CHILE: LAKE DISTRICT

ARRIVING IN PUERTO VARAS
Yesterday we left Santiago, endured the agony of lines in that airport, and flew to Puerto Montt.  Puerto Montt is south of Santiago and is the capital of this state in the Lake District. We were met and driven a short distance to the neighboring town of Puerto Varas (population 44,000) on the shores of Lake LLanquihue. This is the second largest lake in Chile, formed by glaciers, and its name is pronounced, “yunkeyway,” which you’d never guess from the spelling!

The architecture is squarish low wood buildings with the German founders’ influence evident in several Lutheran churches with simple steeples topped by a cross. With its temperate climate (the opposite of tropical Easter Island) and the lush green vegetation, it reminded us of Upstate New York with a bit of Switzerland tossed in.

Our hotel, Cumbres, is on the summit above the lake and just a short way down a pedestrian path to the business district.  After we settled in, we took a late afternoon walk into town, noting the variety of restaurants and the number of stores selling outdoor clothing and gear. It’s a hub for hikers and climbers. It began to pour so we and others took cover under an outdoor market next to the town square until the rain let up.  Overall, the town is attractive, but a bit tired looking, and would benefit from some fresh coats of paint.

We enjoyed dinner at our hotel and were the first, and for awhile, the only diners. Lunch had been sketchy, burgers from the airport McDonald’s around 11:30, so we were ready to eat at 7:00. Like other Spanish speaking countries, Chileans operate on a later schedule than we Americans. Hotel breakfasts often don’t begin until 7:30 or  8:00, lunch is from 1:00 to 3:00, and dinner usually begins at 8:00 with the locals not arriving until 8:30 or 9:00.

FALLS AND FRUTILLAR
This morning we met our guide Jaime and our driver Fernando at 9:00 am and soon were in the countryside, noting the many summer cottages (cabanas).  We were on our way to Chile’s first national park, Vincente Perez Rosales, which was founded in 1926 inspired by Teddy Roosevelt’s interest in the outdoors and in preserving nature.

The park encompasses Petrohue Falls, a magnificent topography of stone outcroppings, deep channels, turquoise pools, and many examples of falling water. The various paths take you up and down stone steps to a number of lookouts above the water and then down along water’s edge to see falls from another angle.

We were there before the onslaught of tour buses and had the place mostly to ourselves. It was quiet except for the roar of all that water.

We then drove farther east to the shore of Lake Todos Los Santos (All Saints Lake) which is still within the confines of the park. Along the roadway and here at lakeside was gray ashy sand, evidence of the 2015 eruption of one of the nearby volcanos. The lake area was calm and peaceful.  

Our next stop was the village of Lago LLanquihue where we ate box lunches (actually from a paper sack) sitting on a bench facing the lake. We couldn’t help but know where we were with the prominent waterborne letters!  

Lastly we continued farther on to the charming village of Frutillar, a music and cultural center for the region. Their large performing arts center, opened in 2010, features bands of wood of different colors and overlooks the lake.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Small houses and a blazing red firehouse cum café line the opposite side of the street. At one end of the promenade a decorated pier which re-opened in 2008 (header photo) graces the landscape. In all of the towns in the region, you see the German influence in the architecture and in the food, lots of good strudels and cakes. In our hotel, the sumptuous breakfast buffet includes doughnuts and breads, but also several kinds of cake!

The morning weather was sunny and very pleasant (temperatures in the 60’s) while the afternoon clouded over until a thunderstorm around 5:00 pm cleared the air. Sunlight then glinted through the clouds.

Note:  All photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved)