Once the sun rises up in the mountains, it is immediately hot. Though the cabanas are light and airy at Antucalhue, there is no shade outside. We packed up, said goodbye to our host with hugs and kisses and headed down to the Ruta 5. We had decided to go to the Parque Nacional Nahuelbuta where there are pehuenes or Monkey Puzzle trees. As we drove to the park entrance in Angol we could see a pink sky in the distance. As we got closer we realised this was being caused by forest fires on the hillside. A small plane was flying backwards and forwards. As we got nearer to town, they got worse. Having found the route to the National Park, we decided not to go. Somehow visiting a forest and staying in a log cabin didn't seem to be the best idea!

Instead we headed south to the Lake District. The volcanoes of Callaqui,Tolhuaca, Lonquimay, Llaima and the perfect cone of Villarica could all be seen, capped with snow. We bought provisions in Lautauro and headed east in to the hills. We had passed through this area a few years before on our way from Pucon to San Martin in the Andes, Argentina. Unusually for the Lake District the skies were clear. Everywhere seemed bone dry in contrast to the previous times when it has been lush and green. We struggled to find a cabana initially. The first one we went the owners were away and the maid said she couldn’t book us in. The second took us towards Llaima and down a very bumpy road to a river, but the path up to the cabanas wasn’t passable by car. We then headed up the road from Curacautin to Lonquimay where many cabanas were advertised. We stopped at one, Las Margaritas. It was quite an old place with chickens, turkeys, sheep, dogs and cats. The cabin was basic and furnished in bright, ill matching colours, but its location overlooking a river was lovely. It also had a shaded area where we ate dinner: fried cheese empanadas and chips. It was 10 before he had dinner. Afterwards, for some reason, we watched television: Cat Woman with Haile Berry and Sharon Stone.