From Anchorage to Ushuaia by Bike

The last couple of days have been very eventful. At the end of December, we had slowed down in order to take the once weekly ferry off Chiloé Island and continue south. The ferry was supposed to leave January 1 at midnight. So at around 10 pm, we headed over to the harbour with all the other cyclo-tourists. We met Elodie and Sylvain, another young French couple, traveling on a tandem. After many hours of waiting, the verdict came down that the ferry had a mechanical problem and wouldn't be leaving. The company took a long time to find us all somewhere to stay that night, and it wasn't until about five in the morning that we finally got to bed, after having to bike back 5 km from the harbor to the town.

The next morning, instead of just refunding our tickets, the company offered us to change our tickets for a different ferry. It was leaving that night, and was twice as long (12 hours instead of six) because it was going to Puerto Raul Marin, about 100 km south of Chaiten. We didn't want to wait any longer, so we took those tickets. We were disappointed not to be able to see the volcano and the town of Chaiten, abandoned after the volcano erupted in April 2008.

It took us, and the seven other cyclo-tourists, two days to get from Puerto Raul Marin to La Junta, to join up with the Carretera Austral. We had a good time camping by the side of the road with Elodie and Sylvain. The next day, the pouring rain slowed us down a lot. In fact, in the last six days of biking on the mainland, we have had rain everyday, sometimes passing showers, and sometimes heavy rain all day long, like yesterday. Our Gore-Tex rain gear just doesn't cut it, and yesterday we arrived literally soaking wet. Several of our panniers leak at the bottom, although they are supposed to be waterproof. There is water everywhere here, in many incarnations: rain, naturally, but also snow in the mountains, glaciers, lakes, rivers, waterfalls. There is water springing up everywhere, pooling when it is unable to run free. The road wasn't easy either. There were parts with large pebbles that made it difficult to stay balanced and keep going forward, and there were many hills to climb. We had to climb over a pass at 500 meters, starting from sea level. The last six days have been quite hard and we arrived exhausted. The next two days will not seem too long to rest and to dry out our things!

Happily, in order to boost the morale, the Carretera Austral also holds many delights. The changing landscape is stunning. There are lakes, forests, waterfalls, rivers, fjords, hanging glaciers, snow-capped peaks, and lush vegetation. We hardly know where to look! Just two days ago, while we were having lunch, we startled a passing fox, who watched us for a little and then continued on his way. We have also enjoyed the fact that there aren't many cars on the road, and we have found some beautiful bush camping spots beside the rivers. Unfortunately, Heather was unable to share all this with us. She had some knee problems the first couple of days, and decided not to bike. She was following the advice of Sylvain, doctor when he is not traveling by bike, who took a look at her knee. She joined up with another Canadian and an American to make the trip by bus. We met her last night in Coyhaique, where we are all sharing a cabana with Urban and Rebekka, a Swiss couple traveling bike who we had met earlier. This morning, it is once again raining, and we are having a hard time imagining heading out under these conditions...

A few words about the Carretera Austral

It is a very recent road, and the most southern parts are only about ten years old. It was started in 1976 by General Pinochet for military purposes, to protect southern Chile from being invaded by the ever-present potential enemy Argentina. More than 1000 km long, it connects Puerto Montt in the North with Villa O'Higgins in the South. Most of the road is not paved, and it is the only land route that connects the southern part of Chile to the rest of the country. Before the road was built, the only way to get to the southern regions was by boat or plane. But even with the Carretera Austral, one still can't get to Punta Arenas, the largest city in the south of Chile, by land. To do that, they would have to go around one of the biggest glaciers in the world and cut through the immense national parks of the region.

Sébastien