Mountain Bike Tour in Chile’s Lake District

Our team will meet you in Puerto Montt airport. It is a short ride to Puerto Varas, the lovely lakeside town, where we get the bikes fitted.

For the first day, and after your arrival to the Lake district, we will meet in our office where we will go through the bike fitting and trip details.

Accommodation Hostal Zapato Amarillo, Puerto Octay.

Puerto Octay/Volcán Osorno Paso Desolación trail.

65 km on the bikes. 30 paved and 35 gravel and single trail.

First day on the bike, following one of the most beautiful roads of the area. Great views and all local culture. From Puerto Octay we follow the road by the lake to get to Puerto Clocker, where we start climbing to Paso Desolación. After 20 kms, we follow the trail down into Lago Todos Los Santos. 14 kms down, with technical sections and the best views ever. After lunch back to Puerto Octay by car. B/L/D.

Accommodation at Hostal Zapato Amarillo

Trekking Alerce Andino National Park.

Leave Puerto Octay for a full day excursion in Alerce Andino National Park.  We depart at 8:30 am, we drive through Puerto Montt and take the Carretera Austral heading south.  After 40 km we arrive at the entrance to the park. Here we start a walk through the forest for about 2 hours. We arrive to the cascade of Río Chaicas where we see some fabulous 2000 years old alerce trees. If you would like we can continue the hike to some lakes. The first is Laguna Chaiquenes at 1 hour walking from the waterfalls, and the second Laguna Triangulo after another hour walking. Return the same way. B/L/D.

Transfer back to Puerto Octay. Accommodation at Hostal Zapato Amarillo

Today we head to Pucón, and on the way we made a detour and go for a ride at Huilo Huilo bike park.  With amazing trails, we have the option to do some great MTB and also to ride the bike lane to Lago Pirihueico. Great views again.

Huilo Huilo Bike Park is located within the Huilo Huilo Biological Reserve in Chile’s Los Ríos Region.  we will have an exciting mountain biking day here, amid lush Patagonian rainforest. This park is known for its well-designed trails, stunning natural landscapes, and a commitment to sustainable tourism.

Huilo Huilo Bike Park has trails for both downhill and enduro riders, with a variety of routes catering to beginners and advanced riders alike.

Trails weave through dense rainforest, featuring obstacles like roots, rocks, and natural drops. The terrain varies from technical sections to flowy, scenic rides.

Some trails are specially designed to integrate jumps, berms, and technical features, making it ideal for those looking to practice their skills.

The park offers striking views of the nearby Mocho-Choshuenco Volcano, adding to the dramatic scenery.

After the ride, transfer to Pucón for about two hours. B/L

Accommodation at Hostal Ecole Pucón

We change from the bikes to hike again, today to explore Huerquehue National Park, which offers fabulous walking trails, of various lengths, through lush temperate rainforests, with views of pristine alpine lakes, and scenic waterfalls.

This park is celebrated for its rich biodiversity, featuring ancient Araucaria (monkey puzzle) trees, endemic to this part of the Andes.

We can choose form a range of trails and enjoy some stunning viewpoints and maybe even take a dip in one of the lakes. Keep your eyes open, you may be lucky and catch a glimpse of Chilean foxes, condors, and even the elusive puma.

About 6/7 hours of hiking in total and about 1 hour transfer each way. B/L.   Accommodation at Hostal Ecole Pucón.

For the last day of action, the cherry on the cake.

Volcán Villarrica is an active stratovolcano, and the mountain biking here offers a unique way to experience the area’s natural beauty.

We will explore the many options for MTB that Volcán Villarrica offers. From long free ride sections on the ashes, to the trails inside the native forest, amazing rides to finish this epic trip.

Many of the trails begin in lush forests at the volcano’s lower elevations, winding through scenic woodlands with varying levels of difficulty.

Higher up, trails traverse rugged volcanic landscapes, with sections covered in loose lava rocks and gravel, creating challenging and dynamic riding conditions.

The area offers both challenging downhill tracks and more manageable singletrack trails for different experience levels.

B/L.

Accommodation at Hostal Ecole Pucón.

Depending on your flight schedule, there may be time to explore Pucón to buy some souvenirs; the woollens are popular.

With the bike touring over, our transport team will take you to Temuco airport in time for your flight out (80-90 minute drive).

Chile is the land of contrasts, from verdant vineyards to driest desert, deep fjords and towering glaciated volcanoes.

A narrow but incredibly long, snake-like country, Chile’s unusual geography features more than 5,000km of South Pacific Ocean coast. The country is almost 4,400km long but barely more than 160km at its widest.

It is best divided into general regions, all of which offer spectacular landscapes and identities of their own.

This variety means Chile is the land where almost every activity is possible. Hiking, biking, rafting and kayaking.

Or climbing, cruising, fishing, horse riding, wine tasting.

Or simply eating great food, relaxing and exploring.

