This is yet another long log, describing our not very straight route day by day in Patagonia.
There are many names to remember for the joy of the chart people and those who actually intend to sail down here. We hope that the rest of you can have  pleasure from the text in spite all the names. We have often thought about to whom we are writing, and the answer is to our self, this is actually our only notes to remember. Of course it's nice to share our experiences and wonderfully views with people around the world.
It's a long transport we have done in the Chilean Canals, yes sometimes it have been more like a transport than a sailing trip. Now when we have come this far and our minds once again get used to the normal surroundings, we look back and realise that most of the rainy days are forgotten, almost...

After noon 15th of March we left Puerto Natales with all our storage completely filled up. With our now 500 litre diesel we felt that we could run on diesel the whole way to Puerto Montt. (How wrong didn’t that turn out to be.)
The route took us straight south west to reach the north/south going main route through the Archipelago, on water as smooth as a mirror. Under a clear sky and with absolutely no wind we motored towards Angostura Kirke, one of two narrow passages connecting the wide inland water around Puerto Natales to the open sea. The huge amount of water passing this narrow strait due to the tide creates a strong current, over 10 knots sometimes. We managed to get there when the tide was going west at 4 knots, and that was tricky enough to handle the boat in that current! In the west part of the narrow we anchored in Caleta Desaparecidos, a pleasant and well protected bay 25nm from Puerto Natales, where we had sea lions “singing” the whole evening.

The next day our highly appreciated high pressure was disappearing, but still no rain and no wind. Just as we where turning north into the normal route to the north, the wind came together with a rough, steep sea. We had two choices, either turn and go with the wind a few miles to an anchorage or continue against the wind and the ruff sea for 7 miles doing only 2-3knots under high power, using the double amount of diesel/nm, not mention more than two hours highly uncomfortable boat motion. We choose the first alternative and were at anchor only half an hour later in Caleta Jaime, only 11 miles from Caleta Desaparecidos.
We got caught here for four days, waiting for the heavy northerly wind to decrease. We soon got company from three fishing boats. One tried to get out after three days but came back two hours later. We where then even more convinced that it was a right decision to wait. The first day before the rain started we got some good exercise climbing up the mountain on the island, almost 600m high, but the following days we only got some air in between the rain.

The fifth day, Friday the 20th of March, we lost our patience and forced the boat against the wind, which had decreased a little, the 10nm to Puerto Fontaine. Some Caletas are called Puerto, although they are not a harbour. Eventually because fishermen use them as rescue harbours when it is bad weather. We anchored free and stayed for two nights. A nice bay without the williwaws we experienced in the previous bay.

On the 22nd we sailed 18nm north on Estrecho Collingwood to Caleta Columbine and had an early start next morning to reach protected water before the northerly wind increased again. Half way to Canal Harrier and the protected water we got a strong headwind with 40 knots in gusts. The Navimag ferry "Puerto Eden" overhauled us in the heavy wind and rain. They called us on the VHF and asked about name, flag and destination. Then they asked if everything was OK, probably it looked a little bit rough. We answered that everything was ok and they wished us good luck. We thanked them and said that we could need that, not thinking about that it could be misunderstood. But either their English was not good enough to understand the underlining or they actually understood what we meant. Luck with the weather!
10nm later, reaching Canal Harriet, we got protection from the rough sea and less wind, and one hour later we where at anchor in a small very protected creek. In Caleta Thélème, named after a French boat which "discovered" it, we stayed two nights waiting for a predicted southerly wind.

The wind came and we sailed over 50 nm over Canal Sarmiento to Bahia Bueno, where we got the northerly wind and rain again. We stayed three nights, waiting for the next weather window.
We pulled the anchor on the 28th and motored in mist and no wind over Estero Peel to Canal Pitt, where a fresh wind from the north made it possible to tack to Caleta Rachel 30nm from Bahia Bueno. After three attempts we got a good grip with the anchor, but the chain on the stony bottom made a lot of noise when the boat was moving sidewise in the wind. We left the next day due to the noise and lack of rest, in spite the weather wasn't that good.
After 15nm of struggle we could anchor in Caleta Pico. This small cove seamed to be well protected from northerly winds, but the shape of the surrounding mountains made the wind divert during the night and with great force reach the boat from southwest. Luckily the fetch was not long enough to build up any waves, and our anchor was well set. But as soon as the morning light was bright enough to manoeuvre we got out in the now very strong northerly wind and surfed with only a small piece of the Genoa in 7 knots back south 5nm to Caleta Otter Pole, a miraculous well protected cove, reached after a Z- turn in behind some headlands.
It was almost not possible to understand, coming from the 40knot wind, that we actually had no wind at all in this cove. The only problem, easy to live with, was that you didn't know when to leave because you got no visual information about the wind in the straight. We stayed two nights, mostly due to lack of sleep during the previous two nights.

