Prices from around $659
Few landscapes can equal the beauty of those of the Lake District, where volcanic cones, blanketed by glaciers, tower above deep blue lakes, ancient forests and verdant farmland.
The Lake District is generally considered to begin at the Tolten River (800 kms south of Santiago) which empties the Lake Villarrica, next to the resort towns of Pucon and Villarrica. It is also a zone of Mapuche (native Indians, means ´people of the Earth´) reservations; their ancestors used the accessible mountain passes here and gathered pine nuts from the ancient ´Araucaria´ trees unique to the Andes. These rare trees, which take 500 years to fully mature and can live to over 1000 years, were endangered by logging activities until the Chilean government prohibited their cutting in 1990. Numerous Mapuche reservations are tucked away in the hills surrounding Villarrica and Pucon and some unusual craft work can be found among them.
The excellent facilities offered by the lakeside resort of Pucon as well as the growing number of outdoor activities available throughout it have transform Pucon in the focus of Chile’s adventure tourism and ecotourism industry and as a focus of environmental activism.
This program gives you the chance to choose among different activities and explore Pucon and the nature and culture around it.
Day 1: Temuco - Pucon
AM: Reception at the Temuco''s airport and drive (110 kms) to Pucon. Arrive to the Hotel to check in and meet the trip coordinator to discuss the itinerary for the following days.
PM: Half-day activity and return to the hotel.
Day 2: Pucon
AM: Half-day activity (or Full day activity)
PM: Half-day activity
Day 3: Pucon
AM: Half-day activity (or Full day activity)
PM: Half-day activity
Day 4: Pucon-Temuco
AM: Half day activity (if possible according to your scheduled departure)
PM: Transfer to Temuco on time to board your flight.
Full day activities:
- Hiking the Volcano Villarrica (2.840m/ 9,300 ft)
This beautiful mountain has a classic volcanic cone crowning the surrounding countryside. The volcano has erupted repeatedly during the last century being the most recent eruptions registered in 1971 and 1984. Despite its continuing activity, Villarrica is the most climbed peak in southern Chile. The ascent of Volcano Villarrica is technically very straightforward, although it demands good fitness. Crampons, ice axe and stout footwear are provided. The crater at the summit offers a spectacular panorama: molten magma boiling out of openings in the volcano core, red-hot lava spurting up to near the crater rim and a superb view of virtually every major peak and lake in the northern Lake District. The round trekking trip would cover a distance of approx. 10 kms in 6 to 9 hours. This trip begins at 7 AM from your hotel. Under bad weather conditions (no visibility or strong ´white´ wind) we reserve the right to cancel this excursion in the last minute.
- Horseback riding in the Chilean Native Forest.
Early morning drive to the foot of the Cordillera El Cani (Cani mountain range), 30 kms from your hotel. Once we arrive to the horses stables, beautifully nestled among 300 years old coihues (native tree), you will take part in a short briefing about riding skills and start riding up to El Cani. You don’t need experience to participate in this trip. After passing a typical countryside start ascending by old logging trails until entering the primeval domain of the ancient Coihue and Araucaria trees. The horses advance silently on this cathedral like atmosphere until reaching the pristine El Espejo lagoon, an ancient volcanic crater. Follow the narrow trail until rocky crops come on the way. Leave the horses and continue by foot to El Mirador (look out point) from where the most splendid view over the neighboring valleys and volcanoes is gained. Return to the lagoon for lunch and relax. After lunch, ride through the former Pehuenche trail (Pehuenche is the name of the Mapuche indian living in the mountains) until reaching the Llancalil lagoon with open fields suitable for galloping. Ride back to the horses´ stable and drive back to your Hotel in Pucon.
- Araucaria & Alerce Forest’s Trek
Depending on the participants’ physical conditions and on the weather we will spend the entire day trekking either on the Cani Private Reserve or in the Huerquehue National Park. With daypacks we trek rarely walked trails through virgin forests. On El Cani Reserve we enter the primeval world of the Araucaria tree, also called Pehuen by the native Pehuenches, who has survived unchanged for 200 million years as an ancient monarch in a primeval domain. On the Huerquehue National Park the Alerce cypress, also called Lahuen by the natives, reigns in pristine splendor. It is awe-inspiring to tread softly at the feet of ancient trees as old as the pyramids. Late on the evening we drive back to Pucon to overnight in the Hotel;
- Snowshoeing the forests
With a good pair of snowshoes you can enjoy an unforgettable walk in the snow covered Chilean forests. We will provide you with state-of-the-art light and comfortable snowshoes that will allow us to penetrate and discover, in winter, the amazing white-green landscapes of the Lake District.
Half day activities:
- Rafting the lower Trancura (class 3)
The Trancura river is born in the high Andes and pours its crystal blue waters into the Villarrica Lake, just few kilometers from Pucon. The landscape is amazing, with the permanent view of the Villarrica volcano. This rafting experience is one of the most popular activities for visitors of all ages. In each trip, a leader guide will speech the group with safety and technical instructions. Appropriate gear will also be delivered (helmet, life jacket, paddle jacket, paddle and wetsuit if cold weather). We use rafts with a capacity of 7 to 10 person per boat. Each raft is guided by an experienced, helpful and kind guide. The lower section classified as a class 3 (which means that you do not need experience to participate in this trip) is suitable for everyone, including beginners and families.
