Puerto Chacabuco, Chile

January 24, 2008

Puerto Chacabuco, located at the head of Aisen Fiord, is the main port of the region and the port of call for ships sailing to the Laguna San Rafael national Park. Prior to 1991 Puerto Aisen was the main port in the Aisen Fjord. However in 1991 the Patagonian forests experienced serious fires and that disaster coupled with the eruption of the Mount Hudson volcano caused ashes and earth erosion to decrease the navigability of the Aisen River and the port had to be moved to where Puerto Chacabuco now stands.

It was from here that 10 of us brave and hearty souls boarded a small van to travel some 20 minutes where we boarded a very small boat and made our way up…or was it down???....the Aisen river to Deer Island.

Deer Island is a unique place, located at the junction of where the river meets the Fiord. Privately owned, this mountainous island is the home to some 300 rare and unexpected red deer (Cervus elaphus). When we arrived, I understood why we had been warned that this excursion was not for most on the ship. As the small boat pulled along side a steep rocky shore I saw a precarious wooden ladder anchored by a single rope tied to a tree above. My heart sank a bit hoping that I would be able to make my way up that ladder and onto shore. Little did I know that once up the ladder I would have to climb about forty or fifty “steps” that had been carved out of the muddy slopes. But climb I did and soon found myself on the porch of a very tiny one-room A-Framed chalet that is used occasionally by the owners. It was from this cabin that the 10 of us would begin our trek up and into the woods of this special place looking for those red deer.

Aldo, our Italian-born guide who learned his English while living and working in Scotland for 10 years and who is now married to a Chilean he met on a mission here and now has a six month old baby, told us that we were extremely lucky to be in Puerto Chacabuco on the beautiful sunny and warm day that we were. It seems that they get 9-10 FEET of rain a year…and it is rare indeed to see the sun. Indeed our day on Deer Island is another of those never-to-be-forgotten days of being in spectacular Chile. The Chileans are hiding a real treasure in the natural beauty of their county!

Aldo explained that because of the sun and the warm temperatures that we should not be disappointed if we didn’t see any deer. In fact, he explained, that he would be most surprised if we did. It didn’t matter as hiking through such spectacular country with those magnificent views in the clean and clear air was more than enough for us all. We took our time and made our way through thick tall crepe-myrtle-like bushes with rust colored trunks along paths that, from the droppings, were obviously used by those 300 deer. We would come to open areas where the ground was covered in the most vivid and prolific growth of dandelions making me think that Mother Nature had spread a yellow-polka-dotted quilt on the ground for us to enjoy. It was in one of these meadows that I decided to let the group go on ahead and I found a nice shady spot where I could lay back and take in the distant snow-covered mountains with the blue skies above. I even wondered that in my quiet meditation if I would be lucky enough to have an unsuspecting herd or deer wander by. Alas, as Aldo expected, that didn’t happen. But I was content to simply enjoy this natural beauty alone and quiet.

Back at the cabin we had a light sandwich with some fruit and cool drinks before making our way back down the precarious steps and ladder to the awaiting boat for our return trip directly to the ship.

Granted, it would have been nice to have seen a deer or two…but it matters not. Just being on Deer Island was an experience that I will never forget…nature at its best!