Volcan Rucapillan

 

Once I was feeling better we made a reservation for 3 nights at a bungalow on the lake in Villarica where'd visited on the last day of tour.

The plan was to make short day trips around the area.  The first place we headed for was Volcan Rucapillan in Villarica National Park.

The national park website says to pay your entrance fee online but when we got to the entrance they had electronic ticket machines you could use.

We took a trail right from the entrance called Sendero Los Pioneros 

that went up a Lava flow from the volcano.

There were lots of spring flowers blooming:

A yellow orchid

Berberis trigona

A hummingbird bush:

Chilean firebush (Embothrium coccineum)

We read that the volcano last erupted in 2015, but this clearly was a much earlier Lava flow.

 

We wandered up the Lava for a while but it was pretty clear that 

all the bird activity was in the forest on either side of the flow.

Luckily, a new trail had been cut through the forest so we followed that up further.

Thankfully, as it was getting pretty hot in the sun.

We didn't see any new birds today but we were pleased that all the birds we saw and many of the birds we heard we were able to identify.

White-throated treerunner

So cute it's worth a second photo.

We also saw thorn-tailed rayadito, chimango caracara, white-crested elaenia, austral thrush and heard  the southern house wren and the black-throated huet-huet and the chucao tapaculo.

We both were getting fairly tired so we turned around back towards our car.

From then we drove up to the ski area

Sleds for rent near the ski area

But there wasn't much to see or do up there.

Not even any picnicking!

No fun allowed Chilean style: sign on the ski lodge patio.

The ski lodge and lifts were closed but people were hiking up and skiing down.

And people were returning from guided hikes up to the top of the volcano.

Ski lodge parking lot with returning hikers and a view of Lago Villarica below

Beware though. To quote our Rough Guide to Chile:  we do not recommend (tour operators) Trancura or Politur due to their record of fatalities on the mountain . . . Ahem.