Patagonia

Trekking heaven. Paine National Park lies in Patagonia and features some of the best trekking in South America. With no altitude worries here, hikers enjoy an unrivalled mix of access to wild flora and fauna that exists in this massif. It is at once windswept, and then balmy. Paine National Park is a must see for walkers visiting South America.

Northern Patagonia is the least densely populated part of the country – spectacular virgin scenery make this a hidden gem and superb area for trekking, boating and horse riding.

And that’s before you think about possibly cruising through fjords, or kayaking them, flying to Antartica or staying at a working hacienda.

Easter Island

Iconic, Easter Island is an archaeological treasure. Here you will find the famous Moai stone statues, as well as caves and rocks decorated with etched petroglyphs and painted pictographs.

Northern Chile

Northern Chile features the Atacama, the driest desert with the clearest skies in the world, is alive with active volcanoes replete with spitting geysers mixed with archaeological wonders and fantastic rock formations.

Central Chile is the heart of Chile and includes the capital Santiago. With its Mediterranean climate of hot dry summers and mild wet winters, this central valley produces some of South America’s finest wines, Colchagua Valley to name but one.

Here, the Andean mountain chain soars more than 6,000m above sea level. Chile’s traditional symbols such as huaso (cowboy) and cueca (national dance) originate here, an area which is rich in agriculture and produces most of Chile’s export fruit.

In winter, skiers are attracted to this tasting the promise of some fabulous snow on the huge peaks which overlook Santiago.

Southern Chile and the Lake District

Lush and verdant, The Lake District area is the place to climb snow-capped volcanoes by day while relaxing next to stunning glacial lakes by evening. You can walk, bike, raft, cruise and drive your way around this beautiful region.

Central, southern and Patagonia Andes all present different challenges to mountaineers and trekkers. Options are varied in the central Andes with many of the Patagonian peaks remaining unexplored and unsummitted.

Chile’s climate varies greatly, owing to its sheer length, variation of terrain and varying altitudes and latitudes.

Lake District and Patagonia

In the south of Chile, here temperatures drop a little compared to the rest of Chile.

It can be better to go in the Austral summer (Oct-March). Daylight hours are much longer at this time, with Nov-Feb being popular times to visit. October and March can be very colourful and vivid with less visitors, but weather can be more blustery.

In Patagonia, the weather is, putting it mildly, variable, and variable on a daily basis. It is usually cool and windy all year round but seldom does the temperature fall below freezing point. Some days start with snow and end in balmy sunshine. It is always interesting, and can range from 10°C-20°C in the summer, although the wind can make it feel chilly.

The vast unbroken stretch of ocean to the west and south of the South American continent leaves the Patagonian Andes very exposed to the saturated winds that circle the Antarctic landmass. Also the South Patagonia Ice field influence makes the weather hard to predict. In spring or early summer fine weather may deteriorate almost without warning, bringing rains and eventually snow. Even in summer (Dec-Mar) you should come prepared to find cold, strong winds (up to 130 km/hr) and rainfalls. The summer’s average temperature is 11ºC/52ºF (24ºC max, 2ºC min).

Winter visits to these southern areas are possible, but many hotels close and not all trips are possible. Daylight hours can be very short, but the lack of visitors can greatly improve chances of seeing wildlife in parks such as Paine.

The Lake District’s temperate climate can be said to resemble that of the UK, with rain possible but also enjoying long spells of fine, fresh weather in the summer (Oct-March).

Easter Island

Although sub-tropical and essentially a year-round destination, Dec-Feb are the most popular times to visit Easter Island as it is summer there and temperatures average 24°C. There can be colder days and it can be humid too.

The winter months (Jun-Oct) on Easter Island are not overly cold, but they can be cool. The average low temperature is 16°C but there is usually a wind at this time of year that makes the temperature feel cooler than it really is.

The wind rarely stops blowing at this time of year.

Northern Chile

The north of the country lies in the tropical zone, but in the main is desert. It is dry and sunny all year round, but does get cold at night time in the high altitude areas.

In winter (June-Aug) the average daytime temperature is 22°C (72°F) and by night 4°C (39°F), descending to -2°C (28°F) in extreme cases.

During summer (Jan-Mar) the temperature fluctuates between 27°C (81°F) and a minimum of 16°C (61°F) at night, reaching maximums of 32°C (90°F), with occasional showers.

Central Valley

The wine growers love the central valley, which has a suitable Mediterranean climate of hot dry summers (Nov-March).

Then, temperatures range from 17°C in the evening and can go up to 30°C inland. It is cooler during the day on the coast.

During winter (May-Sept), which is essentially mild and wet, temperatures inland can vary from 5°C to 18°C during the day, and a bit warmer on the coast.

Autumn (Mar-April) and Spring (Oct-Nov) are lovely times to visit, although hotels in Santiago can book out in March, October and November, as it is conference season.

Andean Trails has 25 years of experience of putting together the best South America holidays.

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