Meandering Mukluks: Last Stop in Chile

Surf lesson #2

We escaped the depressing exterior of San Antonio at night thanks to three hard working mechanics labouring till about 9:30 pm. Not willing to spend another $50 for a hotel we camped out at a toll station for the night. It was perfect and terrible at the same time--there was lots of light and lots of trucks passing through which means safety, but the constant noise didn't create the most peaceful conditions for sleeping. The following day we blew passed usual tourist stops Valparaiso and Vina del Mare eager to steer clear of cities and find some sand and surf. We found the oasis we were looking for in Playa Ritoque just outside of Quintero. We spent about five days living like beach bums and had some much needed fun. These few days felt like the vacation we'd been waiting for--especially because the beach had car access and we were able to find our own private spot.

Megan observing Jupiter

Cerro Mamlluca

After the surf died down a bit a few days later, we kept moving and ended up in La Serena. It was a good thing we found another mechanic there because we ended up having to go back a few times. Our first problem was the master cylinder which needed to be replaced. Refusing to let another car problem take over the day we sped over to Vicuna for a star gazing experience at Observatorio Cerro Mamalluca with a 30 cm telescope. Chile has several observatories in the Atacama region because the sky is always clear, climate is dry and there are mountains galore. Chile's prime astronomy location is so awesome that Europe is investing heavily into world-class equipment.

Lemon Pisco

Other highlights of the area were purchasing some pisco sour (grape brandy) and discovering Danone's greek yogurt in coconut flavour at the locas Unimarc. We highly recommend it. We also visited the tomb of Grabriel Mistral, discovered he was a famous poet and unfortunately didn't know more about the famous man that we were visiting. Heading back into La Serena we encountered our second car issue: the torsion bar retaining bolt (3/4" thick and 10.9 gage steel) snapped! None of the local automotive shops had the piece so our nechanic bought one from Finning and had to cut, mill, and re-thread it into the appropriate size. We spent our night in the Copec gas station since they repeatedly outdo the campgrounds and hostels in all criteria.

Shop dogs and our broken bolt

The next day just out of town some strange noised reminiscent of our past exhaust pipe problems began to sound. We drove back to the automotive shop where the mechanics were shaking their heads and laughing at us by this time. They must of liked us, felt sorry for us, or both, because they re-fixed the exhaust pipe for free.

Sun bathing boat on La Serena's beach

Enjoying our favourite wine at the gas station

Attempting to eat one of Chile's largest corn

Our next stop was Bahia Inglesa. This small summer hot-spot was busy and expensive and our beach that we camped on was garbage ridden. Generally there seems to be little concern for environmental protection of beaches and oceans. In addition, mining in the region doesn't seem to be helping the situation much since they pay a fee to dump waste water into the ocean. One person mentioned that a beach in Chanaral was now green because of mining contaminates.

Isla Pan de Azucar

I love it when you call me Big Papa

One gem we discovered slightly north was Parque Nacional Pan de Azucar. This beautifully maintained coastal park is a reminder of possibilities of what could be for other areas. Although designated camping is a must in the park it was relatively cheap and the purity worth the pesos. Nearby Isla Pan de Azucar is home to humboldt penguins and sea lions and was just a short boat ride away. However, feeling energetic and adventurous Iain and I decided we would paddle out on the surfboards to check it all out. We paddled for about an hour an a half through flat water which was tiring for me, but more cold for Iain. We did get close enough to see penguins and a huge male sea lion swimming close by, although Iain's waterproof camera died on the journey and the very large jelly fish scared me throughout. The following day we took a boat over and were able to get a better view and some pictures.

Parapente cew

Leaving the pristine park was hard, and our next stop was Iquique. We took in some paragliding yesterday and plan to leave tomorrow. I rode a tandem with an instructor which was fun, and Iain had his first lesson and solo flight. Iain loves it and can't wait to do a course. We arrived in Arica today and are getting ready to head into Peru (maybe tomorrow). Our trusty Lonely Planet got left behind in a mall in Iquique, but luckily we are able to download an e-version and not pay the whopping $70 for a new one. Yikes!