Rio Simpson
Our first stop today was Cascadas Virgin.
It was like an outdoor Catholic Church (with a waterfall).
Today also happened to be the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. It is a holiday here. We had seen a few cyclists on our way to the waterfall. They were at the waterfall too. When we left, along the road, there were lots of people walking toward the waterfall. There was going to be a Mass at 4:00 today. All these people were making a pilgrimage to the Cascada Virgin. It was not exactly the safest road to be walking on. There was quite a bit of traffic (not just going to the waterfall). We saw people walking for several kilometers. Where we rejoined Ruta 7 at Villa Baguales, it seemed to be where people had started from. We didn’t see anyone else after that. I think it was at least 20kms. There was also a good sized group of cyclists.
We had a pretty big climb of 6+ kilometers the hard part finished at Villa Baguales. Not too much further, we decided to stop for a lunch break.
Looking back at what we had come up. There was even a tunnel, but I didn’t take any photos (uphill tunnels are hard enough).
We just had our lunch in a pullout on the side of the road. We wondered what people thought as they drove by and we three people sitting in chairs on the side of the road. Must have looked pretty funny.
We had just a bit more easy part of the climb to finish. We came to a viewpoint where we could see down to Coyhaique.
Off in the distance at the base of the mountains is Coyhaique. It is the capital of the region, and the biggest city we will be in until Ushuaia.
Zoom in to see the awesome downhill.
We arrived in Coyhaique after another steep climb up into the city.
We made a bee line to a cafe that had WiFi so we could figure out a place to stay.
Now that is a chocolate caliente!
Alex found a hotel that had apartments. Markus thought it was a bit expensive, but from here until the end of the Carratera we won’t be staying in expensive places. And, for what we have, it’s not expensive (less than 50USD/day). We got a discount by paying in USD/Euros. We are staying here three nights so we can prepare for the rest of the Carratera.
Hotel lobby
My bedroom.
My bathroom (yes, there are two baños in this apartment)
Kitchen
Room for 8 at the dining room table.
It’s Avery nice place, and we are quite happy. They even have breakfast!
Once we were showered, we headed out for some dinner. We found a pizza place pretty close. It was good. Then we went to the Unimarc (big supermercado). This will be the last big supermercado for a long time. Tonight, we just got snacks.
The clouds have rolled in, but the weather is not supposed to be too bad. I’m sure we will enjoy our break here. Oh, and Steve and Lani are also in Coyhaique, but probably leaving tomorrow. They are staying about 5 kms out of town. We are right in the center.
Now it’s time to upload this and go to sleep in my nice comfy bed. Goodnight from Coyhaique!
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