Carretera Austral

Introduction

The ONLY way for us to showcase all the information you need for the Carretera Austral is to break it into sections. Therefore, please revert to the menu order showing the directions North to South (Puerto Montt to Coyhaique), broken into two more understandable sections as well as the reverse South to North section (from Coyhaique going north Puerto Montt).

The Carretera Austral is the “southern road” that cuts through some of the most breath-taking, raw, and natural scenery on Earth.

The road runs 1,241km from Puerto Montt, at the southern end of the Chilean Lake Region, down to Villa O’Higgins in the far south of Patagonia. This is approximately the same distance from the English South coast up to the northern tip of Scotland. Imagine driving that distance on one road which is a mix of paved and unpaved surface!

The drive along the Carretera Austral is nothing short of spectacular. If you ever wanted to know what planet Earth was like before the arrival of man, a visit to this part of the world will give you a glimpse.

What is on the Carretera Austral?

Only come to the Carretera Austral if you love nature. This destination, and the destinations within, are all about places that offer peace, quiet and tranquility. There are some incredible lodges that are situated in some of the most stunningly beautiful, remote places on Earth. These are locations where one can absolutely “get away” from modern life and be totally “cut off” from the normal stress, noise and hassle of everyday living.

The types of lodges vary from top-end, luxury level to those that are more traditional, rustic places. However, whichever you stay at the scenery, the flora and fauna and the calming experience will be the same.

There are also places along the Carretera Austral where you can kayak, trek, fish, bird watch, white-water raft, see dolphins, visit glaciers, and ride a power boat up the river rapids among other wonderful attractions. Think of this part of the World as “God’s natural world”.

Scenery

The scenery is like no other, passing through native rain forest with trees that date back not hundreds, but thousands of years. Gushing waterfalls that cascade down steep mountain walls, blue-tinted hanging glaciers that that decorate the mountain peaks like white blobs of cream; large, crystal clear, meandering rivers that then rage into fast-running torrents and serene lakes that appear to be filled with the turquoise colour from an artist's palate. This is still the land of the rustic homestead, a place where wild salmon fill the lakes and rivers, birds of prey command the skies and around each corner is a jaw-dropping view.

Areas and Sectors

Considering the length of the road the only way to sensibly understand it is if we break down into sectors.

Through the Heart of Patagonia

Northern Chilean Patagonia begins at Puerto Montt (approximately 1,025km south of Santiago) and runs south to Punta Arenas (3,090km south of Santiago), beyond which is the island of Tierra del Fuego - the southernmost tip of the South American continent. Within Chilean Patagonia is the Carretera Austral and the famous Torres del Paine National Park. The climate in this zone is cold-temperate with long, cold and wet winters and short, cool, often rainy summers, always unpredictable and often windy. Punta Arenas, which is often windy, is exceptional in having a very low annual rainfall because it is sheltered from the wet, westerly winds by the southern Andes.

Wild Patagonia

The road carves through the wild, raw and windy Patagonia. In effect, the route passes through the valleys of the Andes mountains close to the Pacific coast. It follows the shoreline of fiord inlets and over the parts of the Andes where there is no alternative path. In doing so it has enabled visitors to get an up-close view of nature’s natural, geographical wonders without the contamination of man-made suburbs and sprawling conurbations. It is true that there are a few small villages along the route, but these are tiny, and in the middle is Coyhaique, the largest city, but this is surrounded the Patagonia landscape.

NOTE: Distances in this part of the world are incredibly long and you should fill up with petrol whenever you can!

Two Regions

The Carretera Austral straddles two of Chile’s administrative regions. The top part is within the Region de Los Lagos. This is an area full of lakes, green hills, mountain peaks and snow-covered conical volcanoes, but where it encompasses the Carretera Austral the terrain is mountainous.

The lower half of the Carretera Austral falls within the Aysen Region. Aysen, sometimes spelt “Aisen” is the fourth-largest administrative region in Chile. Within this area are the settlements of Coyhaique, Chile Chico, Tortel and Villa O’Higgins. This region contains Patagonian landscapes that are more “rugged and raw”. To the west is the Pacific Ocean and to the east is the Andes mountains and the border with Argentina. It covers an area of 28,906 km².

Its main industries are sheep and cattle farming, salmon farming and tourism.

Car Rental and Driving

Car rental can be picked up at Puerto Montt, or Balmaceda airport (Coyhaique), which we will arrange for our clients. Roads can be dangerous to drive as they are narrow and unpaved in long stretches, so broken windscreens and punctures can be a problem. It is also common for people to drive very fast along what they think is a deserted road and not be able to stop when they suddenly meet another car head on – so be careful, the writer is speaking from personal experience!
 
The road, which is unpaved for over 50% of its length, can be driven south from Puerto Montt and on to Chaiten via a couple of ferry crossings (but make sure you get the departure times clear otherwise you may have to wait overnight); or south from Chaiten; or south from Coyhaique. It can also be driven north from Coyhaique. Note that there is NO DIRECT drive between Coyhaique to Torres del Paine. The only drive option is to go via Argentina.

ExperienceChile.org will arrange a car rental as part of your self-drive, custom itinerary.

How Much Time Should I Allow to Explore the Carretera Austral?

You can either go from place to place quickly – but this will not allow you the time to really appreciate where you are, or you can concentrate on one sector only and get the maximum out of that.

You need to take your time in order to appreciate the beauty of the Carretera Austral. Then, you need to take a few days in each, main place, you stop off at. Only stop off for one night if it is a logistical requirement.
Ideally, you should plan two weeks, for the part Puerto Montt down to Coyhaique and two weeks, for the part Coyhaique down to Villa O’Higgins and back. However, as previously mentioned, it can be seen in a shorter time period, such as two weeks, but this will mean rushing through. A compromise would be three weeks for the full route, if you cannot do it in four weeks.

The route can be driven, or explored, in any of these ways:

Sector 1 Sector – North to South:
Puerto Montt, or Puerto Varas, down to Coyhaique.
Not in one day, but over, maybe one, or even two weeks, in order to stop off and enjoy each place.
From Coyhaique you can fly back to Santiago or Puerto Montt.

Sector 2 Sector – North to South:
Coyhaique to Villa O’Higgins.
Villa O’Higgins is, literally, the end of the road. Again, for this part you should allow one or two weeks to fully appreciate the area.
You would fly into Coyhaique to start this part.

Sector 3 Sector – South to North:
Coyhaique to Puerto Montt or Puerto Varas.
In this case you would fly into Coyhaique from either Santiago or Puerto Montt and then drive north.

Where do I Need to Arrive to “get” to the Carretera Austral?

You either fly into Puerto Montt and start at the northern end; fly into Coyhaique and from here drive north or south. If you opt to drive south, you will need to double back to Coyhaique at the end.