The 1 of April we left our shelter and started north again. It seems to be either no wind or fresh to strong northerly in these Canals! This day there where almost no wind at all, but due to lack of progress the past week we felt that we had to get rid of Canal Pitt, especially after our bad anchoring in Caleta Pico, a caleta that should be deleted from the pilot for two reasons, the strong williwaws in dangerous direction and the nearby and totally protected Caleta Otter Pole. Without local knowledge it's not easy to choose the right one out of three. We came to choose the two that wasn't really good, and only because the nasty williwaws we came to anchor in one of the best protected caletas we used.
Motoring in the Canal Andrés we met a Canadian boat, "Mia" on their way to the south. We turned around and in the nonexistent wind we drifted together chatting about nothing and everything concerning the canals. You meet so few boats in this region so when you do, it's almost impossible not to get in contact and great fun to talk to other people after weeks in isolation. After some fifteen minutes we waved goodbye and turned north again. What a difference to be sailing south!
But they have the same rain!
Still without wind we motored north of Isla Canning over Seno Tres Cerros and diagonal northwest over Canal Conceptión to Isla Topar and anchored in Caleta Neruda, having made 43nm since Caleta Otter Pole.
The next morning there where still no wind, but having information about how nasty Canal Wide can be, we started motoring the 40nm up the strait to Caleta Nassibal. Having made half the distance, a fresh wind came from the north, and we had a nice tacking in moderate sea the following 20nm to the anchorage.
Again early start, not to be caught in the "Wide". A fresh, 15-20 knots, wind from the north and moderate sea state, made it possible to tack the whole way to Caleta Apalá in Paso Piloto Pardo.
We made 34 tacks and 33nm. The distance "as the crow flies" was only 16nm!
But almost no rain and actually some sun. Some bergy bits of ice where floating in the east side of the canal so we had to keep a sharp look out tacking east.
Caleta Apalá on Isla Saumarez was a nice experience. A perfect bay for anchoring without shorelines.
The weather, although northerly wind, was still acceptable, so we stayed only one night and the 4th of April we tacked north. Reaching Canal Escape, just north of Isla Saumarez, where Canal Grappler connect, we suddenly decided to take advantage of the weather prediction and visit Glacier PioXI in the head of Seno Eyre, south of Canal Grappler. So after a morning tacking against a fresh wind, we turned south into Canal Grappler and run down to Caleta Lucrecia in the south part of Canal Grappler where we anchored, still on Isla Saumarez but on the east side, 23 nm from Caleta Apalá.
The next morning we motored 25nm to Caleta Sally at the head of Seno Eyre where we spent three nights with daily tours the three miles to the huge glacier. The weather didn't clear up quite as predicted, but clear enough to justify this 70nm detour.
On the 8th we left the pictures and protected Caleta Sally early enough to reach Canal Grappler before ebb. We had calculated the tide correctly and had 1,5-2 knots increased sailing speed thanks to the current, but we had to give way for bergy ice bits all the way along Seno Eyre. We where back in Canal Grappler three hours later and made an early anchorage in Caleta Lucrecia to do some maintenance, change filter and oil in the engine and fill up our 150 l diesel, stored in jerry cans, into the main tank.
An almost nonexistent northerly wind saw us next day motoring 15nm up Canal Grappler crossing Paso del Indio to Caleta Maris Stella, where we anchored for the night. Next morning we did the last 16nm to Puerto Edén, and for once Puerto means "Port".
Puerto Edén is a small village in the middle of nowhere. 200 people lives here, mainly fishermen, an Armada station, Carbieneros, Postoffice and a new school building. The latter with free Internet distributed by satellite. It was quite odd to get into the so called civilisation in this really remote part of Chile.
There where even two small "restaurants", actually home kitchen with somewhat enlarged eating table. We tried both with good result! We even found several very small "supermercado" and where lucky to be there just as "The Navimag" Ferry came with supplies from Puerto Montt. We managed to get quite a lot of vegetables and fruit!
This was really a surprise, although the pilot wrote about the possibility, it also told us that supplies run out almost instantly after the Ferry been there. The Ferry comes once a week but only with supplies every two times. So we felt very lucky! Perhaps this was the luck Navimag whished us some days earlier when they hailed us over the VHF.
We even got a visit from the Armada arriving in an inflatable. They where very polite and friendly and did all the paperwork sitting in our cockpit.
We where the only boat the first night, but then came four other sailing boats, quite a crowd out here in the remote wilderness, especially for us who had spent two month almost on our own.
One of the boats was Shanty with the German single handler Peter as skipper. He had the leader of Patagonian Cruisers net, Wolfgang, as a guest. We knew this because although we hadn't checked in to the net jet, we try to listen every morning.
This was a good opportunity to make physical contact, not only by air. We had a long and nice chat, not only because we needed some help to get in contact with Oxxean marina in Puerto Montt where our air tickets should have been delivered. Thanks to Wolfgang we got in contact with Manni, a Finnish guy living in his boat in Oxxean. Two days later we got a recite telling us that the tickets where in the office of the Marina Oxxean.

