Ancud, Chiloe, Chile. POP 49,550
The early-morning fog shrouded misty-eyed Chiloé as I arrived on the Cruz del Sur ferry. Isla Grande de Chiloé is the continent’s second-largest island and is home to a fiercely independent, seafaring people who developed culturally and historically in defiance of Santiago! The island has more than 150 iconic wooden churches (14 of which are Unesco World Heritage Sites). It is also home to a colony of penguins.
I spent 4 delightful days in the bustling and weathered town of Ancud, which offered an earthy base to explore the penguin colony and some of the churches.
Less than 2-hours from Ancud is the beautiful cove of Puñihuil where 3 islets provide the opportunity to see two kinds of penguins: Humboldt and Magellan. The Penguins arrive at the end of September and leave at the end of March. In December and January you can see the offspring. During a 30-minute boat trip I got to see a bounty of wild life, besides penguins, including: Cormorants, Gulls, Otters, Sea lions, and Steamer ducks. It’s a picture card location with a delightful beach.
The second day trip was supposed to be a tour of the churches. However, it soon transpired that it was a more ‘random’ tour, taking in waterfalls, grave yards and artisan markets. Thankfully I was sharing the company of Didi from the Netherlands. We hit it off straight away and what could have been a disappointing excursion turned out to be a fun day. We did get to see 2 churches and we did get to enjoy a 2-hour lunch. No one else on the tour spoke English but Didi spoke enough Spanish to hold a conversation. So whilst I got to learn a few new words she got the opportunity to practise her linguistic skills.
Next stage: Castro to Chaiten by overnight ferry.