The day was warm and sunny when we left Castro.
Castro to Quellon was only 100 kms and we anticipated doing some walking around a nice port town.
Lesson learned… never make assumptions in South America. There was little in Quellon and the dock area was full of unemployed, homeless, dirty, mostly drunken “sailors” and such. It reminded me of Seattle dockside. I wonder what it is about the sea that attracts these hapless souls.
The ferry across to Chaiten left at 3:00 pm and was a 5 hour crossing.
Between catnaps and trips to the deck, we partially watched Mission Impossible III with Spanish sub-titles. Too bad we couldn’t hear the English soundtrack. We must rent the video when we get home.
The volcano Corcorado, some 65 kms away from Quellon, was visible across the Golfo Corcovado. It became more and more impressive the closer we got to Chaiten.
Chaiten seems like a very nice town, but most businesses were closed… again not the high season yet. During the ferry ride we checked our Chile book and agreed on a hotel to spend the night, plus studied the town map to easily get there.
After checking in we went on a hunt for a restaurant and finally found one that was open. It was obviously a popular place as we took the only vacant table. Or was it full because it was the only place open? A nice atmosphere, friendly waitress, but we waited forever for our food. Some other patrons said this wait was nothing. They had tried a different restaurant and were told they wouldn’t get their meal until midnight!
The day was warm and sunny when we left Castro.
Castro to Quellon was only 100 kms and we anticipated doing some walking around a nice port town.
Lesson learned… never make assumptions in South America. There was little in Quellon and the dock area was full of unemployed, homeless, dirty, mostly drunken “sailors” and such. It reminded me of Seattle dockside. I wonder what it is about the sea that attracts these hapless souls.
The ferry across to Chaiten left at 3:00 pm and was a 5 hour crossing.
Between catnaps and trips to the deck, we partially watched Mission Impossible III with Spanish sub-titles. Too bad we couldn’t hear the English soundtrack. We must rent the video when we get home. 
The volcano Corcorado, some 65 kms away from Quellon, was visible across the Golfo Corcovado. It became more and more impressive the closer we got to Chaiten.
Our arrival at Chaiten was right on schedule about 8 PM. Something we heard about the ferry service in these parts that adherence to schedules was rare
Chaiten seems like a very nice town, but most businesses were closed… again not the high season yet. During the ferry ride we checked our Chile book and agreed on a hotel to spend the night, plus studied the town map to easily get there. 
After checking in we went on a hunt for a restaurant and finally found one that was open. It was obviously a popular place as we took the only vacant table. Or was it full because it was the only place open? A nice atmosphere, friendly waitress, but we waited forever for our food. Some other patrons said this wait was nothing. They had tried a different restaurant and were told they wouldn’t get their meal until midnight!