The 14th of April, after four nights in this waste metropolis we headed north again in Angostura Inglesa, a narrow strait with high speed tidal current. In the northern part of the strait it happened, what we carefully had tried to avoid during navigating in the Canals. We got a powerful piece of kelp in the propeller! And it was not the normal kelp, which we have come to think about merely as a help during navigation, showing us the shallows, it was something that was alike an octopus with 20-30, up to three meter long strong fingers, impossible to pull off. The motor was almost not able to turn and when we put the gear in reverse we couldn't shift back to neutral without shutting down the motor.
Now we really were in a hurry! In the middle of the fairway against the wind and current, on top of that we had heard a cargo ship on the VHF announcing their passage from the north through Angostura Inglesa. The sails came up quicker than ever and after a few tackings we could anchor behind some small islands, just as the cargo ship came. Shanty and La Flaneuse, two of the boats we met in Puerto Edén arrived in the fairway at the same time as the cargo ship passed and asked if we needed any support. We decided that they could continue and that we should have radio contact that evening confirming that everything was ok.
Now we had a complicated work in front of us. Normally we just dive down to the propeller with a knife, but in this cold water and with that amount of kelp it was not an attractive alternative. The solution was; Annika in the dingy equipped with a diving hood, Cyclops, and our special prepared kelp knife on a 2.5m stick. The kelp knife was prepared to get rid of kelp from the chain when anchoring, and we had almost never used it. It definitely came in handy now.
After half an hour Annika had succeeded to cut away all kelp and we could continue our interrupted passage out on Canal Messier. Only to chose to turn back after one hour in the increasing northerly wind and growing sea. We sailed back to just north of our "kelp island" and anchored in Caleta Salauda, where Contessa, another boat from Puerto Edén, already was on anchor.

Next morning Contessa was already gone when we looked out into the rain. In spite of the rain we pulled the anchor and set of into the rain. After an hour we got a fresh south wind and could sail the 33nm to Point Lay, almost half way north of Canal Messiner, where we anchored for two nights, waiting for the rain to stop, and the heavy northerly wind that started just as we anchored to decrease.

