A Few Days Around Pucón, Chile

Pucón, Chile, is a small village in a gorgeous setting which has become a mecca for outdoor adventures of all sorts. I spent a few days there in January 1999 and loved it, so I hope others who might go will benefit from reading this page. However, I won't pretend to have all the facts you will need. For that (or at least a lot more facts), you might want to consult a travel guide such as the Lonely Planet Guide to Chile (Lonely Planet offers some info online too). If you have any questions not answered below, feel free to email me.


The map above shows the lake district of Chile. This page describes only a small part of it, including Temuco, the transportation center where I flew in, Villarrica, and especially the village of Pucón, which is too small to be shown on the map (its position is at the top of the first l in Villarrica).



Town of Pucón

Chile runs along the west coast of South America from latitude -10 to about -55, so it includes an amazing variety of environments (a similar strip of land in the northern hemisphere would run from the Alaska panhandle to Costa Rica!). Pucón is at about -39 latitude, which would be in northern California if it were in the north, and about 50 miles inland. Thus it is warm in summer, green, and has volcanoes high enough to have snow year-round. The skyline is dominated by 2847-meter (9340-foot) Volcan Villarrica, which is about 15 km from the village. The view in the other direction is dominated by Lago Villarrica, a lake about 25 km (15 miles) long with Pucón at its eastern end and the town of Villarrica at its western end. Where Pucón meets the lake, there is a long, wide black sand beach.

Pucón has a permanent population of about 2000, but don't let that fool you. There is a lot to do! The best time to go is probably January, because most Chilean tourists come in February. But there are probably many more months of good weather.


View of Volcan Villarrica from downtown Pucón.

Wooden flowers are a local specialty.
Yes, these flowers really are made of wood!


Rollerblading

OK, rollerblading isn't on the top of your list of reasons for going to Chile. And for good reason, I found. The only good pavement I found around Pucón was on the highway going east to Parque Nacional Huerqueque. For a few miles there is actually a bikepath on the side of the road, which is great for skating. When that ends you can go about another mile before hitting bad pavement, for a total of maybe four miles each way. I think such a short distance is not worth bringing skates, and I think rental skates are not available, although I didn't look.

Villarrica wasn't much better. The streets were terrible, but I found good pavement on the highway leading northwest toward the Panamericana. Unfortunately this highway is pretty narrow and chock full of Greyhound-type buses traveling at high speed. I stuck it out for maybe 6 miles each way, but I found myself wishing I had said goodbye to my loved ones before skating.


Running

My favorite run was, of course, along the beach. Pucón has a black sand beach because of its volcanic origin, and the contrast between the black sand, the blue water, the green trees, and the snow-capped volcano was very beautiful. The only drawback is that after less than two miles, you reach the mouth of the Rio Trancura, which is unbridged and unfordable (unless you want really wet running shoes). The best solution is probably to run the same beautiful stretch of beach multiple times, but if you get tired of running on sand you might try the road which winds around "The Peninsula", a narrow ridge which juts perhaps a mile into the lake.

 Running along Lago Villarrica, with the last rays of the sun shining on a four-foot wall of black sand.

The view on the way back. In this and in the picture at the top of this page, the
light streak to the left of the volcano is smoke coming out of the volcano crater.

Mountain Biking

There must be some trails around the beach and the peninsula, but I knew where I wanted to go on the bike: 15 km up the gravel road to the volcano, where there is a forest of Araucarias, Chile's signature tree. It was brutal but worth it. The loose gravel and steep upgrade make it difficult in some places to even get started if you stop for a break. There was enough traffic to be annoying in the lower 5 km, but in the upper reaches I had the road all to myself. Make sure you wear a hat and get your SPF 45 sunblock all over, because there's no shade on the road, although you can pull off into some shady spots along the way. And bring plenty of water. (In retrospect, early morning would have been a much better time to try this route.) I brought a 20 oz bottle, which would have been enough to get to the Araucaria forest and back had I not topped off my bottle at the mercifully shady entrance to the national park. Be sure to get good directions to the Araucaria forest from the ranger, because it's not obvious from the signs. I rode a few more kilometers, almost to my goal, and then realized I had algae floating in my water. Although the ranger had sworn it was safe, I didn't want to take a chance and turned around. At that point I had a beautiful view of most of Lago Villarrica. And when the downward journey took only one-fourth of the time of the upward journey, I was sorry for turning around.

Close-up of the Araucaria or monkey-puzzle tree.


