We decided to bite the bullet and continue with our plans regardless of the stormy day that greeted us. We set off along Lago Llanquihue to base ourselves out of Ensenada. From there we set off to the Saltos de Petrohue – the Petrohue waterfalls. They were quite impressive, but the clouds and drizzle never let us forget that we were missing a peice of the puzzle- beautiful mountains and volcanoes in the background. Nevertheless we did a little hike in the park, and then were off to our second destination- Volcan Osorno. We ascended up the paved road and into the clouds, where we quickly realized that not only would we not be seeing the slopes up-close, any thoughts of a walk up top was busted by the mounds of snow that greeted us. We made the best of it with a hot coffee in the lodge and headed down to the lower slopes of the mountain. Luckily, we were able to make the walk to the Laguna Verde- which really was a green green lagoon. And with that we retreated back to our lovely and toasty cabin for a night on the lake.
The following morning all our prayers had come true; we awoke to a stunning snow-covered Volcan Osorno in our window, while literally still in bed. We made the bumpy trip to Petrohue where we embarked on a catamaran to Peulla. The boat took us from one side of the emerald-colored Lago Todos Los Santos to the other, and the views it afforded were stunning, truly beyond words. We saw Osorno in it´s entirety, the eroding Volcan Puntiagudo and the tallest (locally) Volcan Tronador, Isla Margarita and the Yaffe waterfalls. After arriving in Peulla we had a few hours to explore. The boat we took is part of an international crossing from Chile to Argentina, so many passengers continued on to Argentina by bus, while we waited for those coming from Argentina to join us for the way back. In Peulla, with limited time we only made it to the Veilo de Novia waterfalls and the creepy cemetary. Nonetheless it was worth the break, because on the way back the views were even better- bigger and clearer- as we headed back towards Petrohue. We couldn´t resist going up Osorno halfway for one last look in the late night sun.
Hey man….came across your blog through a link on a Chile Forum on Fodors.com.
Really found your overview of the Lakes District helpful and simple, unlike a lot of stuff out there, thanks for posting as it has provided me a lot of guidance on how I can maximize my short 4 days in the Lakes Region.
Quick question for you….I've scoured the internet and cannot find any information on how or where to purchase tickets for a RT ticket from Petrohue to Peulla. Can you elaborate on this for me?
Thanks in advance….
Lorin
Hi Lorin, Glad you're enjoying the blog!
You can see our general tips here:
http://tiyulon.blogspot.com/2011/04/puerto-varas-and-ensenada-tips.html
More specifically, tickets for just the boat ride are sold in Petrohue; there is a small office next to the dock. Otherwise tours including a bus from Puerto Montt or Puerto Varas and the boat trip, can be purchased from local travel agencies in those towns.
Hope that helps and good luck with your trip!