A swing through South America

[Scarlett]

SCL-LSC LA318
A320-200 Y+
CC-BLB
On time.

Needed water so went and found that generic 'bookshop, snacks, electronics' kind of place that seems to be in every decent sized airport these days. Then to the gate and boarding commenced at what seemed to be a pretty early time, although I've subsequently found it to be the norm for LA flights in SthAm. They start early because even using groups it is a slow process actually getting everyone on and seated.


Departure view of SCL.


The flight to La Serena is just less than an hour so service in Y+ is a bag of crisps and a little muesli bar kind of thing. Plus a bottle of water for each pax and then a drinks cart for tea, coffee, juice. No alcoholic beverages seen. The seating is standard Y seats but with middle blocked and what I guess is a comfortable enough 84cm pitch.

Descent view heading into LSC.


The last natural light at about 2000 local pulling into the small airport that is LSC.


LA, SKY Airline and JetSmart all serve the SCL-LSC route multiple times per day so although it’s a small airport it is still quite busy.

 

[Scarlett]

La Serena is an old Chilean city that has been expanded in more recent times to takes advantage of miles of Pacific Ocean beaches. Resorts, condos and that sort of thing have combined what were formerly separate towns of La Serena and Coquimbo into one large urban area. La Serena old town is actually a couple of kilometres back from the coastline closer to a valley running eastward into the Andes.

I had booked accommodation in the old town area and it turned out to be a couple of Spanish era mansions tastefully restored as a boutique hotel.



It felt a bit like a Moroccan riad with a central open air area and rooms around the outside of the buildings. Staff were lovely too.

The town itself was a mix of some pleasant surroundings along with narrow, basic or maybe ramshackle areas.


I’d come to La Serena for what was the second best ranked golf course in Chile, unimaginatively named Campo de Golf La Serena. As the weather was better for the second day I was in town, for this day I first headed to a different course just for some practice. Pan de Azucar (sugar bread? - ahh Google translate calls it Sugarloaf - which is a common enough name. It’s most familiar to me for Mount Sugarloaf near Newcastle, which was where the regional TV/radio antennae were situated) was the name of the course. Pretty basic club and course.





Lots of mature eucalypts again, but pretty average conditioning. However, I’m playing golf for leisure and there’s plenty of people in the world who don’t have a secure source of food for tonight, so it’s all good.




A couple of sprinkles of rain here and there but very brief each time.

 

[Scarlett]

This was almost a religious experience!

That night I went back to a restaurant right beside the hotel. As I’d gotten in later in the evening the previous night, the hotel staff didn’t really have any restaurants to recommend as they noted most places would already be closed. But I’d seen the doorway nearby and so just headed in there. Picture an old outback pub that has a token dining area and you’d be close. Plenty of locals eating there. Only locals. 1L bottles of beer. The sort of place that hasn’t changed since the 70s or 80s because no one wants it to.



They had a menu on the front door, and that was enough for me to order in simple Spanish because the older lady manning the bar and till had no English. Figured the Gran Bakarat looked okay (meat cheese tomato and I figured probably lettuce…)


My goodness it was spectacular.
The churrasco was like beef fajita strips; palta is smashed avo; and porotos verdes were I guess boiled/stewed/steamed green beans lathered on top of the avo.
(this kind of beans)


I thought I was getting a basic hamburger type thing but it was like a full meal.

It was so good I went back for the same thing the next night. When I walked in the second time the same lady gave me a knowing laugh.

 

[Scarlett]

Now THIS is what golf is all about!


Adjacent to the ocean, sandy soil, small undulating dunes. Most people won’t care for the distinction but this is where you find “links” golf rather than parkland or resort style courses. La Serena GC isn’t actually a true links as it doesn’t have the firm and fast turf and the grass type was a little ‘sticky’ rather than the smaller leaf size of traditional links, but by goodness it was a very well done facsimile.





It was fine and sunny all day; 20-21 degrees with about a one-club breeze off the ocean. Perfect conditions.



I play off a 13 handicap, so when I say that I was even with the card through 12 holes, it had the potential to be the best days golf ever.



Alas, reversion to the mean is a thing and I ended up shooting 8-over 80 (have broken 80 twice before in my life so no great loss). I’d played off the white tees for the front nine and having gone around those first nine holes one over, decided to go back to the longer blue tees for the second nine, so it was likely to happen anyway.