On the 17th we motor sailed 35nm and almost the rest of Canal Messiner to Caleta Hale to be in position for the Golfo de Penas. The next day it was not possible to go north so we had to spend another night in Caleta Hale.
Golfo de Penas is 50nm wide and not protected from the Pacific at all, and the route continue west of Peninsula Tres Montes making the unprotected part of the route almost 150nm. The current and weather system makes these waters a pain even under normal conditions. During the past few days it had been blowing over 50knots from the north, even the Navimag Ferry had been on anchor for two nights  waiting for the wind to decrease.
We got a reasonable good weather prediction for the 19th so we left our anchorage in Caleta Hale and sailed north into the Golfo de Penas.
As usually the wind was not quite as predicted. A little heavier wind we can cope with, but now the direction of the westerly wind was 20 degrees to much to the north for us to be able to sail around Peninsula Tres Montes without tacking. Tacking in this current and confused sea was for us not an option, so we sailed east of the Peninsula and anchored in total darkness in Puerto Barrosa.
We continued the next day around Cabo Ráper and anchored again in darkness in the very well protected Caleta Suárez. Thanks to the radar, these night anchoring are possible, because the position given by the plotter is not correct compared to the charts. We are almost always one nm on shore according to the plotter when we have anchored. Not a very trustworthy help in the darkness. After a completely silent night we made the last 50 nm of the passage and finally anchored in Caleta Canaveral in the southern part of Bahía Anna Pink, and guess what, once again in darkness. This is one of the disadvantages with the autumn, the days grows shorter day by day.

The next morning, listening to the Patagonian Cruising Net, we heard about an earthquake in the vicinity of Seno Aysén with 6-8m high waves and several people missing. We had planed to go to Chacabucu and take the bus to Argentina for renewing of our visa. Knowing about the earthquake and the eventually closing of the Seno, we where not very keen on that, mildly speaking.
After some calculations we decided that it was possible to reach Castro on Isla de Chiloé before our visa expired. Diesel was another item in Chacabucu, but that we thought to be solved in Puerto Aguirre. On top of this we have not to forget the three month temporary permission for the boat from the customs. It will be thrilling to solve this in a Spanish spoken country with our almost nonexistent Spanish knowledge.
After these morning thoughts we pulled the anchor and hoist the sails and sailed east over Bahía Anna Pink and Boca Wickham into Canal Pulluche. Now we really were back in the archipelago, and it felt like coming home again. We hade been in these relatively protected waters since we came back from Antarctica the 20th of January, more than three month ago.

We had promised the authors of the Italian Pilot to check some information about a "new" Caleta in Canal Pulluche, Caleta Managrachi, so the anchorage for the night was decided long ago. It turned out to be one of the best caletas so far. A lot of space to anchor free, actually there was room for up to ten boats on anchor and still it was very well protected. The bottom was even from four to six meter with good holding. On top of that the surroundings where beautiful.
Next morning, the 23rd, we where a little bit slow starting up. After our three night anchoring together with early morning starts, we thought we had earned that. Later out in Pulluche we met two big Fin whales and looking at them took some time. They never show their fluke, so what gets on a photo are a big dark body, a dorsal fin and of course the blow with gigantic spray up to 6m height.
After that the wind increased and we where unusually heading southeast and could run downwind with only a reefed main in 5-6 knot. We had calculated the tide accurate and could add another knot over ground to that speed, not to mention the difference in sea state with the wind and current in the same direction compared to the opposite.
Reaching Canal Chacabucu we could see two sails 10nm ahead of us. Peter on Shanty answered a VHF call and we decided to anchor together with them in Rio Humos in Canal Errázuriz another 10nm further away. The gusts where now not so heavy and we poled out the Genoa to minimise the distains to Shanty and La Flaneuse. We did only gain one knot in top speed, but kept the speed between the gusts, so the average speed was quite increased. We made over 8 knots in the surfs (+ one thanks to the current). So far this was the fastest run calculated over 20nm in this archipelago sailing.
Having three miles left to the anchorage, we heard Shanty and La Flaneuse talking over VHF while anchoring. The wind gave them obviously some problems and we could see some "mini cyclones" ahead of us. We furled the genoa and the main rapidly and a few minutes later we had over 35knots in the gusts. It was a local front passing, the barometer fell rapidly but where back to normal again during the evening. When we paddled back from Shanty after a nice evening, it was completely calm and the stars where numerous.
We forgot to tell you that we had only a few showers during the day, the rest was sunny and clear!

