Chile | Mysite 4

Our first night camping

Our first night of camping led us through back country roads that we suspected were not public. When we started driving through the gates of the local farms our suspicions were verified. We kept driving though and finally entered what we realised was a monastery. We turned around to leave but found the gates already locked. It turned out to be a perfect first night, the nuns welcomed us to camp in their grounds and use one of the empty houses to have a hot shower. To top it off they brought us a bottle of wine that they made.

About 3 hours north of Santiago sits the Elqui Valley. Basically a desert but the run off from the melting Andes helps keep this valley green all year round with grape vines. These grapes are used to make what Chile claims to be “their” famous spirit Pisco. When in fact it’s Peru who created this spirit. That didn’t stop them from changing the name of the town to Pisco Elqui to try and stake a bigger claim. Either way it’s a stunning region with tasty cocktails.

Carretera Austral Ferry

The region on Northern Patagonia on the Chilean side was only made accessible less than 20 years ago. It’s a rugged and difficult landscape to navigate. Huge mountains, glaciers, and an archipelago of untouched islands. The Carreterra Austral is the road that links the previously inaccessible regions. It’s a legendary road which once required a strong 4x4 to make it through. Linking the most rugged areas runs a string of small ferries just like this one.

A town with no roads and the home to the Hoinville’s ancient ancestors. We know little about their ancestors today but scientists have found the Hoinville was part sloth and part fish. Here where the trees hang low into the water the strange creatures adapted to living both in the water and also in the trees. Their huge webbed feet help them swim and their gangly upper bodies helped them climb trees to eat the berries and fruits. The native Indians who lived in this area were quite fond of these silly little creatures. This is known due to the strange way the board walks were made with the planks running longways instead of across which makes it easier for the Hoinvilles to walk as their feet are at an almost 180 degrees angle. It does however make it difficult for humans to walk on these boardwalks which only proved how fond the native Indians were of these creatures.

It is unknown exactly when, but at some point humans began breeding with these creatures. Historians believe it was when a French ship full of lonely sailors took refuge in the bay after hitting a large iceberg. This theory is supported by their lineage being traced to France, which is home to one of the largest known surviving families. Ancient language experts have concluded the name Hoinville is from an ancient Latin dialect and it actually means “Village Idiot” [Ville – Village and Hoine – Idiot]. Their poor genetic make up has caused almost all of these creatures to die out however there are still a few living amongst us to this day. You can tell a Hoinville by the angle of their distinctive 180 degrees feet. In many cases their toes may contain webbing and in almost all cases their arms hang much lower than normal. They are incredibly peaceful and loving but are prone to broken bones and injuries due to the poor genes passed on my their ancestors.

Geysers Del Tatio

A massive geyser just off the road (we think it’s massive but since it’s the only one we’ve seen it’s hard to compare). One of the best parts about having our own car is being able to get into places for free. There was a another one of these just up the road that all the tours went to and was about $20 each to enter. We drove 35km up a rough road and had this eerie place all to ourselves. Can you see Solene for scale?

CHILE

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