Pos: here
Loc: Caleta Ayacara
Acc: tent
Dist: 44,5 km
Start: 8:10 End: 16:40

I had to overcome this morning the same low tide trap as on the last beach, dragging the boat out over a wide belt of round slippery rocks of the size of coconuts. But there is worse dragging for a kayak, for me and for the kayak bottom.

People twice passed by my tent this night, two men at 4.45 am, and another one or two at 5 am, but as they were shining with their flashlights along their way I assumed they didn’t have anything bad on their minds. They were probably just the same local fishermen from yesterday evening, living in the houses out there on the land spit walking to their boats anchored inside the island. I assume their workday starts early, and with high tide. I heard some words like “incredible” when they were passing…is that Spanish, too?

The whole coastline is inhabited now, especially the Fjord side where I am camping now. It has even a road going along, where I saw a few mini busses, trucks and cars. Not sure though if they are connected to the Puerto Montt roads. The other smaller villages before probably didn’t have any road access.

A lot of fishing boats are out there, people must live on something! I am giving a friendly wave to most of them, and most of them are waving back, or calling something I can’t understand. Actually a pity I can’t talk to them!

It is kind of a pleasure after so many lonely paddling weeks in unspoilt nature to see the buzz of the civilization again, working noises on the shore, people riding horses (not for pleasure, I assume), fishermen busy in their boats…though finding a matching lonely campsite is becoming harder now.

I’m camping tonight close to the road, but hidden behind bushes. I just saw a bunch of sheep leaving the beach were I am now, but I assume I’ll stay undisturbed here.

Tomorrow I’ll cross 40 km over that bay, boring… :-(, weather is still easy going.

On the “NOMADS of THE SEAS” I learned that my time change I thought I had to do leaving the portage section was wrong, it was still only 4 hours behind Germany. I have to change again my starting and finishing time since then. But today it’s again 5 hours, as Germany changed to summertime. Complicated…

Meike Michaliks brother Jörg Bauer, my host in Puerto Montt, is so kind to pick me up around Isla Calbuco, to save me paddling 27 km into the dead end bay of Puerto Montt, Seno Reloncavi, and also back out again. A whole day saved! I already didn’t like it in Argentina to paddle into the dead end of the towns in the rivers, so this is also a very nice pick up! Thanks!