The next morning there where no wind and some mist. We pulled the anchor and motored north towards Canal Moraleda well before the other two boats. We where quite short on diesel, so when a light breeze started we hoist our sails and shut down the motor. Quite a difference compared to yesterday, now tacking in 3-4 knots speed in mist!
Anchoring in Estero Atracadero we where only half an hour later than Shanty and La Flaneuse in spite they had motored the whole way. We spent the evening in La Flaneuse together with Monicue, Michelle and Peter. Annika made a lot of work with their computer, while we where eating, drinking and chatting. OK Annika got some vine and cheese...
Now our diesel situation was growing to a really problem. We had an almost dry bow tank, supporting the Refleks stove, and only some 30l in the main tank. According to our original plan we should now had been in Chacabucu for diesel and visa. The nearest place told to have diesel according to the pilot was Puerto Aguirre 15nm to the east, so we left the other two who where to continuing north and motored in the calm to Puerto Aguirre. There we moored at the wharf and took our paper to the Armada to check in. They wanted to write a new Zarpe in spite our valid Zarpe covered the whole way up to Puerto Montt. But why argue when there where no costs involved and we could keep our "old" Zarpe. It will be interesting to see the reaction in next port if we show them two valid zarpes!
This was a minor problem compared to the fact that there where no diesel on the island!
The pump on the wharf where labelled "Kerosene". With a very stabile high pressure and 150nm to the next possible diesel pump, our mood was not on top! We moved the boat to a close bay and took the dingy with two jerry cans back to the jetty to ask around if someone could sell us some litres. Quite exciting in view of our lack of Spanish language. We got some vegetables and some fruit but no diesel...
After strolling around in the village we finally came to a new wharf, obviously build for supplying the fish farms. There where a supply ship moored and we asked them about the possibility to by some diesel, and to our great relief they where extremely willing to help.
From a big tank on the deck the captain filled our two jerry cans, and we put them in the dingy. No way said the captain (at least that what we thought) and the jerry cans was back on the deck and put into a "speedboat" and transported to Lindisfarne on the other side of the island. We really don't know how, but Annika succeeded when paying the captain to get allowance for another diesel tour. So back in the boat Björn brought some other empty jerry cans back to the supply ship, and the procedure was repeated. We got in total 120l, and that to a very reasonable price, almost the same as the price in Chiloé. We felt very wealthy and the mood was several degrees higher, not to mention that we now could not only run the engine, we could also let the stove keep the boat comfortable warm. Sometimes when things look very black you end up in bright sunshine! Now we can motor the whole way to Puerto Montt if we have to.
We stayed on the anchorage the next morning to do the village in not so stressed circumstances. On a small nearby island they had their cemetery, with the coffins in bright coloured small houses. The traditions are not quite the same as back home! Back in Aguirre we found some really well stocked small supermercados and we got eggs, vine, tomatoes, salad, white cabbage, apples, bananas and pears. It was almost gormandizing with all this fresh products.
Back in the boat we pulled the anchor and motored slowly only 10nm along Canal Ferronave to Caleta Olea, a very nice and well protected caleta where we spend a completely silent night.
Early next morning we started motoring northwest across Canal Moraleda towards Canal Préz Sur. After only one hour we got sunshine and a light breeze from northeast and thanks to the smooth sea state we made over four knots sailing the 20nm across to Canal Préz Sur. The scene differed totally from the previous days motoring in mist with almost no diesel left.
Just before sunset we arrived into Pozo Delfin, a completely landlocked cove. The only access was a narrow channel, about 8m wide. Unfortunately the bottom was very rocky and with poor holding. We had to repeat anchoring three times until we got an acceptable holding.

