SlideAway

So we have now been in Chile for just over a week, and it was an adventurous one at that! We travelled to Pucon, via Osorno, from Bariloche, Argentina. Pucon is a small tourist built town, in the Chilean lake district. The main attractions to draw people to the town are adventure based activities; rafting, kayaking, mountaineering etc, or the more relaxing natural hot springs.

So our intial plans for Pucon was to climb the snow capped, Volcano Villarrica, one day and take it easy in the hot springs the next. That, however, wasn´t how it happened. When we arrived on the Friday the rain was somewhat torrential, and was forecast to continue on the Saturday, so treks up the volcano where out of the question. After a day getting acquainted with the town, we were offered the chance to go to the hot springs, we took this opportunity, seeing as the clouds where clearing and the night sky visible. After a bouncy and slippery trip in the back of a minibus we arrived at the springs to find 7 pools to take our fancy, and a single wooden hut to change and keep our clothes in! So having had a mainly wet and cold day we headed straight for the nearest pool. Walking down the steps our feet tingled as the blood rushed back into our extremities, with the temperature pleasantly warm and soothing! After about 15 minutes and a slight wrinkling of our skin we decided to move into another pool, we couldn´t determine whether this next pool was hotter or not, due to the freezing night air we had walked through in soaking swim gear. So after a few more pool changes, we settled in a mid temperature pool, and took to watching, the now clear, night sky, a large half moon, bright, and plentiful stars, and then right on cue a shooting star streaked across the sky. At the top of the springs was one pool, in which, we had seen nobody, so being the ever inquisitive we headed in only to find this one not to be a "hot" spring.The journey back from the springs was pretty fun, as the night had gone on and the beer flowed, for some more than others. Two Germans in the group had come to life anf to make it more interesting, our driver put on some German dance music, and soon erupted the two man rave in the back of a hyundai mini bus.

Stock Photo of the Springs and changing hut

So still to visit the volcano we had been assured the weather was on the turn on Monday morning, being the trusting type we listened to the guides advice, set our alarm and awoke at 6am, only to find an overcast day and reports from the base of the volcano confirming what we could see above our heads. So back to bed we headed. The same routine happened on Tuesday, 6am, rise to find more cloud overhead, only this time the reports from the base where claiming clear skies. Apprehensively we loaded into the minibus, along with two Israeli girls, and a Canadian, Austrailian, and headed for the hills. On route we found the van to be passing through some thick fog, before entering the national park. As the van sped through the dust tracks, the skies exploded into a glorious blue, giving us our first glimpse of the task ahead of us. From the van we took a small walk to jump on a chair lift, this part scared Katie, never having had the pleasure, of your knees being taken from under you by a metal bar! At the top of the chair, all the groups where gathering to put on, full cold weather gear, and crampons. Our guide showed us how to hold the ice axe and what to do if we slipped, but then continued on, we wondered if he knew something we didn´t. No cold clothes, no crampons, the brain was ticking, until canadian asked, and we where told "the snow is soft and the crampons, won´t work proper, and the extra weight on our feet would slow us down, and tire us out more quickly". That was reason enough for me! We made what was seemingly quick progress up the first slope, and at the first stopping point, the top seemed close. We then set off zig zagging our way to the summit, only to find that after 50 minutes of walking we where only slightly nearer, maybe the initial stop had caused some wishful thinking! Here we stopped for a bite to eat, a steep inclined slope, where we had to dig out a seat to stop us from sliding down the hill, after a quick 20 minute break, we where on our way again, this time walking for just on an hour, and feeling in dire need of a drink! We still hadn´t reached the summit, it was at this point lots of the groups, bunched up and the climb became slow, this allowed my mind to wander and the fear of how we where going to get down struck me. This lead to a few near misses with slipping and sliding back down the hill we had climbed. Finally the top came into view and the reality of it all so close. When reaching the top three of the five of us collapsed in a heap on the snow, the canadian went walking to the edge, and the fifth still climbing! After recoperating for a few moments and taking some much needed fluid, we finally realised the view below us.

View from the top

 Once we had air back in our lungs, we took a little walk around the openning of the volcano, and much to my disapointment you could see no lava, and smell no eggs. The smell of the fumes, was much worse than anticipated and the taste when they hit the back of your throat is horrific! So now onto the business of getting down. The guide told us to get all the cold weather gear on, even though I was still sweating buckets from the climb, he then handed us each a bum board, and then finally it clicked. The first few descents, where a little steep so the back protection, was all the equipment we needed to slide. As we got lower and the snow more wet, we needed to us the bum boards. Now, this wasn´t as easy as it might sound: deep snow, a heavy rucksac, and

Another view from the top

an ice axe as a break! Well the first few attempts could have spelt diasaster, going sideways, backwards, head first, you name it we ended up that way! Three slides later and multiple bruises we finally mastered it only to be told, that had been our final slide and we needed to walk the rest of the way!

Bruised, battered, soaked and shattered, we were shipped back out into town in the minibus, where a few well deserved beers where waiting for us, and for the first time since we had arrived in Pucon we could see the volcano from the town. Talk about an experience of a life time! This was definitely one of them! And suprisingly when we woke up the next day we could both walk, without any problems, or pain!

After a few recovery days in Pucon we have travelled North and are currently killing time in Chillan, the birth place of Bernardo O´Higgins, the man who lead Chile to independence. From here we head to Santiago, where we will spend Christmas and New Year.

And finally, a fact about Chile: it is the second-largest producer of salmon in the world.