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Travel Story: Hitchhiking Chiloé island in Chile (Part II)

Travel Story: Hitchhiking Chiloé island in Chile (Part II)

August 2018 · 9 min read · Los Lagos Region

Hooray you sexy readers! How are you? Check my adventures in Chiloé island in Chile - this is part II.


Giving continuation to our previous post, I'd like to take to you Dalcahue in Chiloé island - Chile. This hitchhiking adventure started on a post released many moons ago. Keep in mind that not reading the previous posts doesn't influence the understanding of this story, however, it does contain explanations about the island of Chiloé and how to get there.

If you'd like to see how I got to Chiloé, check out below.

Travel Story: 10 Hours Boat Trip to Chiloé - Chile 

If you'd like to read the previous part of this hitchhiking adventure, below is the link.

Travel Story: Hitchhiking Chiloé island in Chile (Part I)

On part one you read about my arrival in Chiloé and how my friends and I managed to get to Castro, the capital. After sleeping by the road and eating blackberries like a maniac I had to say goodbye to Lois and Juliet; my financial situation couldn't afford staying in a big city, where I wouldn't be able to sleep anywhere for free. So, I got on the road again trying to scape to a more peaceful location. Enjoy part II.


Click any of the images to enlarge!

Obs.: This story is part of a bigger journey that I plan to tell you one day. Since it would be incredibly long I've decided to release parts of it, featuring the most crazy bits. It'll not follow an order of events, but I'll put it in a way that you can read as parts of a book. Hope you enjoy.


This happened when I was hitchhiking Argentina and Chile in summer 2017. Carrying only the essentials and little money for the journey. I had left Buenos Aires in early January with the main goal to reach Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the Americas. Plan was plain an simple: Work if needed, camp, hitchhike all the way, have loads of fun and let my desire guide the way.

February 16th, 2017. After spending three hours with my thumb up, I could barely feel or move my arm. But I made it. I  smoothly got to Dalcahue with a nice couple called Hebert and Marcela. Just to ilustrate the generosity of the Chileans; their house was a couple kilometers before Dalcahue's downtown, but they made sure to drop me there, sparing me quite a long walk. Lovely.

This is the beauty of travelling without knowing what to expect, nor having plans at all; sometimes  you find yourself in a completely new place where you are deeply lost, yet you feel like everything is under control. You have passed through this before and the fear of not knowing what to do no longer causes anxiety. This is freedom.

It must have been late afternoon when I got to Dalcahue, the sun could not be seen and that annoying drizzle was going on and off. All my focus was into finding a place to sleep, maybe a camping where I could offer services for the night, or a park. Where should I look for? Where should I go? I had no idea, but somehow I decided to take a walk and look around.


Nossa Senhora da Dolours church.

Sometimes I believe a positive mind attracts positive acts of kindness, that may be true somehow. I was wandering around near a handicrafts market - one of those where people generally sell hippie style things and souvenirs - when I heard someone talking to me. It was a girl more or less my age with a kid, she was organizing all her stuff inside her wodden stand, apparently preparing to go home.

     - Hey, looking for a place to sleep? - I heard.

     - Yo? Yeah... kinda... is there a camping or something? - I asked.

     - There's one, they'll charge you 5.000 pesos more or less... - She said.

     - Ohh, I see... problem is that I'm travelling without any money, so... - I explained.

     - No money? What will you do then? - She asked.

Pro tip: Never, ever, tell your plans to a stranger, no matter who he is. Even if you plan to sleep on a park bench, don't tell! 

     - If I can't find anything I'll possibly walk to the city outskirts or something... - I said.

     - Well... you seem legit... if you want you can sleep inside my stand, you'll secure it until I come back tomorrow so anyone else gets it. - She proposed.

It sounded strange sleeping inside a hippie wodden stand in the middle of the city with just a net dividing me from the street. But it was an option, and it was protected from the rain... I pondered about that offer.

     - Sounds cool, is it safe? - I asked.

