Jan 30 Chilean Fjords

Special "full cruisers" dinner with new friends Jim and Judy from Hawaii

At the Simpson river, known for fly fishing

Waterfall at the nature preserve

Almost all goods come to this remote area by ferry

We are continuing to sail southward through the Chilean fjords.  There are huge mountains and hundreds of islands.  The vegetation is lush and very green and reminds us of the inside passage of Alaska but it is much longer and very remote.  It is at the same latitude as Sitka, Alaska, in the northern hemisphere.  The high temperature today is about 45 degrees with intermitent rain and strong wind, not very nice at all, but the scenery is beautiful.  I thought I had brought some long underwear but tore the cabin apart looking for it and could not find it so I went with panty hose under the jeans, heavy coat, stocking cap and gloves which worked pretty well. 
We anchored at Puerto Chacabuco at about 11 am, this is the first port where we have had to use the tenders to get everyone to shore.  This is always a challenge as most people never read the instructions or listen to the announcements about the procedure for using the tenders, very irritating for the rest of us.  Hats off to the crew that have to practically carry some of the passengers off and on the tenders.  This tiny port is the gateway to Chile's part of Patagonia.  We visited the nearby town of Aysen and a Nature preserve.  The snow coverd peaks of the Andes make for some great vistas when they can be seen over the lush green valleys.