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A Motorcycle Must-Ride: Chile’s Carretera Austral Ruta 7
If there ever can be a list of the eight best wonders of the world for must-ride roads, then South America’s Ruta 7 would be in that exclusive club. In fact, I vote it close to the top of the list. It’s neither very technical nor difficult for motorcycles, but don’t be fooled. The name “Ruta 7” disguises the fact that the Carretera Austral remains an eternal work in progress, with vast sections still unpaved, potholed, and impassable due to the elements. Here it often rains for days on end, or in the winter is covered in snow. The road can turn into an ugly mess, all adding up to why it’s one of the most captivating road trips in the world.
What makes this road so strikingly show-stopping and absorbing is the dramatic landscape reminiscent of a mythical land of hobbits and dragons. Every local or traveler we met told us the southern section of Chile’s Patagonia region is one of the most awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping places they’d ever seen. Little did we know that this was the start of a love affair that would see us taking more time than we’d initially planned.
What makes this road so strikingly show-stopping and absorbing is the dramatic landscape reminiscent of a mythical land of hobbits and dragons.
We stayed over New Year’s in Concón, a seaside village on the Chilean coast, repairing and servicing the motorcycles, also taking time to chill on the beach after the long ride through the Atacama Desert and southern parts of Peru. The small villages on the coast are dotted with groovy rustic eateries and bars where people hang out through the days and long into the nights.
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By mid-January we were packed and ready to hit the road and make the trek to the bottom of the world. It was a dicey bet as to exactly the right time to venture the 2,500 kilometers to Ushuaia. In winter the borders between Chile and Argentina close due to the snow, and we’d already missed the best part of summer on our way south. But the plan was to spend three to five months along the Ushuaia route.
Chile being one of the more expensive countries to travel in South America made camping our preferred accommodation. That said, camping is much more fun and in tune with travel compared to sitting in smelly, miffed-up hostels or hotel rooms. Autumn had only begun, so we reckoned we would still be safe from the cold.
From around October to March is the best weather for camping, riding and having enough time to explore the entire length of Ruta 7.
• Carretera Austral, meaning “Southern Way,” is the name given to Chile’s Route 7
The highway runs south, passing through rural Patagonia about 1,240 kilometers from the bustling port city of Puerto Montt to Villa O’Higgins, the last town where the road stops, and you absolutely can’t go farther south on the Chilean section. From there you have to cross into Argentina. The Carretera Austral is also now part of the new Ruta de los Parques, a route initiative stretching 2,735 kilometers from Puerto Montt to the very tip of Patagonia at Cape Horn that aims to join up 17 Chilean national parks.
The entirety of Ruta 7 is not an expedition to be hurried. There are some pretty darn interesting and engaging sections of dirt road to enjoy.
These are very sparsely populated areas, with on average fewer than one person per square kilometer. In 1976, Augusto Pinochet, Chile’s infamous dictator, ordered the construction of a road to connect these remote areas. What makes it unique, and adds to the difficulty of accessing this significant portion of Chile’s southern territory by land, are the thick forests, fjords, glaciers, canals and steep mountains. Access by sea and air is also complex due to extreme winter weather conditions.
On one side are the end parts of the Andes Mountains, and on the other narrow channels and fjords in the Pacific Ocean. For decades, most land transportation had to cross the Argentinian border to reach Chile’s southern Patagonia. In order to strengthen the Chilean presence in these isolated territories and ensure the land connection to the rest of the country, the government planned the construction of this road, which was originally executed by the Chilean Army’s Engineering Command. More than 10,000 soldiers worked on it.
Before we rode Ruta 7, we ventured inland to Chile’s volcano alley. Chile has about 500 volcanoes considered active, 60 of which have erupted over the last 450 years. Roughly 700 kilometers before Ruta 7, hugging the foot of the Andes are a row of volcanos and lakes along two countries’ borders. The still-warm days gave us time to pass most of them. But first we had to make a quick Argentinian visa run as our three-month stay in Chile was coming to an end.
A big part of the route meanders along the volcano route in Chile. There are some incredible camping spots with views overlooking the volcanos.