I’d say the course reminded me of Magenta Shores on the NSW Central Coast, or maybe some of the courses on the Moonah region in VIC, but it just wasn’t as polished as those. Probably would sit somewhere around 75th best course if it was in Australia. I don’t say that to detract from it, but rather to highlight just how good we golfers have it Down Under.

 

[Scarlett]

The next leg of the trip was to go from northern central Chile to southern central Chile, to what was apparently called the Chilean Lakes District. I’d booked Y+ with LA again for La Serena to Puerto Montt, via Santiago.

LSC-SCL LA105
A320-200 Y+
PR-TYM
On time

This leg was a domestic Chile flight operated by a LATAM Brasil aircraft (Brazilian rego and inside all safety markings were in Spanish, English and Portuguese). FR24 indicates it mostly flies in and out of SCL so I guess it must use Chilean crew.

LSC only has a couple of check in desks and a few token shops.




I headed upstairs to the cafe to wait and spied this Twotter sitting alone on the ramp.

I recall from the take off roll it had titles like British Antarctic Survey on the fuselage.

The same packet of crisps and muesli style bar were handed out for this flight, but they, along with the bottle of water, were handed out pre-departure with the note that there may be turbulence enroute that might prevent any inflight service.

As it was there only a few bumps and a quick 45 minute journey down to SCL.

 

[Scarlett]

SCL-PMC LA59
A320-200 Y+
PR-TYP
On time

The flight time to PMC was blocked as 1hr 48min but was in reality about 1:20. We were travelling on another LA Brazil sister ship.





I guess if you live here you might become blasé about the sights of the Andes, but for me it was still pretty impressive. Then again on departure, sitting there behind the city:


As this was a slightly longer sector there was actually a heated chicken and cheese roll offered in Y+, along with the crisps and bottle of water (which is a 600mL bottle each time by the way). On most of these flights the Y+ cabin of 12 seats (3 rows of 2-2 middle-seat blocked eurobusiness style seating) was mostly full. I don't know whether LA is generous with upgrades for status pax or whether others were just paying for it like I was, as the price wasn't overly expensive.

The view on descent was pretty impressive too, with three volcanoes dominating the mountains about 20Km east of Puerto Montt (and Puerto Varas where I was staying).

I never really got a clear look at Volcan Orsono, but from other images on the web it is very Fuji-esque. In the image above it is the right-hand peak obscured by cloud.


Puerto Varas is the closer town here, situated on the lake. Puerto Montt is in the distance and is situated at the northern reach of Reloncavi Sound which is a waterspace open to the Pacific Ocean. The volcanoes are very obvious with their snow caps on satellite view.


On taxiing in they have an old C-47 frame sitting near the ramp. Apparently it flew for LAN Chile in the 60s after its USAAF wartime service and is now used for rescue and firefighting training.

Translating this website gives some more info: El C-47 de El Tepual


Also parked on the ramp was another Twotter wearing the same British Antarctic Survey (BAS) colours. Interestingly, when I departed a few days later there was no aircraft visible on the ramp but FR24 showed two DHC6 doing local flying, but with Chilean Air Force callsigns (but the registration marking was showing both as red BAS aircraft). Maybe they're contracted by the Air Force for Antarctic activities over the summer months.

 

[SYD]

Doing SCL-PMC in a few weeks time. It’ll be 3 of 4 LA PE flights and all showing full or close to 2 to 3 weeks out.

Watching intently now for tips!

 

[Scarlett]

Doing SCL-PMC in a few weeks time. It’ll be 3 of 4 LA PE flights and all showing full or close to 2 to 3 weeks out.

Watching intently now for tips!

The only real advantages of LA PE are the included piece of luggage and the seat. Group 1 boarding comes with the seat and quicker alighting. The main thing for me is that LA whY is listed as 71cm pitch which is ULCC torture levels. PE is not J space but probably 81-84cm pitch.

Actually I suppose the water bottle came in handy for later flights as I’m never sure of the status of local water arriving somewhere new so at least always had some water to drink and for brushing teeth that night.

Are you staying in Puerto Montt or somewhere else?

On arrival at PMC there were shuttle buses offering seats for CLP6000 to both Puerto Montt and Puerto Varas. Good easy and well oiled machine. They have desks at baggage claim or will bring a card reader to you outside if you just walk out to them. That’s the price for a person only, having luggage doubled the price. As comparison UberX to Puerto Varas was showing as 16K CLP after my arrival so I went with the shuttle. Another thing is that I thought they were taking us (three ‘groups’ - 5 pax total in the little 12 seater I was in) to the central plaza in Puerto Varas but they took each of us to respective hotels. Perfect.