We are used not to meet almost any other boats a day, but in the northern part of Canal Moraleda we started to meet a few every day and the number increasing on our way to the north.
From Pozo Delfin it's only 35nm to the passage over Boca Guafo to Chiloé, the second largest island in South America (the largest is Tierra del Fuego). The high pressure where still active and we motored in sunlight and calm sea 28nm to Caleta Momia, three miles south of Puerto Melinka, the northern point of the archipelago south of Golfo de Corcovado and Chiloé which complete the protected waters of Chile.
After some calculations of the tide in Boca Guafo we decided to have a really early start next morning. The tide around Chiloé is 5-8m and the waters east of Chiloé are quite large creating a strong current and turbulent sea. Along Chiloe’s east coast the current run either northerly or southerly depending on where and the state of the tide. If we leave just before slack water in Melinka we would have the current against us for the first five miles, but then gain one to two knots, even partially three, the whole 50nm to Quellón. Easily understood, a wrong timing should give us a significant longer journey, not to mention an uncomfortable trip against a steep current effected sea.
Early bed and an even earlier morning. Two a clock in the morning (night) we pulled the anchor and assisted by radar and a bright full moon we entered our last longer trip in the Canals of Chile. The radar was almost not necessary in the moonlight, but the strong current passing Melinka gave us 30 degrees wrong course, not easy adjusted even in moonlight without radar.
We got a fantastic trip with a breathtaking sunrise over Volcano Corcovado and the mountains east of Golfo de Corcovado. There were practically no waves outside the really current waters along Chiloé and the only, acceptable, downside was that we had to use the motor the whole way. We reached Quellón a few hours before the current turned to south, saving almost 50% time and of course diesel during a very comfortable open sea passage. Quite a difference compared to our previous passage over Gulfo de Penas.
In Quellón we got diesel from a hose directly into our tanks, what a luxury. Up to now we had consumed just over 800 litre diesel, including the 200 litre for heating during 1500nm. Of course we have been sailing when it was possible, but still it is a quite scary figure especially when the surroundings are remote like in the Canals.
Of course it had been possible to wait even longer in the caletas for preferable wind conditions, but we have spent three month and waited sometimes four days in caletas, and don't forget the diesel consumption for heating will increase while waiting.
We thought of carry on the next morning, but to our surprise we discovered Wi-Fi, wireless internet while on anchor 200m offshore in the harbour! This together with the disappearing high pressure, followed by two days of rain, made us stay on anchor for three days. Now we really were back in the civilised world. Quellón is a fishing town with over 12000 inhabitants, numerous of fishing boats and supply ships for the fish farms. A big supermarket and some restaurants completed the picture of a living small town, we are really getting out of nowhere. Only thing missing was a pontoon to moor the dingy to. In the 5m tide it was a little bit messy to get ashore, especially since the rain now was back together with a low.
After three nights waiting for the high pressure we left on the 3:rd of May to be in Castro before our visa expires. The surroundings was now not the barren wild mounting and steep fjords any more, it looked more like some farming with sheep, cows and horses, pretty similar to the sloops of Ireland. We anchored in a pastoral surrounding in Estero Pailad close to an old wooden church where we spend two nights in absolute silent environment, trying to get our brains accepting the difference from what we had been used to down south.
Meeting more than 20 boats in one day, when we where used to meet two in a week! as only one example.
After those two days with nice walks along a little gravel road we felt somewhat acclimated to the "normal" world.
We pulled the anchor around nine to match the tide and motored 30 nm to Marina Quinched, just south of the Seno to Castro and just north of Chonchi. On the way we met Shanty and La Flaneuse whom we met in Puerto Edén and Esteró Atracadero. They where also heading for Marina Quinched so we really had a get together there with barbecue in the nice lodge prepared for the crews convenient. The next day we went together to explore Castro and Chonchi and the wooden churches among other things. They had an early night and left for Valdivia the next morning.

