Chile travel blog by Mark Berman -
October 2017
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I was not in Pucon at peak time for all its adventure activities, it was early October and was raining most of the time during my 3 day stay. I got to know
a few of the restaurants, tasted the chocolates in the shops, did a tour of the area and enjoyed bathing in one of the thermal hot springs. This was the
beginning of what would be a 6 week journey southward into the Patagonia. I had spent 1 night in Temuco before arriving in Pucon by bus (1hr 45mins). The
weather did affect this part of the trip at times but it became better as I travelled along! Pucon Activities
In the summer months the crowds come to Pucon for rafting, horse riding, canopying,
canyoning and trekking to the base of the volcano or up to the top. The lake offers sailing and all other watersports. Usually there is a clear view of
the Villarrica volcano from the streets in Pucon but during my stay was completely obscured by cloud. I did a tour which they call the 'Tour of the Zone',
about my only option without spending too much money with the risk of bad weather. We visited a bridge to see the river where they do the rafting, a place
with a few small waterfalls called Ojos del Caburgua, a beach called Playa Blanca and to the thermal springs for 2hrs at the end of the tour. It wasn't
very mind-blowing this tour to be honest, it was kind-of disappointing and not particularly interesting. 2hrs at a hot thermal pool is far too much, you
only need an hour. There are many thermal springs in the area, 8-9. They are not far from Pucon and you can get to them on local buses. If you are in Pucon
in the middle of winter, there is skiing and snow activities to enjoy!
Chocolates and Cakes at Cafe de la P
Chocolates and German deserts are a big delight in Pucon! I stopped in at
Cafe de la P which was the
first cafe in Pucon and opened in 1997. The variety of chocolates is huge! Chocolate Rama Bitter, dried fruit and almond, milk chocolate with dried fruit
and orange candy, chocolate with coco filling, mint filling, pistachio filling, with raisins, caramelo filling, blueberry filling, moka filling, raspberry
truffles, with walnuts, white chocolates, raspberry filling and strawberry truffles! Plus there's a beautiful selection of cakes and yummy deserts with
rasberries and blueberries, pecan pie, pastries, biscuits and the black chocolate Volcano cupcake! Cafe de la P, the place for
chocolate is located at O'Higgins 212.
3hrs to Valdivia
From Pucon I headed 3hrs by bus southwest to
Valdivia on the coast, less rain here!
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Delicate chocolate cakes are a delight to the taste buds at Cafe de la P in Pucon.
Coco and mint filled chocolates made by Cafe de la P in Pucon, delicious!
Chocolate Relleno de Naranja, orange filled chocolates at Cafe de la P in Pucon.
Early October and it is winter at Playa Blanca at Lake Caburgua in Pucon, too cold to swim!
