Bike trip in Chile
5 February 2019 | By Marieke |
Let’s catch up with Bertrand, our Latin America bike traveller, heading in the direction of Ushuaïa with his Aevon trailer.
He will always remember his first day in Chile, cycling for 5 hours under the rain and puncturing a tyre. “This day will make me yield to a night in a hostel with a nice shower and some heat to dry my clothes.”
Luckily, the sun will come back to shine on Chilean Patagonia, a wonderful sight. “I am here, a small being in the middle of this vastness, almost all alone to enjoy it…”
Before going back on the Carretera Austral, this famous road of 1 240km through Patagonia, Bertrand stops in a small village called Villa Santa Lucia. This village suffered a major catastrophe the year before as half of the village disappeared under a mudslide. Part of a glacier broke and caused the mountain to fall, leading the mud to the village. A little reminder that global warming affects even the deepest corners of Patagonia,
The bike trip goes on under the sun, until Coyhaique, the biggest town in Patagonia (55 000 inhabitants). The road is very pleasant, with very few people, it roams through mountains and rivers.
“It may be the most beautiful road I have ever seen during this trip, just have a look for yourself.”
Bertrand also gets the chance to discover marble caves on a lake, a small touristic stop he shares with us.
At the village of Cochrane, Bertrand decides to stop for the weekend because of the weather. He will participate in the local tournament of ‘Truco’, a card game. “Let’s say that local folklore, food and drinks were there. I had a very nice time”
Back on the road, Bertrand gets to his first ferry. The Carretera Austral comprises three ferry crossings.
