Day 1,632

The Bolt Man of Chile

We were woken by the sound all campers dread, rain, heavy rain battering our tent. We did the only sensible thing and went back to sleep. Eventually it eased enough for us to brave getting up and dashing to a covered picnic bench to brew up a coffee and get the porridge on. Chile is notorious for being wet but we'd hoped it was just a myth, clearly not! That explains the covered picnic benches too. Ah well. We took this time to plan, heading off into the wilds with a dodgy bike wasn't wise, but adding in bad weather and thick clouds to hide the views as well, it made no sense. So we ripped up our planned route and decided to make our way to Billericay, sorry Villarrica, and hopefully find a shop to help sort out Tom's bike. 

It seems a bit of a weak design for a touring bike, the disc brake isn't attached directly to mounts on the frame but rather to a separate bracket, and the combination of being at the maximum weight limit and bouncing up and down on dirt roads is causing the whole thing to work loose. The bolt system seems very lightweight and though we had replaced one with a heavier duty nut and bolt the other was now damaged. First though we had to get there. 

Despite the weather the scenery was stunning

Despite the rain, despite the worries about the bike, we really enjoyed the day’s ride. All around us was dense rainforest, waterfalls in full flow, it was stunning. We were making our way to the waterfall on the Truful-Truful River. After four plus years of touring we are getting a bit weary when it comes to diversions, but they were just a short uphill tarmac ride off the main road, so we were happy to ride up to see them. Formed by a massive volcanic eruption in the mid 1700s they were definitely worth the effort. What was even more impressive was the wide river of cooled lava which dominated the landscape when we returned to the road. Over the years we have seen the remains of many volcanic eruptions but this one really made us aware of the destruction they cause. 

The giant lava field, on which only a specific moss grows

The rain had been falling on and off all day, it stayed dry whilst we looked at the falls and lava but as if it had simply been storing it up the heavens opened up. By some miracle having seen no buildings for hours we saw tucked into the trees beside the road a restaurant. It was constructed from wood and seemed part of the forest. Inside it was warm and dry, served fantastic pizzas and some rather dodgy homebrew, but we were very happy to take shelter. Eventually we returned to the downpour, if anything it seemed even heavier, a few miles on we came to a petrol station with a cafe and rooms, home for the night, and they served decent beer too! 

The next day we just had 60 miles to go to reach Villarrica. The road was a mix of tarmac and dirt but not too many hills, the sun was out and it was a beautiful ride. Unfortunately Tom's rear brake/wheel kept coming loose. We stopped by a gate half way up a hill in the middle of nowhere. Tom wanted to fit a stronger bolt as a temporary fix but needed to cut it down as it was just 5mm too long and would catch on the brake rotor. We needed a man with a hacksaw, but seriously in the middle of nowhere how likely was that?

Well no sooner had we asked, our prayers were answered, the owner of the property whose gate we were propping the bike on arrived and was soon brandishing a hacksaw and cheerfully aided Tom in cutting it down. All stayed tight and we were soon in Villarrica. Would we be able to find any bolts here? 

Tom disappeared straight after breakfast and came back beaming like a kid at Christmas.  He'd found where Santa keeps his nuts and bolts, and though it looked like a whirlwind had been through it, Santa, I mean the owner, immediately handed over exactly what Tom needed. Our hotel had a great space to work in, so Tom soon had his new stronger bolts fitted, we just needed to get riding and see how it lasted. I took the opportunity to replace my drive train too. Fingers crossed. 

The Bolt Man of Chile - there isn’t a bolt he hasn’t got, and he knows where they all are!

So off we went. Our shorter, easier route turned out to be just beautiful. The hills and especially the headwind made it harder than we hoped but the scenery made up for it. Chile we found hadn't quite opened for tourists and that, combined with most land fenced off made camping difficult. We arrived at one campsite, The Oasis, by a river with pitches dotted about under trees. Despite a local shop owner advising it was open it clearly wasn't but the guy working there was happy to let us pay and set up camp. It was a site clearly able to cope with a hundred or more but we had it all to ourselves, it was bliss. 

We cycled along miles of quiet country lanes, with verges full of wild flowers. It looked and felt so much like England until we spotted the volcanos rising above us and the many vast lakes more reminiscent of the Milford Sound in New Zealand. And so we arrived in Puerto Montt, the start of the fabled Carretera Austral. We can hardly believe that it will be even more beautiful than what we have just seen. 

English countryside, plus volcanoes!

However, on Tuesday Tom visits the dentist, again. We hope it's not wisdom tooth number 3 out and we can get going with our final section in South America! Please!