We where now totally focused at our visa and the temporary permission to have the boat in Chile without paying VAT. We went in to Castro to buy bus tickets for Bariloche, Argentina, to go there on Tuesday the 8th of May. There where no bus until Thursday and that was the 10th, the last day of our visa. It seemed a little close, but within the 90 days thanks to 28 days in February.
With a lot of help from Mr Bannister, the owner of the Marina, we send a mail to the custom about the boat, two days before the permission expired, hoping to get an answer when we where to be back from Argentina.
We used the days, waiting for the trip, to clean the boat and other maintenance work that hadn't been done during three month under way, wrote a lot of mail and prepared the next update of our website. In the Marina there was now only one boat with people onboard except us. An Australian/South African couple with their daughter. They had arrived from the north a week before of us, and the daughter had already made contact with the local children and where attending everyday school in the nearby local school. Amazing how fast the youngsters learn to communicate in spite the foreign language!
They left on Wednesday by bus to Valdiva, their port of entry to Chile, to get extension of their visa , only to find out that the best solution was to continue over the border to Argentina to get a new 90 days visa. We left 6 o'clock with a taxi on the 10th to take the bus from Castro to the mainland. As a coincidence, Shanty and La Flaneuse where passing in Canal Chacao just as our ferry crossed the strait!
We arrived to the border five hours later and everybody from the bus had to form a cue to get their stamps out from Chile. Our passports where thoroughly examined and then the lady said that our visa was one day to old! We tried politely to explain that due to the 28 days in February, our 90 days included the 10th of May. She didn't answered but went to a superior and they had a discussion we couldn't follow. She came back and said something about 90 days and stamped our passport and gave them back. We didn't argue as long as we got our stamps!
The Argentina border, 20 miles over the mountain pass where the actual border is, had almost the same procedure, but there we had no problem.
We decided when we arrived to Bariloche to go back to Puerto Montt on Sunday to visit the Aduana, Customs, and to pick up our air tickets to Sweden at Marina Oxxean on Monday before taking the bus back to Castro.
We got a cheap Hostel room in the centre and after a short walk we went to bed, exhausted after the long bus ride and the high altitude, but happy to have, in the last minute, solved our visa problem. The next day after breakfast we joined an excursion to Glacier Negro in the Tronador massive. Perfect weather, clears sky and no wind, to add another Glacier to our "collection". The excursion included three walks, one to the Glacier and two to waterfalls (as if we haven't seen enough water in the Canals!) and returned to Bariloche well after darkness, so even this evening we had no problem to sleep. On Saturday we did the town, shopping and café.
Then we took a local bus 12 miles along the lake to a fantastic Hotel/SPA/Golf club.
We had to wait at the gate, and after a while we where allowed to pass through.
There where three restaurants in the Hotel, one not to far away from our limit, and we had a very pleasant lunch overlooking the magnificent view over a lake and the mountains.
Then the bus back to our last evening in Bariloche. We just had to have some lamb meat, and Argentina is famous for its meat, and unlike in Chile this meat includes lamb. So we spend the late evening, eating lamb for "the next three month".

Sunday morning we started for Purto Montt arriving there in the afternoon, got a cheap Hotel and used the rest of the day to examine the possibilities of the town. We are eventually to leave the boat in one of the Marinas here for several months and one of the bases for decision is of course the nature and services of the town.
Next morning we went to Oxxean Marina and got our air tickets which had been delivered almost a month ago. The visit to the custom became very short, they red our mail requesting a new permission for the boat and answered that we had done it correct, addressed it to our port of entry Puerto Williams/Punta Arenas who will send answer to our Marina in Quinched.
Back in the marina there where only 11 degrees in the boat, but our Refleks stove together with the air heater (Webasto) got it comfortable warm very fast. Do we need to tell you that we slept well and long after these for us very intensive days.

There where no answer from Aduana in Punta Arenas so we mailed a request asking them to respond. Three days later we (Mr Bannister in the marina) called the Aduana in Puerto Arenas only to discover that the man we send mail to where in Puerto Natales since two weeks. Immediately we send copies of our mail to the man in charge and late on Friday he told us by phone that, although we where five days late (they seemed to ignore that we actually had mailed the office two days before the expire date) they will give us a new 90 days permission without any fine for the delay.
Next time we will mail at least a week in advance and check the arrival by phone. Without a Spanish spoken assistance this had really been a nightmare, and it seems that normally this is done by help from a Marina, where the new permission then is sent.
The whole trip to Bariloche didn't cost us more money than the costs involved in an extension of our 90 days visa in Chile, not to mention all discussions and time consuming travelling and waiting at various officials we where spared. No wonder most people solve this problem just by going over the border, and you get new 90 days even if you left Chile only for an hour!
We will now continue our boat maintenance in the marina and explore the different possible marinas in the north, including Valparaiso and decide where to go before we leave this very charming place. The Marina isn't big, just over ten boats, but fills all possible requirements (and more) from visiting boats and crew. The cost is similar to the harbour fee in Chile official harbours 8US$, but her you get a lot of service including shower, laundry, water, electricity, Wi-Fi, access to the Barbecue house and above all this, Multilanguage assistance in all thinkable matters from the very nice and helpful couple that owns the Marina.
We think this is a perfect place to rest and sum up the experience made in the Canals (or the other way around, to get ready to get south into the Canals), and we will stay here at least for another week to get our custom paper and all information about possible Marinas to stay in until we leave Chile for Pacific in the beginning of 2008.

20 maj 2007
Annika & Björn
S/Y Lindisfarne

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