The second "big push" South, to the Argentine border

The first day that I head out of Santiago I realise I`m making a mistake with my route, but it seems too late to amend it. I really should have gone East from Santiago, over the Andes to Mendoza then down the famous Argentine Ruta 40. The Panamerica South (in Chile) is a proper two lane highway, and at 55kph I`m going far too slow for this road (like riding a moped down the M1....). Also, since La Serena I`ve had to pay tolls to use it (up until then motorbikes had been free on toll roads). There`s not too much to say about this 5 day trip down to Osorno, the weather was fairly bad and so I did not take ANY photos at all.

The first night I make it 267km to Talca with a very hairy start in Santiago`s subterranean expressways (I was in the way of dozens of buses and trucks and got hooted at, a lot !). I find a little guesthouse run by a Muslim family, the first that I`ve met in Central/South America. That evening while watching the news on TV a Catholic priest was explaining that February`s earthquake and some recent freak waves in La Serena (a few fishermen lost their cars...) were the result of the legalisation of abortion !!! (not in Chile...), instead of challenging this crackpot opinion the ¨anchorpeople¨ just nodded sagely (as if listening to pearls of wisdom...).

The second night is in Chillan. It starts to rain 5 minutes before I get there, so I have to stop and don waterproofs, which takes 20 minutes, and makes me swear. That night I try and find gloves and warm padded trousers in the shops there. I find some thick PVC gloves meant for unblocking drains (serial killer's gloves !) big enough to fit right over my normal gloves, but I can`t find the trousers.

The third night is in Victoria, where it again starts to rain 5 minutes before I get in. All the accomodation I`m staying in is Summer accomodation. I'm usually the only person there and there is never a heater, which means it's always cold and damp. Coming from Britain I'm used to it to a degree ! but it makes it hard going, I'm wearing ALL my layers almost ALL the time.

400km south of Santiago and there are plenty of signs of severe earthquake damage. In Chillan the very contemporary concrete cathedral is closed and the surface is covered in large cracks. Strangely, the worst effect seems to be on the overhead power lines to the main rail line that runs alongside the road. For about 300km they have been totally destroyed, just a tangled mess of steel spagetti !! I saw a couple of diesel trains on this route but nothing else, everyone & thing is going by road. But then a lot of road bridges had been destroyed as well, I crossed at least 5 or more temporary steel "Bailey" type bridges while nearby workers were swarming like ants over new concrete bridges. The earthquake was only in February, so I consider this to be quite impressive !!! It must be a little soul destroying working in an area like this, so much work and effort, destroyed in minutes...

Fourth night is in Mafil. I'm lucky to find anywhere here as it is a tiny town, but the people are friendly. Someone, who knows someone, finds me yet another outhouse to live in for the night !

On the fifth day I make it to Osorno, where I turn East towards Argentina. It`s now the first day of a 4 day national holiday (to celebrate Chile's bicenntenial). The flora has turned progressively greener on my way South from Santiago, it became UK like for a while, now it`s positively Scandiwegian ! Close to Osorno is an extraordinary site, the "perfect" white cone of the top of a volcano, "Volcan Osorno" (I thought at that point I'd see it again....but the weather had other ideas).....it's very evocative and has been compared, for splendour, with Mount Fuji, I wish I had a photo...

Next day, in Osorno, everything is closed and I have scurry about to find enough to eat. Just as I am packing up the bike it starts to rain. I mentally "fold" and decide to stay on another day. I watch the celebrations in Santiago on TV, they looked very spectacular, they do a lot of "projectors on buildings" displays over here, they are really brilliant, so creative, plus fab fireworks . That night there is a power cut all evening and I'm the only one in the hostel, the hostel lady has given me her daughter`s netbook to keep me busy (very trusting of her), but no power, no wi-fi, so not too much use...

I was not so impressed with Chile when I first arrived (I think now it was only because it was not Bolivia) but it has grown on me to a large extent. I like this "lakes area" it`s a place where there is plenty of space and people just quietly get on with their lives, largely unaccosted by government or other constraints. I complained, before, when I was not "picked-up" when I broke down, unfair really, as if I tried the same in the UK I´d have probably been stuck on the roadside for days !!  So I´m sad to be leaving Chile.

I head for Argentina !  Stamping out of Chile takes 5 minutes ! Then I have to cross a pass. It's quite a low one at 1500m but it does not feel that way. Half way up it starts to rain, then the rain turns to snow, then heavy snow. I get colder and colder and I am close to praying that the bike does not conk out up here. At the top there is banked up thick snow (pictured), it seems incredible I was in the Atacama desert just 3 weeks before...

In Argentina, at the border, the bike gets 6 months (temp import) and I get 3 months (tourist visa), it gets to stay longer than I do !!  They ask for my bike insurance as it is mandatory in Argentina, but as I don`t have any, they allow me to transit to the next town to buy it. It's 20, very wet, kilometers to Villa Angostura, a ski resort !! While I´m riding around town, in the rain and the dark, I don´t see a Monster pothole, I fall into it, and bang goes the final luggage rack weld ! By luck I find a hostel that accepts my dollar bills (I tried all the cashpoints in town but no cigar), and joy of joy, they have central heating ! the room is beautifully warm with just me in it, I hang up everything and dry out, heaven !