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The Cruce Andino lake crossing from Puerto Varas to Bariloche – a page from my Travel Journal

Puerto Montt lies about halfway between Punta Arenas and Santiago, and is the gateway to the Lake District, a beautiful region of crystal-clear, emerald lakes and magnificent snow-capped volcanos. I arrived there in the morning, then took a taxi to Puerto Varas (map), about 20 km north of Puerto Montt. The plan was to continue across the Andes lakes from Puerto Varas to Bariloche, crossing from Chile to Argentina by bus and boat, a tour also known as the Cruce Andino.

The countryside here is significantly different from the steppe-like south; it’s hilly and very green, with some beautiful forests. Some of the hills were completely blanketed in Scottish broom that were in full bloom, giving entire hillsides a bright yellow cover.

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The green, hilly countryside.

Puerto Varas

Puerto Varas is a quaint town right on the shores of Lake Llanquehue (pronounced as ‘jean [as in French]-kway-way’) and looks across to the stunning Mt. Osorno, a Mt. Fuji-like volcano, on the far side of the lake. The town was founded by German immigrants and that’s pretty evident in the architecture and the numerous German names all over town. It was a pretty cloudy day with occasional showers – guess I’ve run out of ‘good weather’ luck. Bit of a shame as I couldn’t see the volcanos, just a bit past the snowline while the peaks were completely shrouded in thick clouds.

Puerto Varas, with Volcan Osorno in the background (image courtesy of Hosteria Outsider, Wikimedia Commons).

Puerto Varas is a resort town with many hotels (built almost exclusively in Swiss/German alpine style) that offer gorgeous views of the lake. That evening, I went for dinner at a lovely restaurant called Living. I had a beautiful view of the lake while I enjoyed the salmon and leg of lamb and a bottle of Montes Alpha Merlot. This estate churns out some exquisite reds – I’ve tried the Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Camenere and they’re all absolutely divine. If you see this label in your local wine shop, don’t hesitate!

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The stops along the Lake Crossing tour

Tours from Puerto Varas

 

The Cruce Andino Lake Crossing Tour

The Puerto Varas to Bariloche Cruce Andino lake crossing tour started early the next day. This is a very popular tour in this region. It starts in Puerto Montt/Puerto Varas and takes you through the Andes by a combination of boat and bus and ends in Bariloche, Argentina. I chose the version that stops for the night in Peulla, a hamlet in the heart of the Andes.

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My only glimpse of Mt. Osorno before the clouds rolled in.

We left Puerto Varas by coach and headed east to Petrohue. We managed to catch a glimpse of the conical peak of Mt. Osorno as the clouds lifted for, literally, a few minutes. I showed others the photos I took from the plane when I flew from Santiago to Punta Arenas on that clear day to give them an idea of what it looks like on a cloudless day! Along the way, we stopped at the Petrohue waterfall at the foot of Mt. Osorno. The falls were rather impressive and the colour, a deep emerald, was stunning. A lot of the rivers and lakes in this region have that same colour (in varying degrees) as the water originates from the glaciers which carry heaps of minerals with them from the mountains. The minerals, especially copper, give the water this beautiful colour.

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Petrohue waterfall
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The stunning emerald colour of the river.

Read about the best places to visit in Chile

From Petrohue, we boarded a boat which took us on a two-hour trip through the beautiful Lago Todos Los Santos (All Saints Lake). It would have been an awesome boat ride had it not been for the poor weather. The lake should’ve been a bright emerald, instead it was grey, and the surrounding mountains were all hidden behind clouds. The guide showed us pictures instead (!) of the lake and the four massive volcanos that rise steeply from its shores. Oh well!

Peulla

We arrived in Peulla just in time for lunch. Peulla is nothing more than two hotels, a few houses and a pier! Its location though is just spectacular, with the reed-filled lake, beautiful rivers and waterfalls, and the imposing snow-capped mountains right at its doorstep. I guess being out here, right in the middle of the Andes mountains, made us feel adventurous so we decided to go zip-lining through the forest canopy. I’m usually fearful of great heights so I was quite hesitant but I went along and did it anyway. I was joined by an American couple and the guide strapped us up with safety lines, hooks, helmets, gloves and the trolley.

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Peulla

Funny how fear has us in its grip in so many ways

The first was easy enough. The second was quite scary as the distance between the two platforms was about 80 meters and there was a considerable descent, which meant a greater speed.

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Zip-lining through the Andean forest in Peulla.

