Public transport made easy

After deciding to visit La Campana National Park we had the slight problem of how to get there as it appeared that very few buses or even tours go there. However we did it with relative ease, first getting the very efficient metro to Limache, (with a quick stop off in Viña del Mar to see how the rich live!) then catching a collectivo (group taxi thing) to a very small, unknown to us, town called Olmué. We felt very pleased with ourselves as when we first arrived in South America we wouldn´t have had the confidence or know-how to do something like that.

We came slightly unstuck when it seemed that the only place to stay for miles around was a very swanky hotel with lush gardens and pool. The receptionist looked almost shocked when we walked in complete with rucksacks and giving off a bad odour thanks to unwashed clothes, and seemed pleased to tell us that the cheapest room was something like 50 pounds a night. We hastily departed (we didn't want to stay there anyway) and after a quick walk round the town (small plaza and a couple of streets) found a hosteria which looked a bit dodgy from the outside. However it turned out to be a hidden gem complete with private room opening onto a large pool and extensive gardens with football and volleyball pitches! It also had an amazing view of La Campana National Park and Cerro La Campana (the main mountain that Charles Darwin once climbed).

More Hiking

As much as we wanted to laze round the pool in the glorious sunshine all day we felt we should get to the National Park and do some walking, as we had originally planned. We were going to walk Cerro La Campana and after getting up early and carefully following directions from a borrowed guide book (which shall remain nameless) we ended up at the wrong entrance miles from the foot of the mountain. There we met a park ranger who pointed out to us that we were at the wrong place but helpfully recommended an alternate walk and supplied us with a map and dog: his gorgeous golden retriever called Loopo who didn`t get to go on many outings. So we set off together and walked for hours up a steep path through rainforest complete with waterfalls and streams. It was really beautiful and the view from the top outstanding. Loopo was really well behaved (apart from when he chased some cows) but had a strange obsession with bushes. He was a proper adventure dog, wading through streams and leading the way for us. He even jumped into a massive mud pool and tried to deposit some onto us.

When we returned we got in a few hours of sunbathing and had a cooling swim in the pool.

Next stop Santiago and our final stop in South America.