FUTALEUFU DAY BY DAY ITINERARY
This unique multi-lodge river journey immerses you in one of the world’s most stunning river landscapes. With a small group (just 16 guests and a 3:1 guest-to-guide ratio), cozy lodge stays, and chef-prepared meals, this adventure is suitable for anyone with a spirit for adventure—regardless of experience level.”
DAY 1: LEAVE HOME COUNTRY
Evening flight from the U.S. to Santiago, Chile. (Flights from the U.S. are generally in the evening.)
DAY 2: SANTIAGO / PUERTO MONTT / PUERTO VARAS
Upon arriving in Santiago this morning, you will transfer to a flight to Puerto Montt. When you land, you take a taxi to the Wyndham Puerto Varas Pettra Hotel in the town of Puerto Varas, where a room will be waiting in your name. Located on the shores of Lago Llanquihue, with the snow-capped, Mount Fuji-like Volcano Osorno rising directly from the deep blue water, Puerto Varas is one of the most beautiful towns in South America. The afternoon is free to explore the town. In the early evening, we meet our Earth River guide, Maria, in the hotel lobby and go out for a welcome dinner.
DAY 3: PUERTO VARAS / RIO FUTALEUFU / LONCONAO COTTAGES
This morning, Maria escorts us to the Chaitén flight. The short flight is spectacular as we follow the rugged Northern Patagonia coastline. A two-hour bus ride past roaring turquoise rivers, hanging glaciers, and deep blue lakes takes us to Futaleufú. After a safety talk, we run a series of marvelous Class IV rapids. Two safety catarafts escort us down the river. We spend the evening in wonderful cottages on the shore of Lago Lonconao. Each cottage has two large bedrooms, a spacious great room, and a deck with chairs overlooking the clear lake and snow-capped peaks. Lake activities include kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding, swimming, and fishing.
Note: Meals at Lonconao Cottages are prepared by the guides.
DAY 4: LONCONAO COTTAGES / INFLATABLE KAYAKING RIO ESPOLON / LONCONAO COTTAGES
A four mile mountain bike ride this morning, along the Río Espolón, takes us to our inflatable kayak put-in. After an introductory lesson, we kayak through wonderful Class II–III rapids. (Note: Guests who prefer not to use individual kayaks have the option of paddling in a small, guided raft.) Overnight at Lonconao Cottages.
DAY 5: LONCONAO COTTAGES / FUTALEUFU RAFTING / LONCONAO COTTAGES
Our day is spent running the wonderful Class IV rapids in the remote upper Futaleufú Canyon. Lunch is at Zeta Rapid, a dramatic Z-shaped flume cut into solid granite. There is an optional 12- to 40-foot-high cliff jump into the aerated blue pool below the rapid. Night is at the locanao Cabins.
DAY 6: LONCONAO COTTAGES / RIO AZUL INFLATABLE KAYAKING / PEUMA LODGE
This morning, we ride mountain bikes along a narrow dirt road, passing beautiful farms and dense forests, to our inflatable kayak launch on the turquoise Rio Azul. The kayaking experience we gained on the Rio Espolón has prepared us for the Azul’s more challenging Class III+ rapids. The views along the Azul—of snow-capped peaks rising above the brilliant turquoise water—are stunning, making it one of the most beautiful Class III beginner inflatable kayak runs in the world. (Small guided rafts are also available). We spend the night at the Peuma Eco-Lodge. Situated in a hidden valley ringed by mountains on all sides, the view from the dining room, deck, and wooden hot tub—of Teton-like spires rising 6,000 feet above the forest floor—is the kind of view people imagine when they think of Patagonia. Each of Peuma’s beautifully appointed cabins is linked to the main great room and dining facility by boardwalks.
DAY 7: PEUMA LODGE / FUTALEUFU RAFTING / RIO BLANCO CANYONING / PEUMA LODGE
Swift water and exciting rapids this morning carry us down to the confluence with the Rio Blanco slot canyon, where we embark on a remarkable journey through this hidden cleft in the Patagonian Andes. Hiking, climbing, and swimming are the only ways to traverse this incredible natural labyrinth of white boulders, clear azure pools, and stunning waterfalls. After exiting the canyon, we board the rafts and navigate some of the biggest rapids on the trip including Terminador and Himalayas. (A hiking trail is available for those preferring not to run terminator.)
Evening – Peuma Lodge
DAY 8: PEUMA LODGE / LAGO OBSESSION HIKE / STAND UP PADDLE BOARDING
After brerakfast we hike frrom the lodge through an enchanted forest of ancient hardwood trees and past impressive waterfalls to Lago Obsession. With its dramatic landscape of sculptured stone, snow and ice, this miniature, hanging blue lake is a masterwork of nature’s artistry and a rarely visited scenic highlight of Patagonia. The views in every direction from kayaks and stand-up paddle boards are astounding. Cut by the glacier, the intimate 10-acre body of water is like a giant bottomless swimming pool. A dramatic 2,500 vertical foot ice-enshrouded granite tooth rises from the lake.
NOTE: Optional day’s activity: For those not wishing to make the strenuous hike to Obsession Lake, there is a less strenuous option—an easier walk into the old-growth forest.
DAY 9: PEUMA LODGE / RIO FUTALEUFU RAFTING / YELCHO LODGE
Today, we raft a dozen wonderful rapids. After the final rapid, the canyon reveals some of its most impressive scenery, offering grand vistas of towering mountains and glaciers rising from the teal colored water. In the afternoon, we board the bus for the one-hour trip to Yelcho Lodge. Framed in a bowl of snow-capped mountains, the hand-built wooden lodge rests within thousands of wild acres on the edge of Yelcho Lake—the body of water into which the Futaleufú flows. If time allows, there is an opportunity to hike to a spot where a glacier vent of deep blue ice meets the rainforest. We spend the night in comfortable cabins, and in the evening have our farewell dinner.
DAY 10: YELCHO LODGE / CHAITEN / PUERTO MONTT / SANTIAGO
This morning, a one-hour drive takes us to the Chaitén Airport, where we board the flight back to Puerto Montt. There, we meet María, who transfers people to Puerto Varas for shopping and lunch (on their own). Later in the afternoon, individuals transfer by taxi to the airport to catch the domestic flight to Santiago, followed by their international flight home.
DAY 11: HOME
After an overnight flight, you arrive back home.