Pronounced Chil-o-way, the first thing we figured out is this island’s name is best sung to Rusted Root’s Send Me on My Chilo-Way or the Enya song Sail Away Chilo-Way Chilo-Way. Can’t get those two songs out of our heads!

Chiloé is an isolated archipelago just off of mainland Chile with the only access being by boat. We took the easiest route in, a bus from the mainland which has to plop down on a ferry for 30 minutes to get onto Chiloé. We booked 2 nights in a town on the North end of the main island, called Ancud, and also 3 nights further into the heart of the main island in a town called Castro.

Chiloé’s landscape is incredibly serene with seemingly endless great views of rolling hills covered with farms or forest complimented by plentiful and dramatic ocean and bay views. The island is dominated by farms and forests, but villages and towns are scattered throughout, most of which aren’t much more than a main street and a church. What struck us the most was how incredibly friendly everyone was (especially in the smaller towns; it was rare we would walk by anyone who didn’t say hello to us in passing), and how chill their pace of life was. The archipelago has managed to resist becoming as Westernized as mainland Chile, providing a unique insight into life before shopping centers, big box stores and restaurant chains (although the future is creeping in, by way of big grocery stores that will compete with local farmers markets and a controversial huge shopping center under construction right off of Castro’s main thoroughfare). There are lots of options for local, traditional Chilote food, like Curanto (a full meal of meats, seafood and veggies slow-cooked in the ground covered by giant green leaves) and fresh fish arriving straight off the pier onto your plate. Most local stores had irregular hours and were shut down on Sundays for family time and other activities deemed more important than making an extra buck or two. This isn’t a completely foreign concept to us in the US, but the way it is culturally embedded and embraced in Chiloé is something to admire. Lindsey and I, we’d like to find ways to incorporate some of this mindset into our own lives once we’re back into the States.

Highlights…

• Had great weather on an island known for 300+ days of rain a year, Chiloé is like the anti-Denver.
• We got mistaken for locals twice! Two different people asked is for directions while we were walking around in small towns.
• Every bus trip was a beautiful, scenic country drive.
• Day trip from Ancud seeing some real life penguins on a close offshore island. No snow or ice involved; they were on a small, lush isolated island. But the real highlight here was the bird, or team of birds, that managed to poop on me, Lindsey and the guy sitting in front of us on the boat. It was one magic bird crap.  And, our boat was called The Titanic. Good thing we made it back to shore!
• In Castro, we went to a few tourist companies, took detailed notes about their tours, and then took ourselves on 2 days worth of excursions via local buses to see all of the same sites.
• Self-guided day trip tour to all wood, Unesco protected churches on the main island and on Quinchao, a little island that’s a part of the archipelago (rural bus/ferry combo).
• On a small bus, on a ferry, we shattered some middle school girls’ dreams of going to Canada (note they couldn’t tell us a specific city), when we explained to them Justin Beiber actually lives in Los Angeles. Side note, we found their daily normal commute from a Catholic school on a smaller island back to the big island by bus and ferry quite unique.
• Day trip from Castro to the Parque Nacional Chiloé for a very misty, yet pretty hike to the ocean and through forested sand dunes.
• Going to a small, Chilean, family run circus in a small town we came across on the rural bus route. Lindsey has a fascination with circus life, and this ramshackle circus, complete with big top red and yellow tent, did not disappoint. There were even 2 hula hoop acts!

We took a ton of pics over our 5 days, in 2 cities, in Chiloé.  It was really difficult to capture the great small town vibe we felt on the island.  Below are a handful of our favorites.  Look out for the penguins!  All of our Chiloé pics can be seen on Flickr, here.