More adventures in Chile

The next day was a rainy one and we all took it easy with the exception of a shopping trip to Pucon to buy food and look at the local crafts. We stayed one more day at La Colina hotel before deciding to move towards Pucón at the other end of Lago Villarrica. Our hosts had recommended some cabañas overlooking the lake where we would have the ability to cook and spread out a bit. We had thought the view at La Colina was gorgeous, but the view from our cabaña was unbelievable! We decided to make this our home base for the next week and settled in. Sadly, I also came down with a nasty cold. I can’t, however, imagine a more beautiful place to be sick. I spent a day in bed resting, but that didn’t mean I was deprived. The view out my window of the lake and the mountains in the distance cheered me up and made my sick time more bearable.


This is my view out the bedroom window!


Another bedroom window view.

On Monday Andrew took Chris and Elli fishing, catching two good sized rainbow trout. We cooked them for dinner and were amazed at how pink the meat was. It almost looked like salmon. We were told that this was because of what they ate. Everyone concluded that it was some of the best fish we had ever eaten.


Elli and Andrew on their fishing trip.


Chris with his fish.

On Tuesday, I took Elli, Chris, and Julia on a horseback riding trip and then to the hot springs, while Andrew took Morielle and Fiona to climb up the volcano. Fiona and Morielle have written about their experiences on their blogs, so I’ll just post my favorite picture of them at the top. The rest of the kids and I had wonderful day riding on the back roads through the mountains. In addition to the stunning views, I particularly enjoyed my saddle. The traditional gaucho saddle has got to be the most comfortable, practical one I have ever used. If I could have figured out a way to bring one back home with me I would have. As always, the volcano was almost always in view, but it was amazing to think that while we were riding, the rest of our family was somewhere up on that looming mountain.


Elli and her horse.


Along the trail.


We took a quick break at this lake during our horseback riding excursion.