Hi! I hope everyone’s winter is going ok. We’re going through lots of sunblock here near the south 42nd parallel. There might just be a ‘lil hole in the ozone around here. The sun is unusually intense. But the weather’s been awesome. Shorts & short sleeves.

That’s been rather unexpected, since we’ve been on the island of Chiloe off the coast of Chile for a week now. On the Oregon coast, which looks somewhat similar at times, it’s been known to rain quite often. We’ve got alot of dew in camp every morning, but except for a few hours of drizzle that’s been it. Actually there’s lots of wildfires, mostly burning these horrible thorn-covered weed-bushes that appear to be an invasive species, though we don’t really know. There’s tons of good ‘ol blackberry bushes too, full of tiny green berries that oughta become edible about one week after we’re gone. I suppose our digestive tracks appreciate that we’re not going to be eating several kilograms of them a day, but we sure don’t. Aside from the blackberries, this island is unlike any place we’ve ever been. Mostly farmland and fishing villages, but different.

So, I really want to write about the wildlife. Aside from birds there’s been surprisingly little, but the birds totally make up for that. I’m not a birder, but I’m pretty impressed with the birds in South America. Not one of them has been something I recognize, except in Buenos Aires I’m pretty sure a flock of parakeets flew past me. Wow, quite a reminder that I’m not in the states. I like parakeets! But since we got to Patagonia I haven’t seen any. There are small flocks of a green-bodied, red-faced, cockatiel-sized parrot-like thing, and they make a collective sound that I’ve never heard and can’t describe. So far they’re too fast for my camera, but I’m quickening my draw.

The major difference from home is the raptors. For one thing, they grow ‘em big here! Condors are common and huge. Just huge. Then there’s alot of dark brown eagle-looking things that are probably eagles, unless falcons & hawks come eagle-sized. Lots of ‘em . In fact largeness is the most common trait of the birds here, with the exception of the penguins. The most common birds here in Chiloe are some kind of medium-sized hawk that you’ll see a dozen of at a time. There’s lots of birds I’m calling üggs because that’s the sound they make. They’re plain gray pigeon-like things when on the ground but when they fly they’re black with awesome white bands on their wings. Lots of seagulls too. Oh yeah, and penguins.

We saw penguins! We rode 17 km of just terrible gravel road to the beach settlement of Puñihiel, a Pinguiñera, which consists of about a dozen buildings against the seaside bluffs that exists exclusively for penguin-watching. The road ends at the beach, you ride/drive/sit on the bus down the beach, and stop at the operation of your choice. They give you rubber boots and life jackets, then a 20-seater open motorboat backs in through the breakers, runs aground in about a foot or two of water, and you walk out and get in at the stern. The captain and a helper or two wait for a big enough set of waves lift the boat and after a few tries manage to push it out into the sea. Then for half an hour they take you around the sea-stack islands (think every picture you’ve ever seen of the Oregon coast) that are totally teeming with Magellan penguines, Humbolt penguins, and two species of cormorants. The boat gets within about twenty feet of the colonies, but the islands are a protected reserve and no humans are allowed. The whole enterprise is so low-impact, so under-developed, so simple and sensible, that the colonies really are protected. Every business on the beach clearly cooperates at every level to keep it so. They even take turns soliciting newly-arrived tourists. And the penguins themselves? Were they absurdly cute and anthropomorphic? Well we didn’t see any playfully rubbing each other’s bellies or marching in a long line with their wings out, but come on, they’re penguins! Of course they were!

OK, enough about birds. Chile is a neat country. But coming here from Argentina a few things stand out. This place is more like the US. People are a little less laid back than in Argentina, but still friendly as heck. They give directions readily, are generous and helpful, and laugh a whole lot. But for example we went into a supermarket in Pueto Monte (Chile) that was almost exactly the size and style of the larger ones in the states. It was kinda shocking how they had everything we wanted, and it was all as full of preservatives as we grew up with. Not like Argentina. More disturbingly, the cars here are just as big, just as un-full of people, and just as likely to be a big SUV as back home. Argentina has mostly three-quarter-sized cars or smaller, and they tend to have at least as many passengers as seats. They take up less room, and are far preferable to the bike tourist they’re passing. I remember looking in my mirror in Puerto Monte and seeing ten SUV’s coming from behind, bracing for their passage, and all of a sudden realizing how familiar that felt. And, of course, how nice it was to have not seen it in a while. I find myself hoping that Chile doesn’t adopt all of the US’s less desirable traits. So it’s a subtle difference. There’s no forgetting that we’re not in North America!

Ok, that’s about all I got in me for now. Bike touring remains totally awesome and endlessly fascinating, fulfilling, and fun. Tomorrow we take a boat back to the mainland. Thanks Chiloe, it’s been great!

And thanks everyone for reading!

Ciao,
-Andy