We arrived early in Pucon and were blown away by the landscape. Our hostel was right on a stunning, blue, mountainous lake. Towering over the quaint little town of Pucon is Villerica, a massive volcano that was still blowing smoke from its eruption one month ago. Mountains rise up around the town in every direction and the town itself only takes 15 minutes to walk across. Pucon is home to year round activities from snow skiing, hiking, rafting, skydiving, and multiple thermal pools.

Even though we were tired from the overnight bus, we caught a second wind with the amount of extreme activities Pucon had to offer. We decided to jump right into some fun and rented a kayak to take out on the lake. Heading out on the lake, we had a strong wind at our backs pushing us alongside the peninsula to our right with ease. We couldn’t get over the view to our left, a slightly active volcano puffing away as we paddled further into the lake. After we rounded the tip of the peninsula, we did a bit of cliff jumping before heading back. As soon jumped back in the kayak to head back, the wind switched directions and was again at our backs. It motored us all the way into and across the cove where our hostel was located.

After kayaks, we booked our first activity called hydropeed. Hydrospeed is basically white water rafting, except for one major component, the boat. Instead of riding in a large raft with other people, you ride solo, headfirst down the rapids with your chest atop a miniature inflatable raft and flippers on feet to propel you. It was an absolute riot to say the least. Rapid after rapid we floated down the river laughing the entire time and admiring the incredible views of the valley. There are only a few places in the world that offer hydrospeed, but I hope to get the chance to do it again someday.

The following day we planned a big hike with another friend we met from our hostel, Sabrina. We had a wonderful time getting to know Sabrina during our full day hike to the top of San Sebastion. The hike itself was fairly intense as I haven’t been doing a ton of cardio lately. It was nearly nine miles round trip and we climbed 3/4ths of a mile in vertical height. The payoff was incredible with a 360 degree view of mountains and volcanos in all directions. I never even realized you could be looking at so many volcanos from one lookout. We saw about 10 surrounding us that we could point out and were told that there were over 22 in the surrounding area. After a much deserved lunch, it was time for the long way back down the mountain.

A few more hours and we made it with a little extra time before our bus departed back to Pucon. We decided to go for a dip in the pristine lake at the base of San Sebastion to chill our muscles. It was one of the most beautiful lakes I have ever swam and a great way to top off our incredibly scenic hike.

The next day didn’t have the greatest weather forecast so we decided to forgo paying for an activity and weather dependent, venture out to find the Salto el Claro waterfall or as locals call it the “Hidden Waterfall”. The rain passed and we headed out of town on foot following a handmade map from the hostel. It seemed like a treasure hunt as we followed the ink path of the map. After a two hour hike out of town and up a steep road we were met with a field of grazing cows. It seemed like a living mural as clouds rolled through the fall color of the trees as we ventured down the pathway through the cattle. We jumped a fence and continued to follow the path down a very steep grade of what seemed like natural steps. Roots jutted out and were filled with soil creating a natural staircase down to the valley below. Instead of there being a treasure chest at the end of the map, we were met with a natural treasure. A cylindrical valley with moss and fern coated walls wrapped 180 degrees around a 250 foot tall waterfall.

After exploring around the bottom of the waterfall we hiked back up to visit the point of where the waterfall plummeted over the edge. Like I’ve said before, not many things scare me, except for heights. I think the adrenaline rush heights give me is what draws me to them so much. As I creeped out as far as I could over the ledge, I could tell I was making Logan a bit nervous as he tried to get a small rope out of his bag to tie to me. I got my adrenaline rush, some cool pictures, and it was time for us to head back to town.

On the way back, we decided to try our luck hitchhiking for the first time. We threw our thumbs up at the first car that passed us on the long dirt road and sure enough, they stopped. It was a Russian man who was building a house up on the hillside. He took us about half way back to town and we parted ways when he reached the Home Depot like store on the side of the road. He saved us a good 30-40 minutes of walking which ended up saving us some hassle. We were on a time schedule to catch a bus that was apparently full causing us to have to book an earlier bus. Luckily for the hitchhiking, we got back just in time to catch the earlier bus.

Time to head 180 Degrees South and head to PATAGONIA!!!!

P.S. Watch the documentary 180 Degrees South, it’s stunning and gives you a wonderful insight to the beauty of Chile.