Tortel is a commune located in Southern Patagonia, a spectacular wilderness region of rugged mountains, glaciers, rivers and forests of infinite beauty. The uneven geography of Tortel shapes a unique landscape, characterized by an archipelagic area with numerous islands and channels. Tortel is known as the “footbridge city” for the unique beauty of its wooden walkways that connect the piers and houses of this quaint place through bridges and stairs, built from cypress wood, that run for four and a half miles around the cove and that respect the rich vegetation that grows under them. Even though it is the sixth largest commune in Chile, it has the lowest population of all with roughly 531 people. The history of the town dates back to 1520 when it was inhabited by nomadic Kawesqar, now extinct. Its definitive foundation was in 1955, after numerous attempts to populate the area. In 2001, it was declared by the Chilean government as a Picturesque Zone of National Heritage.
March 13th
Had an early breakfast and disembarked in zodiacs at 8 am for the short hop to Tortellini. There we had a 45 minute guided walk along the board walks with Jackie. Quite heavy drizzle all morning. We then continued by ourselves for another hour. It was a logging town of about 550 people. We were surprised to discover that it actually had a road to it- meeting a couple with a suitcase who were searching for the parking where they. Had left their car!!!. We were entertained in the Rotunda with accordion music, pisco sours, empanadas and 2 couples dancing..
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Back on board by lunchtime. There was an afternoon Chilean wine presentation by Roger, who had no clue about wine but was Chilean! I thought it was really lowest common denominator stuff, but it seemed to go down well with the chattering classes. By Recap and Briefing we were out of the fjords and in rough weather. Chris took a pill and skipped dinner, I went into a depleted dining room and had just the main course
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March 14th.
At sea . A very rough night but we managed to make breakfast, albeit without the coffee and there were few people there. In fact the weather had been so bad that the Explorer hove to , and rode out the storm bow on to the seas at minimum speed for most of the night. The outer deck was closed to passengers as it was deemed to be too dangerous
We spent the morning in the cabin, reading and watching David Baddiel along the Silk Road. By lunch time we were back into the fjords and eating in the restaurant was back to normal. . At 3 there was a talk by Jackie on Chiloé and its legends.
A talk by Captain Freddy on his 2019 and 2022 trips as Ice Captain of the Agulhas to find the wreck of Shackletoń's Endurance.
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