Isla Grande de Chiloé

My next destination was the second largest island in South America. I took the bus to Chiloé on Monday. I had booked a hostel in Castro. The town is located in the middle of Chiloé, making it the perfect starting point. There is plenty to see, including wooden churches that are UNESCO World Heritage sites, quaint little towns, and lots of nature.

Jürgen, whom I know from Pucon, was also in Castro, but in a different hostel. On the first evening, we met for a coffee to make a plan together. He had already booked a guided tour for Tuesday. Since I wanted to spend a day in Castro anyway, it worked out well. Alex, who was also in Pucon, arrived on Tuesday evening. So we planned to explore the island together starting from Wednesday.

On Wednesday, we visited Muelle de las Almas and Chiloé National Park. In the morning, we took the bus to Muelle, a wooden pier in the middle of nowhere. From where the bus dropped us off, it was a 45-minute walk. It was a beautiful path through the hilly coastal landscape of Chiloé. When we arrived at Muelle, we took some pictures on the pier and enjoyed the beautiful scenery. There were sea lions in the water that we watched for a while.

Next stop was the national park. There was a hiking trail, but it turned out to be more of a nature trail for children and was not very interesting for us. We finished it in less than an hour and then headed towards the Pacific.

Once we reached the ocean, we took off our shoes and walked along the beach for a while. There was a fisherman with his son. They were reeling in their fishing line, and there was actually something on it. However, the fish was too small, so they released it back into the water. We watched them for a while, but unfortunately, the fish were not biting that day. When a rain cloud decided to annoy us with its drizzle, we headed back towards the bus.

Thursday started with a stop in Chonchi, where we visited the local church and the harbor. From there, we continued to Queilén. We had some time before boarding a boat to see the dolphins. There was a small museum. That was about it.

On Friday morning, we took the bus to Achao. There was another church to see there as well. We strolled through the market hall, where maybe 5 farmers were selling fish, fruits, and vegetables. After seeing everything, we continued to Dalcahue. Local food was the highlight there. We tried ceviche at a street stall. It is a salad made from raw fish in a lemon sauce with onions and sometimes potatoes or avocado. It was delicious. Then we each had an oyster, which was also good. Afterward, we went to a market hall where there were many kitchens preparing different dishes. We found an empty seat and ordered a fried fish with salted potatoes and a fish baked with cheese. Both were delicious.

And so we left Chiloé. With an overnight stay in Puerto Montt, we headed to Bariloche in Argentina. Puerto Montt was just a stopover since there is no direct bus.