     - Oh yeah, nothing happens in this city, you'll be all right I'm sure... - She said.

She grabbed her stuff, her kid and showed me how to attach the net with some rusty nails.

     - That's it, you just crawl inside, if anyone asks what you are doing tell that Maria anthorized you. I'll be back tomorrow. Take care hermano! - She said.

In just a couple minutes walking on the streets of Dalcahue I managed to find a protected place to sleep. It was humid, I could see people passing by on the street, it was stinky, but hey! It was protected from the rain. Amazing!

That day I wrote on my diary.

Maria lended her "stand" so I can sleep inside. This is where she sells her handicrafts in a fair near the Church. It's openned to the street. I accepted the offer because soon it'll be night. Tomorrow I'll hop islands to Quinchao. Goodnight.

I took this picture before going to bed.

Before going to sleep, just for precaution, I left a knife near me. I also turned off my flashlight and kept an eye open. I could hear people passing by during the night, but they'd never imagine someone was in there. I could hear some folks loudly talking in front of the Church, possibly hanging around and drinking. It all seemed normal to me. It must have been past late at night or dawn when I woke up.

     - *Nee Naw - Nee Naw - Nee Naw....* - A police car passing on the distance.

I woke up suddenly. I could hear steps of people inside the other stands, or was it a dog? I could see the police car lights reflecting inside the stand. Felt like someone was rubbing agains the wood on the other stand. Fuck, what was it.

     - Quiet.... remain quiet! - I thought.

Slowly I openned my sleeping bag, trying not to make noises with the zipper, I wanted to grab my knife. The police cars were driving all over the place, possibly three. The folks drinking could no longer be heard. I was now fully awake, trying to understand who the fuck was inside the other stand. I remained like that for the next hour or so, until the police cars were gone. Breath in, breath out. I was feeling really tired.

     - Well... if they are in there, they won't notice me... I'll simply sleep.. - I thought.

Gladly I could catch a few solid hours of sleep until it was time to move my skeleton again. I had no idea what time Maria would come back, so I'd better be ready before that. Afterall, I had plans for the day, I wanted to explore the nearby islands.

February 17th, 2017. Rain, more rain. What is wrong with Chiloé, I had spent the last 3 to 4 days without shower. I was already with a smell of fish on my nose, if things continued like that I'd turn into stinky hippie mode, with all that humidity. I got up super tired on my small lended 'stand', where I slept on the floor. To be honest, my night was super cozy inside my winter sleeping bag, besides the need to keep the watch the whole night.

I woke up before anyone else; no signs of the other handcrafters, no sign of Maria, nor the police and surprisingly, I could see no invaders sleeping by my side once light hit my spot. Lucky me.

Although I wanted to start my island exploration I really wanted to thank Maria and give back her stand, to maintain my word of securing it until she came back. I waited...while waiting for her I left my backpacks hidden in there and went for a walk to take some pictures.


Me, myself and I.

Fishing boats in Dalcahue.

During my small exploration time I found the source for the stinky fish smell that was already on my nose since I arrived. I thought it was me, but it was just some nearby sea food industry.

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Smelly stuff.

I used the spair time to talk to some locals and ask instructions on how to catch the boats to the other islands. Still... nothing. of Maria. There's no time to lose when you are travelling, so I dressed my backpacks and left. I wanted to explore the smaller island called Quinchao, but this will be featured on another post.

To be continued...


This story is to be continued! On the next episode you'll see how I hoped islands on free ferries, a really cool thing to do if you are in Chiloé.

If you liked this post, please, consider leaving your upvote for a hot coffee.

~Love ya all,


Disclaimer:  The author of this post is a convict broke backpacker, who has travelled more than 10.000 km hitchhiking. Following him may cause severe problems of wanderlust and inquietud. You've been warned.


I'm Arthur. I blog about Adventure Stories, Brazil, Travel, Camping & Life Experiences.

Follow me to stay tuned for more craziness and tips.

You may also want to read:

Travel Story: Hitchhiking Chiloé island in Chile (Part I)

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