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Austral Road:
The Axis of Southern Tourism
From a tourist’s view, the Southern
Highway has become one of the most important attractions in Chile.
This is because it has permitted us to enter into a territory that
still has much to discover: Northern Patagonia. This region
contains large extensions of cold forest, national parks, glaciers,
gigantic ice fields, lagoons, fiords, rivers and lakes. It
is an ideal territory for adventure tourism, fishing, trekking,
extreme sports, kayaking, rafting and observation of flora and fauna
in its most wildest state.
The Austral route begins in the city
of Puerto Montt and covers more than 1240 kilometers until the Southern
Ice Field. It was constructed between 1976 and 1987, except for
the first 10 km. that were actualized before 1976.
From Puerto Montt to Chaiten
The first stretch extends across Puerto
Montt to Chaiten. It is 160 kilometers (without counting transfers)
of traveling amongst forest and fiords, with the first 9 kilometers
covered in asphalt and the rest is rubble.
From Puerto Montt, the highway borders
the Reloncavi gulf, at times it borders the shores and other times
it exists much more inland or rises above a cornice that falls into
the sea. From this highway you have access to the Alerce
Andino National Park by taking the turn off in the Chaica sector.
This park is characterized by its millenary forest of larch trees,
some of them exceeding 3000 years of age.
After 46 kilometers of highway you will
arrive in the La Arena sector. Here you can make a journey
by ferry, to cross the Reloncavi Estuary to the Puelche Cove(which
lasts approximately half an hour). From this place the route
borders the coast until Contao, soon it continues inland and then
returns to the sea shore about 20 kilometers later. Hornopiren
is a small town located in the extreme of a fiord and is a base
from which one can travel out into the surroundings before
taking the second ferry. Hornopiren National Park is a destination
for the adventure seeker. Despite the difficult access and lack
of services, it is worth the trek to see the beautiful and occult
lagoons and enjoy a day of fishing.
In the same fiord you find the Ciervos
and Llancahue islands. The first island preserves a population
of red deer and southern pudu in a surrounding of larch trees
and lagoons. In the second you will find the Llancahue Thermal Spas,
with hotel, restaurant and excellent thermal waters.
The second trip by ferry permits you
to arrive in Gonzalo Cove. The journey lasts 5 hours and functions
solely during the estival season. At the furthest point of Gonzalo
Cove you can visit the Pumalin
Park. This park contains an excellent camping zone, visitors
center, cafeteria, excursion footpaths, cabins, picnic zone and
the selling of handcrafts. 58 kilometers to the south, is Chaiten.
From Chaiten to Coihayque
Chaiten is located 58 kilometers south
of Gonzalo Cove. 25 kilometers from Chaiten there is a turn off
that guides you into the direction of Amarillo Thermal Spas.
From this place a trail begins that allows you to arrive to Futaleufu
(approximately a 7 day hike), 45 kilometers from Chaiten, you can
find Puerto Cardenas in the extreme northeast of Yelcho Lake. The
location where Yelcho Lake and it’s rivers meet is a favorite destination
for fly fishers, especially for foreigners.
The turn off to Futaleufu can be found
at Villa Santa Lucia, which is located 30 kilometers south of Puerto
Cardenas. This town (close to the Argentine border) is known
internationally by kayakers for it’s challenging Futaleufu River.
30 kilometers from Villa Santa Lucia
by the Futaleufu route is the turn off that takes you to Palena.
From there you can arrive to the Palena Lake National Reserve, solely
by horse or on foot.
Following the Austral Highway and 152
kilometers from Chaiten you'll find La Junta. It is a place
where the Frio and Rosselot rivers join, at this point it is called
Palena. From La Junta, the route to Verde Lake separates, a small
locality frontier next to the lake that carries the same name. The
route to this place passes next to Rosselot Lake and the National
Reserve that bares the same name.
Puyuhuapi is a small town situated at
the end of the Ventisqueros Fiord. 11 kilometers south and
accessible only by sea, are the internationally known Puyuhuapi
Spas , well-known for the quality of the waters and for the
excellent hotel and restaurant. From the spas you can board a catamaran
that permits you to visit the biggest attraction of the zone: San
Rafael Lagoon.
South of Puyuhuapi, the route crosses
the Queulat
National Park, known for the Padre Garcia Hurtado Waterfall
(just before the pass), and through the fabulous Ventisquero
Colgante (hanging glacier), visible from an observation area on
the highway. Once you have left the park you will find the turn
off to Puerto Cisnes.
The highway continues until the sector
named Piedra de Gato (cats stone). This point was difficult to construct
since it was an isolated zone with a grand variety of topography,
which consisted of narrow valleys that form a U, a strong vegetation
and the presence of the forest and undergrowth. This forced the
construction to have located layouts in the coastal zones, parks
and sectors close to the pampas and complicated terrain.
In this section, you can see that the
tree trunks have been calcined during the 40's. In those years
the Chilean government gave dominion titles over the land that would
have been cleared. The colonist utilized the fire that devastated
grand extensions of virgin forest. It was an ecological catastrophe.
Past Amengual Villa there is a turn
off to La Tapera, (next to the Argentine boarder), and immediately
after the crossing is the Las Torres Lake National Reserve. Not
too far into Mañihuales Villa, a paved stretch of the highway
begins and continues to Coihayque. In the Viviana intersection,
you will find the turn off to Puerto Aysen and Puerto Chacabuco.