Rafting down the Rio Trancura.

Rafting

The Rio Trancura has an upper, class 4, run, and a lower run which is easier but I don't know which class. There are many places which will take you on these runs; Sol y Nieve was recommended to us by a Chilean. It was 12000 pesos (about US $26) for a three-hour trip, about half of which was actually spent on the water. Our guide spoke enough English to keep us out of danger, but not much more. But he was a good pilot and a nice guy. Before hitting the water, they gave us pretty good equipment (life vests, helmets, and paddles for each, and wet suits for those who wanted them) and went through all the commands he might have to give us on the river. No one fell out of our boat, but two people fell out of the boat behind us. The water was cold, but not so much that a wet suit was necessary. Almost all of us jumped in for fun during the calm stretches, because it was a hot day.

Sol y Nieve had a still photographer and a video cameraman standing on the shore near the exciting parts. Immediately upon returning, we ssaw the video of us going through the rapids, and after about 10 minutes we saw the pictures, which were pretty good. At 1500 pesos (about US $3) apiece, we bought quite a few.


Halfway up the volcano, we can see all of Lago Villarrica, with the town of Villarrica on the left end of the lake and Pucón just off the right edge of the picture.

Climbing Villarrica Volcano

Once again I went with recommended Sol y Nieve for the climb up Volcan Villarrica. This is an all-day climb which requires equipment (crampons, ice pick, etc.) and a guide. Sol y Nieve charged 22,500 pesos (about US $49) for the trip, and, apart from food, water, sunblock, and camera, they provided everything: backpack, sunglasses, hat, gloves, snowpants, you name it. The only thing they didn't provide was gas masks, which meant that at the summit you had to stay upwind of the sulfur fumes. The fun part was going down, where we could just slide on the snow and instantly descend what had taken us hours to ascend. The amount of sun at that elevation and with the snow reflecting everything was incredible; sunglasses and sunblock are a must. Despite the presence of snow, it was quite warm; I was in shorts and t-shirt until my skin turned red (despite several layers of SPF 45!). You should be in reasonable physical shape for this hike.


The crater.

Town of Villarrica

Villarrica is a town of 20,000 which lies on the opposite (west) end of Lago Villarrica. Lacking much sand, it doesn't have anything like the beach activity of Pucón. But for the same reason, the lakeshore here is much less crowded and more peaceful. Grass and trees make for a great place to read or take a nap, activities which would burn you to a crisp on the hot black sands of Pucón. Not to mention no blaring radios or screaming people!



But to my mind the nicest spot in Villarrica is the bridge over the Rio Tolten, which drains the west end of the lake. This river has a beautiful green color which shimmers and changes as you view it from different angles. Looking over the other side of the bridge, you see the lake, the volcano, and a small extinct volcano which now forms an island in the lake. Take the time to scramble down the embankment and look around. There are also rowboats for rent. It looks like the perfect place for a leisurely row.




View of Volcan Villarrica from the town of Villarrica by day...


...and at sunset.

City of Temuco

Temuco is the transportation center of the area (poulation 200,000) and you'll probably pass through here on your way to Pucón or anywhere else in the area. I took a few hours to explore the two main attractions, the market and Cerro Nielol, a mountain park close to downtown which dominates the view of the city.

The market seemed quite subdued, contrary to its reputation as a fabulous bazaar. I may have been there before things got really active, but there were still plenty of native crafts for sale, if you're into that sort of thing. I thought the native exposition in Villarrica was more personally engaging. For me the main attraction of the market was eating at one of the many restaurants. While I was eating, a minstrel stopped by and sang a few songs, accompanying himself on the guitar. It was very enjoyable, and the patrons who knew the words even joined in.

Cerro Nielol was a real treat. I took a taxi as high as the road is open and then walked on a gravel road to the top. I was alone with the birds and the butterflies and felt completely liberated from the tyranny of my travel schedule. Returning to where the taxi dropped me off, I heard music and remembered that the taxi driver had told me there was music there every Sunday afternoon. The outdoor performance area was cozy and had a great view of Temuco, and the music was great. There is a restaurant adjacent for those who don't want to leave such a pleasant place right after the music ends. If possible, pass through Temuco on a Sunday so you can take advantage of this. I then walked down the mountain to downtown. Despite it being called a mountain, this takes only 15 minutes and is quite easy and pleasant.


Music and dance on Cerro Nielol above Temuco.

So, although Temuco is not a destination in itself, the time you spend passing through can be very enjoyable.


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