At Alwoplast, Valdivia

39 50.954'S, 73 19.064'W

Early this morning, 1:15 am, we dropped anchor at Isla Mancera, inside the bay by the entrance of the river leading to Valdivia. We were lucky that the moon was full, it was a clear night and the electronic charts, the radar and the visuals agreed so we were able to safely anchor. After a shower and a bite to eat we crashed and got some sleep.

This morning it was very foggy and we could barely see the island which was less than a mile away. Don and Rita of SV Limbo were coming in Braille. The fog started to lift and we raised anchor and followed the channel markers up river 4 miles to the Alwoplast marina. I had connected them via email and they said that they would be closed on Sunday but no worry, just find a place on the dock and tie up.

So we did.

Almost immediately a boat from the Chilean Armada arrives with two sailors, a man and a woman. We had called the Armada prior to coming up the river so they knew we were here. They asked us abut checking in, where we had been and offered to give us a ride to the office in Valdivia, another 6 miles up river. Cool. When we get to Valdivia, they lead us to the office, the one sailor takes off his hat and goes around to the Port Captain's desk and proceeds to check us in. Way cool.

Afterwards we walk around town. There is a band playing at the waterfront park by the port captain's office. People are strolling along the waterfront. We find a small restaurant by the plaza. There is a strong German influence in Valdivia. Rich's hamburger includes sauerkraut and beer is one of the popular drinks. After lunch we check out one of the grocery stores, a shopping mall and then catch the bus back to the marina. This was a little tricky as we had no idea what the marina entrance from the road looked like as we had only been on the dock. No problem, the bus driver stopped and let us out.

After returning to the boat we enjoyed some CDA drinks with Don and Rita. Tomorrow we will plan more exploring.

Windarra is safe and sound. We survived another passage.

Cheers.

Sent from SV Windarra iPad