November 19, 1999
Day 28 Ensenada Chile: Sailing across the Andes
Camping Playa Franco
We get up early at 6am, the sun is barely rising. The ferry leaves at 8am and we do not want to miss it.
The ride is about 45minus to the harbor at Puerto Panulas. At the pier we meet two German cyclists from Kiel. The loaded bikes fit on the front deck, and we take a place inside the cabin because it is chilly. A couple of tourist bus loads also join us. The ferry trip takes about 1.5 hours, to the other side of the large lake.
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There we cycle about 2km through a beautiful forest to Lago Frias where another ferry awaits. This in only a short hop of 1/2 hour. We pass between high cliffs and see condors circling high above. At the other side we get our Argentinian exit stamp. Then follow 3 km uphill and then mostly downhill to Puela where we catch the last boat ride. We have 4.5 hours to get there. We ride from 770 meters to a pass of 1022 meters. In Argentina that means straight up and of course on a rough gravel road. At the top we have lunch with the Germans, but they are not very friendly. Maybe it's because they keep breaking spokes on their ATB's.
The downhill starts very steep but then levels off along a wide river let. We make it to Puela with 45 minutes to spare, clear immigration and customs and head for the dock. The boat is 1/2 hour delayed but the trip across Lago Todas Santos is fantastic. We see volcanoes, waterfalls, and little farms away from all roads along the lake shores.
In Petrohue we decide to ride out to Ensenada because there is camping. This is a beautiful but very hard ride. The volcanic dust is too fine for our tires, the Germans breeze by us. We get there late, have empanadas and beer for dinner but see awesome views over the lake and Volcan Osorno.
Today's ride: 65 km (40 miles)
Total: 1,296 km (805 miles)
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