November 5, Day 27: Puerto Montt to Puerto Varas
Just a short ride today. I'm not completely sure why I decided to spend a night in Puerto Varas: it'd been recommended as a nice place to be. Also the weather was looking awful so a short day would be good. And I had some chores to do.
The weather was pretty bad, the traffic was also pretty bad so a short day was definitely the right choice. The route started with a very steep climb through the suburbs of Puerto Montt, more of those 10% gradients the Chilean road engineers like.
Then onto the B-route to the north. Ruta 5 is the main highway north from here: it's a dual carriageway, no place for bikes. I was hoping that most traffic used it leaving the B roads clear. Unfortunately the road was quite busy the whole time. And it was not built with space for bikes. There was sometimes a shoulder, which I would ride on whenever it was available, to stay apart from the cars. It was a bit rough: potholes and puddles; so all the gear cleaning yesterday was sadly undone.
But the drivers were mostly considerate; the only one that passed closer than I'd like was a local bus.
Halfway along the route takes a hard right onto a sideroad, which was a lot calmer but still not quiet. It was raining hard, and I passed some workers cutting the roadside grass which must have been an especially thankless job. Near Puerto Varas it got busy again where there was a connection with Ruta 5, but there was more space for me and later an unused pavement which I happily took.
From left to right: the weather today. The lift just fits the bike. Long row of the roadside shrines. This church wasn’t sunken, it’s just an interesting architectural choice - it looks normal from the other side.
So the ride was hard work but uneventful. Stay as far right as possible, stay aware of vehicles coming past. Stay dry during the regular spells of rain. It ended up taking about two hours, a bit over the estimate but given how carefully I was riding that's not a surprise.
Seems like the roads don't have much space for bikes, and if this continues I hope the traffic gets lighter. It's not close to summer, the roads should not be busy yet! If the whole trip to Santiago is like this it will not be much fun...
Into Puerto Varas for a look around. It is a nice town! Lots of good cafes, which is a good sign.
From left to right: wet socks. Belgian style chocolate! Liked the design on the faces of the stairs. Breakfast for one. Might have damaged a tooth on an olive stone hidden in this otherwise fine empanada…
Onto the chores. First of all, I need a stronger security chain for my bike. In the south theft isn't much of a worry - I'd regularly pass bikes parked on the side of the road without any lock or chain! But further north it is. I picked up a new security chain; expensive but hopefully it will keep the bike safe. Also some new pedals. The warning sounds coming from the current ones have gone away but it's a sign that there's a problem, and it's not going to get better.
Secondly, laundry. I've got some spare hours so it's an opportunity I shouldn't miss. Lavandería Lilian takes care of it, but pickup is midday tomorrow. Checkout time is 11. Guess I'll have to hang out at a cafe!
Also I need to arrange my own breakfast. Most of the problem is finding a supermarket. I pick up a banana, cereal, yoghurt and a pastry. Milk is usually UHT here, so I skip it.
Except for the riding, it's a fairly chill day! It's still raining, quite glad I'm not out in it. The forecast for tomorrow is much sunnier, I'm planning to ride the long way around the lake if it is. And go the short side if it isn't.