(November 19 – written by Nancy) It rained all night and was still raining this morning when the alarm went off – bummer.  There is nothing romantic about the sound of rain on a metal roof when you planning to ride your bike the next morning...We looked at the weather forecasts for here and the … Continue reading Waiting out the rain in Villa Santa Lucia

(November 18 – written by Dave) What a day – we had a little bit of everything.  Well, not everything as we didn’t have any sun, though it would have been nice.  We were up at the same time and not sure if we were going to ride today.  It rained hard overnight and it … Continue reading Wet, wet, wet and then a reality check – Chaiten to Villa Santa Lucia (77k/24,644k, 3,100ft)

(November 17 – written by Dave) We slept pretty well in the tent in our tiny hut home last night.  It rained off and on but undercover we were dry.  It was not raining in the morning when we got up and in fact the rain held off until almost 10AM.  That let us get … Continue reading Wet progress – Parque Pumalin to Chaiten (45k/24,567k, 2,100ft)

(November 16 – written by Dave) Today was a great day – it mostly sunny in the morning.  We boarded the Hornopiren to Caleta Gonzalo ferry at about 8:15 with blue skies and great views to the surrounding mountains.  We were early enough to be first in the queue and got to wander the decks … Continue reading Ferry, short ride and more bikes – Hornopirén to Parque Pumalin (16k/24,522k, 1,200ft)

(November 15 – written by Dave) Today’s forecast was spot on and we loved it – blue skies in the morning, a few clouds and then more blue later in the day.  Repeat this to the bottom and we’ll be happy campers. We slept well in our tiny room, nice and cosy.  The owner’s dogs … Continue reading Sun and fun – Contao to Hornopirén (47k/24,506k, 2,540ft)

(November 14 – written by Dave) Today we started the Carretera Austral, but we almost didn’t.  The forecast was pretty ordinary, rain most of the day and both of us could have used another rest day to kill off our pesky colds.  But we rode anyway...  The trouble with the forecast was that wet is … Continue reading Wet start – Puerto Montt to Contao (56k/24,459k, 1,660ft)

(November 13 – written by Dave) It’s raining here in Puerto Montt today – perhaps a good day not to be riding.  I think we are going to see some wet on the Carretera Austral, it’s just part of the territory.  So, we’ll have to get over riding and camping in the rain.  Oh well. … Continue reading Puerto Montt update

(November 12 – written by Dave) We finished Ruta 5 today – woohoo.  We’ve been on and off Ruta 5 for close to 1,000km.  It’s a fast way to travel, if not overly scenic.  The shoulder remained wide every day we rode it.  Today was no different.  The shoulder is not always clean and there … Continue reading The end of I-5 – Osorno to Puerto Montt (108k/24,403k, 1,660ft)

(November 11 – written by Dave) Our two relaxing days in Osorno come to an end tomorrow.  The usual “let’s stay another day” pull is there, but our wonderful tiny house is booked for the next week so we have to move on.  Since moving next door is just about as complicated as moving to … Continue reading Osorno and the plan ahead

(November 9 – written by Dave) Yesterday’s extra miles meant a short day today, very short.  This allowed us to have a sleep-in.  It wasn’t as if we wanted to spend any more time in our lovely cabana than we had to however.  It would seem that all of the spring rains this year have … Continue reading Escaping the potato bugs – Rio Buena to Osorno (34k/24,295k, 870ft)