Originally Puerto Aysen was a principal port of the zone, nevertheless
the large quantity of sediment dragged by the Aysen river blocked
its natural bay. For this reason the port was transferred 15 kilometers
to the west where Puerto Chacabuco originated.
After the turn off, the route crosses
the Simpson
River National Reserve. It owes its name to the river that crossed
it and is famous among fly fishermen. Among one of the most
beautiful places of the park that undoubtedly highlights it, is
the Virgin Cascade and the Velo de Novia waterfall.
From Coihayque to O´Higgins Villa
Coihayque is located at the foot of
the Macay hill, it has an inquisitive plaza with five sides which
contains all of the services necessary. In the outskirts of the
city, close to the bridge towards the airport, is the Piedra del
Indio (Indian Stone). 29 kilometers south you will find the Cerro
El Fraile Ski Center that has two ski lifts and five ski trails.
From Coihayque the route continues to
Balmaceda, where there is an airport. After 17 kilometers there
is a turn off to the La Paloma and Elizalde
Lakes. Soon the route enters the Cerro
Castillo National Reserve that is protected by old and new forest
in the zone.
The General Carrera Lake is one of the
most beautiful tourist zones. This immense lake (shared with
Argentina and named "Buenos Aires") is the second largest
in South America. The principal port is Puerto Ibañez, accessible
by a turn off 30 kilometers from the Austral Highway.
Close to Cerro Castillo Villa two sights
of archaeological interest exist: The Manos Cerro Castillo National
Monument and the denominated RI-4. The first is a monument of hundreds
of painted hands, of adults and children, in red tones and the second
is a display of a guanaco and its offspring.
To the south and the west of the lake
is the Puerto Tranquilo, here you can rent boats and visit the Catedral
de Marmol (Marble Cathedral), a rock formation perforated by the
water, in this zone it is turquoise in color.
50 kilometers to the south is the intersection
with the turn off that takes us to Chile Chico, united with the
Argentinean boarder. From this city you can arrive to the
General Carrera Lake and Jeinimeini Lake reserves. The Caverna de
las Manos highlights the zone. It is a place where the tehuelche
natives drew a large quantity of hands in red, black, yellow and
white.
Retaking the Austral Highway and following
to the south, you will arrive in Puerto Bertrand. It is located
300 meters from the place where the lake drains and gives origin
to Baker River, the most abundant rivers in Chile. In its outlet
you will find Tortel, which is highlighted by its colorful houses
and wooden gangplanks.
The route follows its course until the
Cochrane river, the last important city of the zone. To the
east you will find the Tamango National Reserve, famous for its
Chilean guemal population and the Cochrane Lake. From the
reserve there are beautiful views towards the valley and the Southern
Ice Field.
The Highway in its last stretch, continues
until Puerto Yungay, on the shores of Bravo River -which you have
to cross to continue the route until O'Higgins Villa , on the Argentine
boarder. This is the final point of the highway. The Southern Ice
Field to the west almost makes it impossible to continue the highway,
just the same the study of making the project feasible is already
under way.
A bit of history.
Continental Chiloe and Aysen form an
area of 135.000 square kilometers, constituting the sixth part of
the continental Chilean territory. This vast region was practically
isolated to the rest of the country before the beginning of the
Austral Highway.
The necessity to integrate more than
68 000 inhabitants to the country that the region had in 1985 and
solve the serious problems of purveying through the difficult routes
of communication, lead to the construction of the Austral Highway.
Other reasons for carrying out this task was for the extraordinary
economical potential that these territories presented and also as
a necessity to fulfill the geopolitical potential to establish strategic
inhabited centers, in the consequent reinforcement of those that
existed near the boarder, guaranteeing the Chilean sovereignty in
the zone.
Between the 50's and the 70's unfruitful
attempts were made to obtain penetration routes. Then in 1976 by
mandate of the former president Augusto Pinochet, they had
finally began to convert the huge project of the Austral Highway
into reality. The remoteness and the natural obstacles (like
virgin forest, fiords, marshes, rivers, lakes, cliffs, valleys and
impenetrable woods) added to the lack of human resources and materials,
and considerably elevated the cost of the infrastructure work required.
These were the settings of close to
10.000 members of the Cuerpo Militar del Trabajo (Military Work
Corps- (CMT)) who were faced with heavy shoveling, confronting
by point and shovel and gibbet and wheelbarrow, to open the pass
to the ditches that would later be transformed in the 1150 kilometers
of Longitudinal Austral highway and in 229 kilometers of transversal
roads.
After 20 years of work and investments
of more than 200 million dollars, it was finished in March 1996.
At the last longitudinal section that unites Puerto Montt with Puerto
Yungay, the extreme cites of this gigantic vial work, is Chile's
most important works in the second half of this present century.
During these two decades 3.086 linear
meters of bridges were lifted, a total of 4.082.344 cubic meters
in common excavation and 7.955.618 cubic meters in rock excavation
were removed, more than 500 kilos of explosives were used and 27
camps were installed with no more than four redeployments in each
one of them.
The territory on which it extends (from
41.8 degrees to 48 degrees south in latitude), including the provinces
of Llanquihue, Chiloe and Palena, in the X Region of Los Lagos,
and all of the XI Region, "General Carlos Ibañez del Campo",
comprising the provinces of Aysen, General Carrera, Capitan Prat
and Coihayque, incorporating the southern transversal route from
Bravo River to O'Higgins Villa, that comprises a total surface area
of 175.000 square kilometers.
 For
more information see our file on destinations here
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