Thumb to the end - Not impossible, but difficult!

In Cochrane, we almost give in when we are at the bus station with Steve (for some reason there is a whole new terminal for one bus a day, but well...) and buy a ticket for him. He is also continuing to Caleta Tortel, which is 20km off the Carretera Austral. But we stay strong and try our luck again with hitchhiking the next morning. Steve and the bus overtake us as we are still looking for the right spot on the roadside to make ourselves comfortable. A quick stop in the bushes to be ready for the 125 km ride. But just as Lisa is squatting in the grass, the first car stops! A satellite dish installer in his service vehicle on the way to a customer. He actually drives all the way to Tortel, but before that, he has to stop at a customer's place and connect a dish. It doesn't take long and we zoom past Steve on the bus in the fast pick-up truck. It almost feels like a race, hitchhiking vs. bus :)

40km before Tortel, in the middle of the forest on a farm, we get out because our driver has to work. We walk along the road and have a snack, try our luck. But the only vehicle that passes us is the bus with Steve. We don't want to stop that, it would be against our dignity. After three-quarters of an hour, the nice installer picks us up again and takes us right to the center of Caleta Tortel. Okay, let's say, until the road ends. Because - what we honestly didn't realize - in Tortel there are no roads, only wooden walkways and stairs that connect the houses. That's really amazing! The bus is already there, all right, Steve has won. Quickly inquired about possible accommodations at the tourist information and off we go to find accommodation. After three inquiries, we find a cheap, simple, and, well, reasonably clean place. We use the afternoon to walk around the whole village, a nice little place, and arrange to meet for dinner. After delicious fish, beer, and Pisco Sour, we say goodbye to our friend because he takes the 40-hour ferry to Puerto Natales from here.

Tortel is indeed an impressive place, but since we want to see everything, we want to continue the next day, contrary to our plans. The only potential problem: there won't be another bus until the day after tomorrow, which means we would have to hitchhike again, this time to the last town on the Carretera Austral: Villa O'Higgins. Basically, exactly our thing, but this stretch is 'not impossible, but difficult,' as the lady at the tourist information tells us. The reason: From O'Higgins, it's only possible to continue by bike or on foot by boat. So who should drive the last 150 km by car? In addition, we have to cover the 22km from Tortel to the Carretera to possibly encounter more cars there. And moreover, part of the route has to be crossed by ferry, which only runs 4 times a day. But what the heck, we'll give it a try. With Steve's words 'You will make it, I have faith!' in mind, we stand by the road at 8.15 am, in case someone takes the first ferry at 10 am. Allegedly, it takes about 1 hour to get to the port. We wait exactly one hour and see: nothing. No cars, nada. Okay, the first ferry will probably leave without us. Just as we are resigning ourselves to that, a car zooms in. Quickly grab the cookies (our bait) and stick out our thumbs. And we can't believe our eyes: The car actually stops! Two young men our age come out, quickly rearrange the car so that we and our luggage fit in, and off we go. And the best part: They actually drive all the way to Villa O'Higgins! Unbelievable, we really have more luck than sense! And yes, of course, they want to catch the 10 am ferry. The two seem a bit stressed, time is running out, and the road conditions are terrible with constant curves and ups and downs. But they become a little more relaxed as they fraternally roll and share a somewhat strange-smelling 'cigarette' during the drive ;-) (that seems to be part of Chilean serenity..)

We actually manage to just make it onto the ferry and even overtake our New Year's friends with their bikes on the way. So we arrive in Villa O'Higgins at noon and enjoy the warmth and sun. However, the temperatures change dramatically the next day and it rains (in the village) or snows (on the not-so-high mountains nearby) heavily. We go on two hikes and find the best whole-grain bread since San Pedro de Atacama in a small house with an old lady! A delight!

We book the boat ride plus a trip to the glacier for January 7th and hope for good weather because the boat cannot sail in strong winds. On the last evening, 4 Brazilian beetles arrive, a group of 8 people who have traveled from their home in Brazil to the end of the Carretera Austral in 20 days, only to turn back. A bit crazy, but why not ;-)

Here is our own little 'thumb statistics' of the Carretera Austral:

- 1,240 kilometers

- 16 cars

- 30 km on foot

- 70 km by bike

- 4 ferries

- 17 days (including stays)