The island of Chiloé in Southern Chile is famous for a number of things: architecture (palafitos, world heritage churches), penguins, mythology, a rain forest, shellfish, and potatoes.
on the ferry from pargua to the grand island of chiloé
We set out from Frutillar, stopping in Puerto Varas to rent a car and zipping past Puerto Montt about 30 mins to the Pargua ferry, on May 1, which is a national holiday in Chile. At just past noon we said ‘salud!’ and clinked beer glasses over lunch with some locals of Pargua, who tried to pass a young man off to me – he apparenly had the nicest eyes in the region, and so in their opinion was my ideal match.
palafito 1326, boutique hotel in castro
After a beautiful drive from Ancud to Castro, we checked in to the Palafito 1326 hotel, which had stunning design features and eked out over the water on stilts. The hotel is heated entirely by a massive wood fireplace, which is next to a sitting area and open kitchen, adjoining a large deck, and much of the interior design relates to wool in some way, so I was endlessly diverted.
paz caillet store in castro, chiloé
One main purpose of the trip was to investigate yarn sourcing, so we stopped in many stores featuring knitwear and asked for leads. Paz Caillet had some great designs, but no leads on wool.
huiñe maulín tejedoras in castro, chiloé
We lucked out with the Agrupación Huiñe Maulín shop, though – they were able to sell us a big ball of yarn, a natural grey colour and right from the island. I also found a great silver ring with broom straw woven on the face, so I left very happy.
beached boats in castro, chiloé
Castro was a nice little town, but we really didn’t think ahead by arriving on a holiday. Nearly everything was closed. We tried one restaurant, ordered a seafood platter, and left most of it on the table (strike one for Chilote seafood). After accidentally stopping for a beer in a “red-light” bar, of which I will spare you the ugly details, the Hostería de Castro addressed our persistent hunger with an excellent cheese platter and avocado salad, and our waiter was a model in attentive service.
cast iron cocina in abandoned farmhouse
We could not dwell long in Castro, and hoped that the sunshine and rainbows would follow us along our route through the long country road to Dalcahue (plan ahead for the extra time it will take to navigate a pot-holed gravel road at 40km/h..) We diverted off the main road to investigate a sign that simply said ” <— Historia” and figured the abandoned farm house behind barbed wire must have been what the sign was referring to. We poked around without having the place collapse on our heads, and I liberated a big iron circle thingamajig from the rubble that I will use for a woven wall piece.
note my pretty new ring
Somewhere along this dirt road we passed an older woman, and stopped to ask her if she needed a lift. When she said that was ok, we asked about yarn. Turns out she had some at home, so she hopped in and invited us in to her little place around the corner. I got one big skein of a black & white blend. The design of the yarn is typical of the artesanal markets here in Chile, but I knew this woman spun the yarn herself so it holds special value for me.
me with blondina cardenas of chiloe
When asked if she had any thicker yarn, Blondina led us to another building next to her house and we walked into this scene:
large scale loom in chiloe
Words can’t describe how nice it is to be in a place where you stop a random lady on the side of a dirt road, and she brings you into her home and unveils this. The heddle bar is suspended from the ceiling, and she said she could finish this project in about 2 days. Simply amazing. She gave me a ball of cream yarn as a gift, to boot.
world heritage church in dalcahue, chiloe
Dalcahue was a quaint little town, but I experienced strike #2 for seafood at the Cocina Dalcahue, which was a large building along the waterfront with numerous little domestic-looking kitchens with countertop seating inside.
kelgwo arte textile in ancud, chiloe
We drove through Quamchi and then back to Ancud, where we made it to Kelgwo Arte Textil, a very well-established store and organization that works with numerous indigenous artisans to create beautiful garments and decor, both knit and woven.
To sum it all up…
Architecture: fantastico.
Penguins: didn’t find any, but didn’t really look either.
Mythology: I saw a t-shirt with the goddess of Pincoya, spirit of ocean and shore, on it – but otherwise, no ghost ships, witches, unicorns, or dwarves presented themselves.
Rain Forest: is on the Western side of the island, but I can attest to the lush and bountiful landscape on the Eastern side.
Shellfish: bust. Never accept microwaved shellfish, ever. Being a polite tourist just isn’t worth the tummy-ache.
All in all, well worth the visit!
