Region of the Lakes

In the southern part of Chile the coast turns to a series of thin slices of land amongst a series of lakes. Even further south there are series of islands that can only be reached via ferries. We traveled by bus about 14 hours south along the only highway--#5 (the same north/south interstate that travels all the way from Alaska through Central America and ends in Tierra del Fuego at the tip of S. America). We stayed in another port city called Puerto Montt. This was the starting destination for tourists to see the volcanoes and lakes of the region. We rented a car for 2 days and traveled around these lakes and saw some amazing waterfalls. The winter snow is in the process of melting so the streams and rivers were filled with bright blue, very cold, fresh water. The entire area is known for its micro-climates of fog, rain, snow, and then sun. We saw several rainbows as we drove in and out of rain, haze, fog, and sunshine. The entire country of Chile is also covered with a yellow flowering bush. Apparently it is a very invasive and "hard to get rid of plant" that the Germans brought to Chile 150 years ago. You can see this plant everywhere because it blankets the landscape. We happened upon an area where there were many forts built to protect the coast hundreds of years ago.