I was close to trembling and I told myself to relax, assured myself that it was totally safe. The guide gave me the signal to go and I lifted my feet off the platform and away I went. Strangely enough, it wasn’t panic that swept over me, it was pure exhilaration. This is fantastic, I thought. I didn’t brake so I zipped down at a tremendous speed, only slowing down when I neared the platform. Loved it! We went from platform to platform eight times and it was awesome! Funny how fear has us in its grip in so many ways but when we let it go for just a bit and explore that unknown, we then realise how silly we were to harbour that particular fear in the first place.

An extraordinary dining experience

I had a rather extraordinary experience at dinner that evening. I sat down across from an elderly American couple (in their early-80’s) that shared a table with a Spaniard who spoke no English. Since the couple didn’t speak any Spanish, the lady told the Spaniard, “why don’t you talk and I’ll just nod my head and smile”!! She was hilarious! They had some trouble ordering so I helped them with the translations (me translating Spanish?! Haha! I may not speak the language but I know my food and wines!) and ordered their food and some wine. Tired of the arduous conversation at their table, they soon turned around to my table and a cross-table conversation began. Then another couple (from Colombia) sat down and they joined in the conversation, and then two other couples (from Brazil) joined in later, and soon we had a conversation across five tables! Everyone had to speak up as the tables were about a meter or two apart!

It was a lively, boisterous, evening which we enjoyed tremendously. The elderly American couple were going to attempt the canopy ziplines the next day (I admire their determination) and we shared our experience with them. As we left, they got up, gave us a big hug and the lady said to us (laden in her heavy New York accent),”I don’t know much about you but I love you to bits already”. Now isn’t that sweet! 🙂

The next day, we hopped onto a bus and continued on our lake crossing tour. We left Peulla behind us and continued deeper into the Andes mountains. The scenery was spectacular.

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We covered the stretches of land between the lakes by bus.
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Majestic mountains and waterfalls.
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We passed this friendly fella along the way.
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Drive through thick temperate forests.
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The border with Argentina.

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We drove past the dense temperate rainforest (only one of two places on Earth with temperate rainforests; here and in Washington state) – loved the huge beech and sequioa-like trees – and past various waterfalls and gushing rivers. The Chile-Argentina border was at the top of the mountain pass and the Brazilians clambered out of the bus and were thrilled with the patches of snow.

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Lago Frias

We arrived at Lago Frias (another stunning lake) and from here, we took a boat to Puerto Alegre. The weather on this side of the Andes was a lot better and we could start to see the true colour of the lake and the imposing mountains around us.

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The boat at Lago Frias.

We then continued by boat to Puerto Panuelo, stopping at some impressive waterfalls along the way. The boat ride to Puerto Panuelo along the Lago Nahuel Huapi offered us a magnificent vista of the huge forest-clad mountains. We arrived in Puerto Panuelo an hour later and a bus was there to take us on the last 25 km on this lake crossing from Puerto Varas to Bariloche.

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The colours of the water and the forests were just beautiful!
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Lago Nahuel Huapi
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A little pier in an emerald lake.
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The scenery was just amazing!
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Crossing the Andes by boat is truly an extraordinary experience!
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Getting close to Bariloche.
 

Bariloche

Bariloche is a popular ski resort in the winter. Its location, on the shores of Lago Nahuel Huapi and backed by the Andes mountains, is just breathtaking. The town itself is a bit of a jumble, kitschy in places; there are lots of restaurants, shops and hotels. In addition to the spectacular views, Bariloche (map) is famous for its alpine architecture and chocolates – there’s a thriving chocolate industry here. I had some but wasn’t too impressed. Guess you wouldn’t be if you lived next door to Belgium, in my book, the true chocolate country!

Bariloche

Villa Huinid, our hotel here sits atop a hill and commands brilliant views of the lake and the mountains. The view from my room window is really like a postcard – it’s quite surreal, getting up in the morning and looking out the window! Then having a leisurely breakfast on the hotel’s sunny terrace, and a lazy stroll along Lago Nahuel Huapi…

The view from my room window at Villa Huinid
Wildflowers along the shores of Lago Nahuel Huapi
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The massive peaks surrounding Lago Nahuel Huapi near Bariloche.
 

I spent four wonderful days in Bariloche just absorbing the magnificent views and reflecting on the spectacular Puerto Varas to Bariloche lake crossing. Simply enchanting! 🙂

Read about my great laundry adventure in Bariloche.

Search for hotels in Bariloche (Booking.com)

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