by Allan Taylor

Created on: May 12, 2008   Last Updated: June 05, 2011

Island of Chiloé, Chile

1000 kilometers south of Chile’s capital, Santiago, lies the fascinating island of Chiloé. Conveniently for tourists it can be an interesting route for going from the Chilean Lake District to the southern Fiordland region.

Ancud, the fishing village on the north coast, is connected to the mainland by frequent car ferries, called transbordadores, used to cross the sea gap of Canal Chacao, a 20 minute trip.

At Ancud, two jetties stretch seaward, each lined with fishing boats having decks a clutter with ropes and nets. A procession of little fishing boats heads for the high wharf next to a big fish-processing shed. The decks are piled high with bags of shellfish - clams and mussels, sea urchins and kelp. Chileans use a kelp, called "cochayuyo" in cookery.

A crane lifts the bags off the boats. They are weighed and some are loaded onto a truck to be taken to Puerto Montt on the mainland. In the processing shed are smiling, brown-faced, black-haired women baiting hooks on long-lines. Boys crack open clams and eat them raw. An old sailor trudges up the hill carrying two enormous conger eels with tails dragging in the dust.

Fishing and Isla Grande de Chiloé go together. The coastline is geared to fishing, and now aquaculture, especially salmon, mussel and oyster farming. The region is the salmon farming capital of the world.

Up the hill from the port a gravel road leads to a promontory and the old Spanish fortress of San Antonio, with its eight cannon facing the harbor. Spain took possession of Chiloé in 1567 and remained in control until their defeat in 1826 with the War of Independence.

Some 90 kilometers south of Ancud is the town of Castro, population 30,000, located on a promontory above a sheltered estuary on the east coast. In summer, both Castro and Ancud attract many tourists from Chile and Argentina. Skorpio cruise ships stop here briefly for passengers to buy handicrafts and mementos.

Castro is famous for its gaudy cathedral which is painted salmon pink with mauve trim!  It dominates one corner of the Plaza de Armas. It frequently appears on picture postcards. Built in 1906, the Iglesia San Francisco is a dazzling sight. It is wooden with corrugated iron cladding. The two spires lean back about 5 degrees, like the leaning tower of Pisa! In the plaza amidst neat gardens is a matching purple Oblesco and a few cannon left by the Spanish.

Castro is the tourist center of the island having travel agents

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