peaceful. My mind shifts to going home. If Jenna plans to be in Ushuaia in three weeks, our journey could be all over in 5-6 weeks. It’s only just occurred to me! I’m not sure I’m ready for it to be over. I feel physically exhausted and ready for a break, but my mind feels so free. Nature seems to be the perfect medicine. But I am missing my family and friends.
We carry on, every day brings different highlights. We awake to beautiful but crisp mornings, we cycle along the huge river Rio Baker, turquoise in colour, glistening against the pale white boulders that sit alongside it. The road narrows and the traffic gets less. It starts to feel more remote. It doesn’t go dark until 10.30pm, I’ve been waiting all year for this.
We stop in Cochrane and decide to stay overnight and have a day off. On our way in we meet Andrey, our friend we met in Bariloche. He’s leaving, heading for Villa O’Higgins but it doesn’t take much to change his mind to stay. We stay in a quiet campsite, and head off to a restaurant for food and drink. It’s good to eat out, the last time we did this was way back in northern Argentina.
The next day we all set off together, there’s a real headwind and it’s hard work. Andrey wants to arrive in Villa O’Higgins in three days as he’s already booked the ferry crossing for Monday. We haven’t booked and think we’ll probably get there in four days, but we try to keep up with him and get the mileage in. In the afternoon my back pannier rack breaks on one side, so Chris does a quick fix whilst Andrey takes some of the things from my panniers so it doesn’t break again. The headwind is strong which makes it tough going but we to our right is the northern Patagonian ice field so the views are immense for most of the day. It’s a long day and we finally find a place to wild camp alongside the river in a grassy pasture. Andrey is good company and it’s good he’s pushed us a bit, with that headwind I probably would have given up in twenty miles. But we’re both exhausted.
We cycle with Andrey until we reach Villa O’Higgins, it’s three long tough days which leave me exhausted but also exhilarated at the same time. On day two we climb a brutal hill and then drop down to take a ferry crossing to Rio Bravo. We’re actually sailing across the sea, although there are so many islands and estuaries it feels like we’re on a lake. From here on the road becomes even quieter, the scenery changes again, it feels very remote and wild. I can’t imagine what the winters must be like here. We climb one more incredibly steep and painful hill before stopping to camp beside a river. We sit listening to the birds, the sound of the river, and the views of the clouds rolling over the mountains.
The next day we climb up and over the last hill and drop down towards Villa O’Higgins, we have a tailwind which makes the cycling far easier and enjoyable. At one point I’m cycling downhill with a Chilean swallow flying low down in front of me, leading the way. The scenery constantly changes and you can see how the elements rule the environment around here. In exposed areas, trees stand tall but devoid of any leaves, probably killed during a fierce storm. The strong wind blows the water off the lakes, making you feel like you’re cycling next to the sea. It feels like a real achievement as we see the Villa O’Higgins ‘end of the Carratera Austral’ sign. It was tough cycling but absolutely stunning scenery, and I’m glad we’ve done it. I’d imagine if we came back in ten years time the road will have been paved, which would definitely make it easier to cycle, but would also bring far more traffic.
We meet up with Jenna again, and the four of us celebrate. There’s no road from here, we have to take two ferries into Argentina to continue south. Andrey and Jenna will take the ferry tomorrow, we will take the ferry on Wednesday and hopefully see them again at some point. The ferry will take us back into Argentina, with good views of Monte Fitzroy hopefully, and then to Torres Del Paine. It feels like weather permitting, we may be in Ushuaia within a month.
