Orange leaves, the sunshine and clear skies, Villarrica volcano in the background, my dust dirt covered trousers and a smiling me – a photo taken on a hike I hadn’t anticipated doing earlier that morning.
From Pucón, I got the bus to nearby Huerquehue National Park to do a hike. My plan was to walk the park’s Los Lagos trail. However, when I arrived at the park’s entrance with other visitors, most seemed to be choosing a different trail, the San Sebastián one, which required signing up on a sheet of paper to a trail register. You didn’t need to write your name down for the Los Lagos trail.
I couldn’t decide. But chatting to two fellow backpackers we finally chose to hike the San Sebastián trail and added our names to the sign up sheet. Off we set and what a great hike it was! I really recommend!
The majority was uphill and pretty steep at times, particularly the dusty dirt path in the last hour. I was slipping and sliding holding on to tree roots to pull myself up! On the way down I was basically on my bum, low centre of gravity and all that!
The views at the top were really something – amazing panoramic vistas and the clear sky so that we could see Villarrica volcano in the distance! I felt so high up, it was a rewarding climb!
I also loved loved that some trees and plants had leaves turning orange. On my travels north from Ushuaia, I was catching the very start of Patagonia’s and the Lake District’s autumn. I would love to revisit these places when autumn’s in full swing. There’s something about the orange leaves and views I find magic!
