A large island, accessible by regular ferries, is a lovely quaint, predominantly farming area with 3 larger towns: Ancud in the north, Castro in the centre and Quellon in the south. I didn’t have adequate time to head all the way south as I was time bound by the ferry I was catching to Puerto Natales from Puerto Montt.
I liked the country feel of the island. It is most well-known for penguins and it’s church circuit of 16 Unesco churches. They are made predominantly of wood. Some of them lie on the islands off of Chiloe.
First stop was Ancud, where I stayed just across from the San Antonio Fort. This home had a great view of the bay! I also got to know the notary publics and printing places in Ancud as I was selling my house in New Zealand during this time. Note to self: selling a house in a time zone that is 16 hours ahead, certifying paperwork in a country where you do not speak the language is a character building experience!
There is a public bus from Ancud to the penguin colony in Islotes De Punihuil. Humboldt and Magellenes penguins come here to mate for several months of the year, starting in September. The difference between the adult penguins is their stripes. The Humboldt has one stripe around the neck, while the other has two. The juveniles are difficult to tell apart. There are also several species of birds endemic to the area.
There is only one bus out of the penguin beach- 17h15. However, 17h15 came and went, 18h00 came and went and 18h30 came and still no bus. You could see it half way down the beach- but I hadn’t moved for the last 1.5 hours. I turned out to have a flat tyre. A pick up ute came past the three of us waiting for the bus. We asked when the bus is coming- and were told it wasn’t. We were offered a ride though at the back of the pickup. So we all gladly hopped in as 30km is a long way to walk back to town! We were dropped of 10km down the road- where one of the guys offered us a lift into town in his pickup. This was really kind as he had no other business there.
Castro is known for its palafitos (homes on stilts) and is the point from which my Czech friend (from Pucon) and I did a day trip out of, using public transport. We visited three churches: Achao, lunch in Curaco, another church in Dalcahue and then further to Tenaun. Tenaun is the smallest of these towns, I would hardly call it a settlement, but the church is very beautiful. We were lucky to get in 2 minutes before they started fumigating. This would have been painful after a 45-minute wait for the bus and another hour or so of a bus trip from Dalcahue. Back in Castro we visited the Unesco church in Plaza de Armas (main square). The exterior is corrugated iron, painted yellow and the interior is exquisite wooden panelling. I must add the Chiloe is well known for pretty rough weather- and yet luck was on our side and rain mainly came when we were on the bus 🙂 .
One reply on “Chiloe Island”
Przy tych domach na palach tak malo wody bo odplyw?