Liquid sunshine, mud and the 100K lunch …

This morning we woke up to rain pelting our windows and whitecaps on the lake. That said, we headed to the community of Lianquihue to meet up with Fuenacian Legado Chile (FLC), a Chilean NGO focusing on wetland restoration in northern Patagonia. FLC’s field scientist Andres distributed gloves along with horror flick implements to attack the evasive species around newly planted native trees. Fun times … the consistent rain and muddy terrain had us slipping and sliding as we hacked away at the persistent growth. Lynn was a happy camper once she got hold of the industrial-size clippers to cut away vines wrapped around a mature native tree. Notice our new friend Beatriz, a recently retired university biology professor from Sao Paulo, Brazil in the squeaky clean white rain jacket in the background of one of the photos. Quick to smile and join in the laughter I’m determined to plant a muddy glove print on her back before trip’s end 😂

After finishing up the morning wetland project we headed to Frutillar, a lakeside town of German heritage sitting on the black sand shores of Lake Llanquihue. There we joined Chef Conellia in her home for an interactive culinary experience to learn about the regional cuisine. She put us to work gathering produce from her garden, then prepping in her kitchen while appreciating the warmth coming from her traditional wood burning oven. Conellia’s restaurant, Espantaparjaros (Scarecrow), sources all ingredients within 100 kilometers. We enjoyed a simple, but tasty meal of garden greens, potatoes gratin and trout from Lake Llanquihue. And of course, a Chilean Carmenere from the local wine region.