Feedback from our biking and hiking holiday in Chile. Think you have already visited the most diverse and spectacular country in the World, and haven’t been to Chile, then maybe you should think again!
Saddle Skedaddle’s three week adventure to Chile explores three completely different areas of this amazing long thin country and it offers something for everyone superb biking and hiking, culture, geography, geology, meteorology, history, good food and last but not least killer local alcohol.
The trip would appeal to people who like deserts, the coast, lakes and mountains…in fact anything imaginable in between.
Starting off on the northern coastal resort of Iquique, we met up with the inimitable and wonderfully charismatic Sergio. Sergio was the guide, cook, translator, chauffeur, bike mechanic, raconteur, joker and all round top bloke who welcomed us into his home with a wonderful Chilean hospitality we were to experience wherever we went. Sergio and sidekick Ruben went on to feed us porridge for breakfast and increasingly stale bread with delicious fillings for lunch for the next ten days as we cycled our way through the Chilean Altiplano and Atacama Desert.
Cycling and sleeping at altitude proved a challenge to everyone, but our biggest challenge appeared to be avoiding ‘ puffy lip syndrome’ and the subsequent lip burn and chaffing - not a pretty site. The sun can be severe in the Altiplano – so forget your factor 25 and lip balm at your peril!
The scenery was an ever changing wonder; from mountains covered in nothing but bizarre shaped rocks and small pockets of prehistoric looking plant ground cover, we climbed through cactus forests, past lunar landscapes of colourful volcanic debris and rocky pinnacles to arrive at the Sergio named ‘Paradise’ - an oasis created by the sulphurous runoff of a subterranean geyser. Swimming in the resultant hot springs under a full moon more than made up for the permeating potent aroma – and no I don’t mean the other group members, and the Pisco Sours - a particularly yummy, if potent local ‘moonshine’ mixed with lemon juice and egg white served by who else but Sergio didn’t hurt either!
On Christmas Eve we swam in yet another hot spring and then cycled around Salar de Surire – the world’s second biggest salt lake, back dropped by volcanoes, covered in brightly coloured flamingos and surrounded by herds of Vicunas – like a Llama, but about 40 miles an hour faster! A great prelude to a fun evening quenching the day’s thirst and salsain’ the night away in the local café to Bolivian radio station we’d somehow managed to pick up.
Christmas Day saw us whooshing downhill for 40 miles to end up with most extraordinary vision imaginable as we reached the oasis valley on Poconchile its lush greenness contrasting dramatically with the surrounding hillside- wow!
We left our bikes behind in Chile’s most Northerly city of Arica, said a sad goodbye to Sergio and flew south to Puerto Montt, in the very heart of the Chilean Lake District and surrounded by an array of snow capped volcanoes. Sadly, these weren’t to be explored on this trip, and were just a taster for no doubt another visit to Chile.
From here we started our cruise south aboard the Navimag boat – an every changing landscape of glaciers, islands and shipwrecks, through narrow channels and on one memorable evening the crashing waves of the Pacific. Our time aboard was one of relaxation, card playing and cheating and most importantly lining up for and eating our three huge scrumptious meals each day, washed down with the gallons of Pisco and vino tinto, we’d lugged onto the boat. Red wine will never be the same out of a bottle rather than a tetra pack!
The journey was great fun, even if we did have to spend an extra half-day playing onboard hacky sac waiting for the wind to die down in order to dock in Puerto Natales.
Phase three of the trip was, for me, the long awaited visit to Patagonia, and Torres del Paine national park. For many years I had looked at photos of Patagonia and thought that one day I’d just love to go hiking there.
Even with years of built up expectations I wasn’t disappointed! I was blown away by the beauty of the place…at least I was when the first day rains stopped and the clouds cleared to reveal the brightest of blue skies.
As to be expected in a mountainous area the weather was constantly changing, but it didn’t stop us from seeing the magnificent Cuernos del Paine, the Torres or from walking to see the Grey Glacier. Every day was filled with a new activity and spectacular sites a highlight for many of us was seeing the replica of the pre-historic Milodon (a bear thingy) in a huge cave…spoken about with so much glee by our ever enthusiastic guide Andrew. Well, even if that’s not true, we all got a thrill from seeing the Magellan penguins on route to Punta Arenas on our final day.
After dancing the night away in the southern most city in Chile, and nearly the world, we said our sad goodbyes.
Everyone on the trip said it was one of the best holidays they’d ever been on…and this from a group of extensively travelled people! Saddle Skedaddle, without planning or effort, have also adopted/assumed/taken on the sideline of being a fantastic introduction agency…the success of which carries no guarantees. In their main role of organising holidays however, the team from Skedaddle yet again came up with the goods!
Cathie Savage – Sydney, Australia