Do an Osorno day trip! I didn’t and regret it. Puerto Varas felt like Queenstown NZ so there were tour brochures and travel agent types everywhere.

 

[SYD]

We’re picking up a car at PMC and will spend a few days based at Puerto Varas before heading out to Chiloe for a couple of days.

Made a note to checkout Osorno!

 

[Scarlett]

After I checked in and looked out my window at Puerto Varas of an evening I remembered reading about the German heritage of the area. Well this certainly indicates it is still going strong!


Over the next few days I came to see German flags flown individually and regularly with the Chilean flag at plenty of businesses and just generally around town. They really do celebrate that element of the towns history (similar with Puerto Montt I believe). The next morning the views over the lake and to at least one of the volcanoes was nice to see.


I brought forward the game of golf at Patagonia Virgin (number one rated course in Chile) to this day as the weather forecast was much better than the following days (cold gusty winds from the south and likely showers). Uber was fine for the 20Km trip north and there were plenty of periods of sunshine mixed with the clouds. Another lovely course, but this one more open parkland style looking over the lake rather than links style.

The developers of the course had a grand plan (don't they all ) to build a Jack Nicklaus designed course, housing estate, multiple hotels: basically an integrated resort and accommodation suburb. Nicklaus got his money, but it doesn't seem to have gone much further than the first nine holes and a couple of houses. There are still plans for the rest of the course and subdivisions, but I can't see it happening as they just can't be getting the necessary cash flow. The clubhouse is still a small (what was going to be temporary facility) building. Being sited closer to the town of Frutillar and 40 minutes away from the main population centre of Puerto Montt seems a curious choice and has probably sealed their fate to 'just getting by'. They've still kept the course in decent enough nick, but you can see that over the ten years of it being there it's not getting the upkeep that a top of the line course needs.



Looking across the second green toward the three volcano peaks.


Par 3 3rd, and then my eyes are drawn across the green to the Andes again.





This was as good a view as I got of Orsono during my time there. About the only time the full conical shape could be made out through the cloud.




Was a very enjoyable game and a real good walk over quite undulating terrain. The course does have some interesting holes, but, it's only half a course at the moment. 8/10

 

[Scarlett]

Struggled to find somewhere for dinner that night as a number of places were closed and those open were very full. I hadn’t realised but it was a long weekend with the Monday being the ‘Day of the Races’. At first I was thinking ‘Melbourne Cup’ kind of thing??? A web search notes it’s celebrating the different races in the country; the Spanish heritage, but also the indigenous peoples of Chile.

The restaurant I did get a table at had Halloween decorations everywhere, including this rather bizarre fireplace.


It actually really fits with the vibe of the town, being a little quirky.

 

[Scarlett]

Tourist time was just wandering around the town, having coffee breaks whenever I felt like it and when I needed to warm up. I think the feels like was 11degC. Showers never materialised. The Queenstown NZ and Tassie feel was quite strong in Puerto Varas.


Lovely old houses had been kept around the town. Plenty still had wooden shingles covering the walls.

These guys seemed to be admitting defeat and wanting to just get off the water.





Plenty of gorse in the rural areas outside town, and some inside as well.







C’mon clouds, give me a decent look at that conical stratovolcano!


Check out the Bomberos, but zoom in to the front of the trucks.


Whilst there I also went out and played at another small golf course closer to Puerto Montt, but it was back and forth tree lines and disappointing.

Puerto Varas as a whole though was lovely. I regret not doing a day tour of the lake and Volcan Orsono region rather than the second game of golf.

 

[OZDUCK]

Lots of 'German' food around?

Those views of the Andes are sensational.

 

[Scarlett]

Lots of 'German' food around?

Those views of the Andes are sensational.

Interestingly, no.
But there were two German specialty restaurants that were closed, but the three places I had dinner were all fairly standard spanish menus.

 

[OZDUCK]

Interestingly, no.
But there were two German specialty restaurants that were closed, but the three places I had dinner were all fairly standard spanish menus.

Thanks. I remember seeing a short DW travel piece about a 'German' community in South America a few years ago - it was like a small German village that had been transplanted.