• Stretching 1,240 kilometers through Chile, from Puerto Montt to Villa O’Higgins in Patagonia
Camping in Chile is beautiful and easy as there are campsites everywhere. In Africa, campsites allow for quite a bit of space between the thin fabric of noises and flatulence. In Chile that personal space is within soft gossip distance making one man’s bliss another man’s log saw. We quickly missed the Atacama Desert where we had the luxury of camping quietly alone.
Because it was still holiday time, the local campsites were packed, making us reconsider our game plan. The travel app i-Overlander and some wild camping spots solved the problem for the majority of nights. We ended up with a mixture of gem campsites, barns, car ports, and people’s yards. The wild camp spots were those we cherished the most. Waking up next to lakes with smoking volcanos in the distance and a thick cloud of fog slowly creeping over the mirror-calm water will remain burned into our cherished memories.
Off Ruta 7 there are beautiful dirt tracks to explore, with views and wild camping spots.
At night, sitting at a small campfire with fellow riders, we discussed the possibility that the dictator, Augusto Pinochet, must have had a serious love for motorcycles—likely the reason why those roads are such an engrossing delight to explore. Endless sweeps, hills and curves seem crafted in such a way as to always have stupendous landscapes to enjoy. Even the dirt roads were sculpted for maximum enjoyment, never failing to produce plenty of the body’s happy chemical endorphins, dopamine and serotonin.
Sandra and Nacho have made a gem of an overlander camping spot in Las Torres del Simpson. They are both quite talented musicians and hosts.
In Hornopiren, a quaint picturesque village where we caught the first ferry south, we decided to stay the weekend. There was nothing much to do except drink beer, until we heard about a local food festival. Late Saturday afternoon we walked into a small arena in the middle of the village to be greeted by folk music, local dancing, and the aroma of barbecued seafood and mutton. This kind of experience is why we always allow enough time for serendipitous events worth enjoying. Rushing from one destination to the next inevitably results in many a memorable moment and experience being lost. The party pulled through until early the next morning. Let me just say that a hangover and a ferry ride over choppy ocean do not go together well.
If possible, it’s best to try to be in a small town when there are festivities. Hornopiren, like many other small towns, was an unforgettable experience of local culture, food and partying.
Our last town was Puerto Río Tranquilo on the shores of Lago Gral Carrera, “General Carrera Lake,” one massive body of turquoise, azure-colored water fed from the mountains and surrounding glaciers. It was base camp for our visit to the marble caves known as General Carrera Lake’s Marble Chapels, a network of glacial caves veined with blue striations carved from calcium carbonate by more than 6,000 years of water pressure. In addition to hiking glacier Exploradores, one of the major reasons for staying there was to rendezvous with two British motorcycle overlanders we’d met in Colombia, Suzie and Kelvin. The lifelong friendships developed with strangers you meet on the road make traveling even more special.
The day before we left for Argentina, we hiked glacier Exploradores, a workout of about 11 kilometers, part of which required ice shoes—a mind-bendingly enthralling experience. This 29-kilometer-long glacier is about 1.5 kilometers deep and still advancing.
Not far from the small port village of Puerto Río Tranquilo is Glaciar Exploradores. Hiking on a glacier is an unforgettable experience and one we recommend.
The trip down Ruta 7 is a sensory overload and a non-stop bombardment of imagery, aromas and new experiences. There are few places we’ve been with so much to be absorbed. We climbed majestic lookouts above landscapes of lush rain forests, stood in the icy spray of waterfalls, drank whiskey with volcano-melted snow, and walked in awe along cobalt-blue glaciers.
Carretera Austral is much more than what pictures and words can express, it is a road you have to feel.
Michnus Olivier, GenX’er born and bred South African product. Known on PikiPikiOverland as “The Tire Fixer.” Not known to follow or believe his own advice, however he loves to share stories and inspiration with others. Michnus and his better half, Elsebie, left South Africa 10 years ago on an initial six-month planned motorcycle trip up to Europe through Africa, and he’s been exploring the road on a semi-permanent basis to this day.
