3rd of March – "Nancy" Fundo, Rio Bio Bio via Mulchen to Pelluhue – 445km, 8h53
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After a relatively good night…relatively, because we slept in our motorbike clothes on the mat without the sleeping bags. We were just too lazy that evening before. Not that the coldness troubled us too much, but the motorbike jackets are so hard and bulky that one can hardly turn around…we got up at 7 am. The sky was bright, though the sunrise still hidden behind the mountains, it was still “fresh” when I prepared coffee on the cooker. All the farm animals were around me and Ying who wrenched herself out of the tent. While Ying prepared breakfast I packed our stuff. Nancy came down from her farm house for a chat + interested as well in our setup and which things we brought on our travel.
Only a couple of tourists come this way: some bicycle riders or Enduro solo riders during the summer time. Winter will come soon, 2 m of snow are normal and the only way out from here is on the horse. For their young boy it is 1 hour on the horse one-way to the school, during winter considerably longer…a different life.
I gave her a pack of cigarettes and some small money acknowledging that SHE was the one who convinced us to stay here preventing us a night at the river crossing. A hearty farewell and at around 10:30 we were at the said one. Thanks god, that it had no rain for weeks! About 40 m wide and I can imagine how this smoothly flowing water can change into a horror trip. Nevertheless we wanted to play it safe. We got off all of the luggage except the boxes and made our way to the other side in underpants. Adrenalin pumped already in my body and I didn’t feel the coldness of the water at all; if I would fall with the moto and water would enter thru the airfilter… that could stop us for a day or two…The crossing went well though I bumped two times into bigger stones and the back tire dug a bit into the brash. The whole thing took one hour but who cares, everything went well!
On this side of the river a better gravel road started and soon we came to a cross-way where I thought we would have to go straight. About 50 m uphill on the left a Carabineros station was visible. A friendly officer came down to us, shook hands and explained that we would have to take the gravel road to the left passing the station. My GPS only white and we were quite thankful. He asked a couple of questions, I am sure for his protocol. Nothing against that!
Soon the gravel road got wider and gave some views on the Rio Bio Bio, partially really beautiful but if I would have known that approx. 60% are impounded by dams for the Hydro Electrica…I guess we would have never tried this way!
Now many tourists came towards us and on one tent ground below there were at least a hundred tents lined up at the river shore. Not so much our thing. We continued towards Los Angeles and at one crossing I took the way towards and thru Mulchen anticipating from the missing line up of signs that we would see gravel again. Right, and we had another 20 km of Ripio. Awful. Behind Mulchen we just got on the highway to the North fed up from offroad driving. :-)
Another 300km we drove that day seeking for a relaxing beach spot on the west coast, the last 100km against blinding low sunlight.
We arrived at around 8 pm in Pelluhue on the last day of the summer season. Tomorrow the school will start in whole Chile after a 3 months break.
Still smiling..
...also smiling! Must be a summer day! :-)
Pole position! :-)
Dive in...
The driver seems to be a bit concentrated :-))
Yipieeeh !!
« Back to journal
After a relatively good night…relatively, because we slept in our motorbike clothes on the mat without the sleeping bags. We were just too lazy that evening before. Not that the coldness troubled us too much, but the motorbike jackets are so hard and bulky that one can hardly turn around…we got up at 7 am. The sky was bright, though the sunrise still hidden behind the mountains, it was still “fresh” when I prepared coffee on the cooker. All the farm animals were around me and Ying who wrenched herself out of the tent. While Ying prepared breakfast I packed our stuff. Nancy came down from her farm house for a chat + interested as well in our setup and which things we brought on our travel.
Only a couple of tourists come this way: some bicycle riders or Enduro solo riders during the summer time. Winter will come soon, 2 m of snow are normal and the only way out from here is on the horse. For their young boy it is 1 hour on the horse one-way to the school, during winter considerably longer…a different life.
I gave her a pack of cigarettes and some small money acknowledging that SHE was the one who convinced us to stay here preventing us a night at the river crossing. A hearty farewell and at around 10:30 we were at the said one. Thanks god, that it had no rain for weeks! About 40 m wide and I can imagine how this smoothly flowing water can change into a horror trip. Nevertheless we wanted to play it safe. We got off all of the luggage except the boxes and made our way to the other side in underpants. Adrenalin pumped already in my body and I didn’t feel the coldness of the water at all; if I would fall with the moto and water would enter thru the airfilter… that could stop us for a day or two…The crossing went well though I bumped two times into bigger stones and the back tire dug a bit into the brash. The whole thing took one hour but who cares, everything went well!
On this side of the river a better gravel road started and soon we came to a cross-way where I thought we would have to go straight. About 50 m uphill on the left a Carabineros station was visible. A friendly officer came down to us, shook hands and explained that we would have to take the gravel road to the left passing the station. My GPS only white and we were quite thankful. He asked a couple of questions, I am sure for his protocol. Nothing against that!
Soon the gravel road got wider and gave some views on the Rio Bio Bio, partially really beautiful but if I would have known that approx. 60% are impounded by dams for the Hydro Electrica…I guess we would have never tried this way!
Now many tourists came towards us and on one tent ground below there were at least a hundred tents lined up at the river shore. Not so much our thing. We continued towards Los Angeles and at one crossing I took the way towards and thru Mulchen anticipating from the missing line up of signs that we would see gravel again. Right, and we had another 20 km of Ripio. Awful. Behind Mulchen we just got on the highway to the North fed up from offroad driving. :-)
Another 300km we drove that day seeking for a relaxing beach spot on the west coast, the last 100km against blinding low sunlight.
We arrived at around 8 pm in Pelluhue on the last day of the summer season. Tomorrow the school will start in whole Chile after a 3 months break.
Still smiling..
...also smiling! Must be a summer day! :-)
Pole position! :-)
Dive in...
The driver seems to be a bit concentrated :-))
Yipieeeh !!
