Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Chepu, Chiloé

Los Senderos de Chepu, my B&B in rural Chiloé.

After several days in Santiago (population 5 million), Puerto Montt (pop. 175,000) and Ancud (pop. 50,000), it’s about time to chill out in the country in southern Chile. I found a lovely B&B called Los Senderos de Chepu, 24 miles southwest of Ancud, in the northwest corner of the big island of Chiloé. Los Senderos is run by Señora Enriqueta (Tita) and Don Fernando in Chepu, not a village, but an area where about 50 families live on small farms spread over a large area. The Chepu River snakes its way through the area surrounded by small mountains, and makes its way to the Pacific Ocean about 4 kilometers from the B&B. This is my favorite style of travel in southern Chile.







The ubiquitous potato patch, with the Pacific Ocean in the background.

After breakfast, don Fernando saddles the horses for a 4-hour ride to the ocean beach at the mouth of the Chepu River. The land and seascapes are similar to those in northern California, but on closer inspection there is a unique Chilean look.







Elephant rock on Aulen beach.



My buckskin horse is called Mariachi.

Mouth of Chepu River. It's time to turn back to the farm and have lunch.

More later.

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