I set my alarm for the wrong time and almost missed the bus to Pucon! The bus ride is supposedly 4 hours, but most of that time is spent crossing the border. I did manage to get all my climbing food across into Chile.
The hardest part of the day was driving past el Volcan Lanin. It is the highest point in the area and straddles the border between Argentina and Chile. It is so large at 3776 meters, that it occupied much of the landscape during the drive. Hence, my eyes were peeled on the window. It is generally done as a 2-day climb because it is hard to get there early enough to do it in one as it is over 8000' of elevation gain. Nonetheless, because it is there, I must go back and climb it.
Once the bus crossed the border and descended to the Chilean side, things were much lusher and greener. It has a completely different look and feel than the rain-shadowed eastern side. The bus driver was kind enough to drop me off at the base of Tracy's road which is 20 min from Pucon. Problem was that the bus was one hour late, hence Tracy wasn't there to drive me the 4km up the gravel road. After waiting 5 min, I decided to start hoofing it. It was tricky wheeling my luggage over the rocky road, but I chocked it up to a training opportunity. I was about to change into shorts and hide my duffel in the bushes when Lance, Tracy's husband showed up.
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