sorry only google translate…
The ferry across Lago Pirahuelco runs along the (private) organic reserve Huilo Huilo, which we actually want to visit. During the ferry we are approached twice to our camper and even invited by a nice older man to his home in Pucon. When we arrive at the visitor center of the reserve, it turns out that the rivers that feed the waterfalls – the main attraction of the park – have dried up, so we drive – in bad weather – directly to Panguipulli, the starting point for the Chilean version of a seven-lake -Trip.
Now we are really caught up with Corona, because our return flight is canceled and it remains unclear in the course of the next few days who is now organizing a new one for us. StaTravel – our travel agency – does not take action and does not react to emails, so it remains exciting …
Since we have had enough of these lake tours since Argentina, we head straight to our real reason for this detour – the active volcano Villarrica. 2847 meters high, last erupted in 2015, last noteworthy activity in November 2019. And best of all, you can reach the crater relatively relaxed with a mountain guide. We don’t want to miss this and try our luck in Conaripe to climb the volcano from its supposedly more beautiful south side. Unfortunately, due to the low season, no guides are stationed here, which is why we have to switch to the much more touristic place Pucon. Due to the low season, it is relatively relaxed here too.
After comparing a few tour providers and Kerstin also has a good feeling about making the climb, the next day starts. We are very lucky, the last five days have been no tours due to bad weather, but the next day should be perfect!
After a night on the city beach of Pucon, it starts at 6 a.m. We have to try on our equipment, somehow put our provisions in the backpacks with the equipment. There is also a couple from San Francisco and our two guides Joaquin and Felipe. Then it is about 40 minutes by car to about 1400 meters in altitude in the national park and off you go. Well not quite, the first 400 meters in altitude are relatively boring and it is recommended to take a somewhat more relaxed chair lift (without a safety bar) to save the breath for the difficult part of the ascent. Once at 1800 meters, it really starts. First through volcanic rock until we reach the first foothills of the glacier that adorns the top of the volcano. After a brief briefing from Felipe on how best to save yourself with an ice ax in the event of a fall, it’s time to put on crampons and zigzag up the glacier. At first it looks like a breakneck steep due to the shape of the volcano, but after a few steps you get used to it and we stomp after our guide step by step.
With us about 60-80 people go to the volcano, that sounds a lot at first but in the high season there are over 300! All in single file across the glacier, but this meditative moment is interrupted again and again by loud “Roca” calls and whistles. Be it by mountaineers, wind or the sun, small and medium-sized stones keep loosening themselves from the upper part of the volcano and they shoot down at hell speeds. Once at the top of the glacier, we leave our luggage behind and master the last few snow-free vertical meters to the crater armed only with a camera and gas mask. Then you stand there on the edge of the smoking crater, see the different colors and hear a rumble from the throat again and again. Just breathtaking! At the same time, of course, one hopes that the yellow warning level will not suddenly turn into red …
Back on our luggage, lunch is announced. Then again hectic “Roca” calls, loud whistling followed by a polyphonic “Uhhh” and a “Hat’s oan dawischd?” from a pair of lederhosen – you really are never safe from BavariaI don’t know smile. Since we couldn’t see anything, Joaquin explains to us. A stone has just flown centimeters over the helmet of a crouching hiker.
If there is enough snow, you can accelerate the descent significantly with a bob aka Porutscher. Unfortunately, this is not the case and therefore it is time to put crampons back on and go down the steep glacier in single file over a mixture of melting snow, ice and stones. Tobi and Felipe then mastered the last few meters by “boot skiing”. Joaquin just says, “they are children”!
The next day we drive for one night to the Conguillio National Park with the double crater volcano “Llaima” (3125m) and the hike to the “Mirador Sierra Nevada”.
This not only offers a great view of the volcano, but also leads us to the “Araucania” trees, which give the region its name. We also finally see the red-headed woodpecker that we have heard in a few parks but never saw!
Unfortunately Corona is now really catching up with us. Because we still haven’t heard from StaTravel, Chile is about to close its borders and we still don’t have a new flight. Slowly it is becoming “more dangerous” that in two weeks there may be no planes flying or the whole world will shut itself off even more. Therefore, as a precaution, we decide not to stay in the park, but to approach Santiago so that we can react quickly when in doubt. So at least a few more days are waiting for us on the beach …