- Rafting the upper Trancura (class 4)
The upper section of the Trancura is wilder than the lower section and its rapids gain a rate of class 4 (intermediate). Rapids as ´The Devil’s Problem´, ´Ugly Fall´ or ´Infierno Gorge´ and a portage over the amazing Mariman falls, make this section a fun and exciting adventure.
- Hotsprings at the sunset
The Lake District´s volcanic terrain means a multitude of hot springs, many of them in the Pucon area. Some, such as the Termas del Huife on the Liucura river or Termas de Menetue in Huerquehue Park are upscale locations with modern eating and lodging facilities and bathing fixtures. Others, such as the rustic Termas Los Pozones are natural pools with less facilities but great atmosphere.
- Half day Horseback riding
Enjoy a 3 hours ride in the Cordillera del Cani, 30 kms from Pucon. This is a shorter version of the full day Horseback Riding program above, which gives us the chance to get in touch with the Chilean native forests as well as ride our strong horses.
- Pucon Classic Excursion
This is a ´sit in bus´ like excursion. We will drive comfortable Vans and will visit most of the highlights of the area. A full bilingual and savvy guide will escort the group. We visit places as the ´Ojos del Caburgua´, a deep blue pool fed from underground waters coming from the Caburgua lake 6 km away. We also stop at the Caburgua lake, the Liucura river and visit the mysterious volcanic caves at the Villarrica volcano.
- Mountainbike to the Ojos del Caburgua
This is a tour among native forest, rivers and streams to reach the deep blue pools of the Ojos del Caburgua (Caburgua Eyes), fed from underground waters coming from the Caburgua lake 6 km away. There are lot of places for stopping and refreshing during this 25 kms circuit.
- Floating down the Liucura River
This is a great and active trip for river lovers. We float down the Liucura river, a flatwater easy river, in river kayaks. No experience needed for this trip. A skilled kayaking instructor will explain you the basics for paddling and will guide you down this beautiful river. We suggest this trip for anyone feeling able and curious to paddle a kayak.
Physical Demands
Previous experience is not required to participate in this trip. There is not age restriction, except for the ''Upper Trancura Rafting'' which require a minimum age of 14 (November-February) as the Horsebackriding excursions.
What’s included
- Transfer Temuco´s airport / Pucon /Temuco´s airport with Spanish speaking driver.
- Land transportation as required for each activity,
- 3 or 4 nights at the selected Hotel depending on the itinerary; breakfast included;
- Box lunch included with the full day activities;
- One bilingual guide on excursions;
- All entrances and parks fees.
Accommodations
The price of this program is based on staying at Hosteria Ecole:
- Hosteria Ecole!: One of our favorite places in Pucon. Nice people, good ambiance, excellent vegetarian restaurant. Lot of info of Pucon and about environmental issues in the area. If you are a solo traveller, please add to the price per person the single supplement of US$56
Pucon has anyway a wide range of hotels. For this program, you might choose also among the following alternatives (please ask for prices):
- Hotel Antumalal: beautiful resort Hotel, family-run. Amazing gardens, good service, comfortable rooms. This small and nice Hotel has been the choice for presidents, queens and kings that have visited Pucon. 20 rooms, heated swimming pool, 2 km from Pucon. As this Hotel does not have triple rooms, you have to add to the price per person the single supplement to the third person in the group.
- Hotel Huincahe: 3+ star Hotel, centrally located in front of the main square and few blocks from the beach. It has long and comfortable rooms, central heating, and swimming pool.
-Hotel Araucarias: 3 star, comfortable, temperate swimming pool, family-run.
What you need to bring
- Rafting: sandals or tennis shoes (& wool socks in winter), swimming bath, sunscreen lotion & lip balm, towel. The equipment supplied by Cascada will be a wetsuit, life jacket, paddle jacket & helmet.
- Horseback riding: long pants, tennis or trekking shoes, sunscreen lotion & lip balm, sunglasses, hat and rain coat (winter).
- Trekking: long pants (winter) or short (summer), trekking shoes, sunscreen lotion & lip balm, sunglasses, hat and rain coat (winter).
-Snow walk: trekking shoes, warm clothes (wool or fleece) sunglasses, sunscreen, hat or jockey.
About the itinerary
Be aware that some of the activities might have to be canceled due to weather conditions (typically: white wind for hiking the volcano or, more unusual, too high water level for rafting at the upper Trancura). You also have to consider that, due to technical restrictions, activities such as rafting and the Villarrica volcano hiking excursion may only be done with al least 5 passengers. If your group is smaller than 5, we will schedule other passenger to do the activity with you and your group.
Transportation:
We use comfortable vans or cars for the activities and transfers.
The climate:
From November to April we expect, in general, good weather, with temperatures varying from 8°C to 30°C. However, rain is always present. As an example, and this is just our very subjective statistic, you might have 5 sunny days and then 2 rainy days... Please do not show this to a meteorologist!
From May to October rain is more abundant, and the temperature drops to, as average, max. 15°C and min. -2°C.
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Walking Tours
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Cascada Expediciones
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Pucon
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