My verdict: From what everyone told me this is something unbelievably cool.

Mountain Biking
When I arrived in Pucon, fresh from the night bus from hell, all I wanted to do was buy a bottle or two of wine and lay in the sun with my book. However, my girlfriend, who is not normally the most active of people and often requires heavy prompting to make the long track from the couch to the fridge, decided that I was looking decidedly fatter than normal and that I badly needed some exercise which didn't involve lifting glasses of wine to my lips.

She marched me to the first bike hire place (there must be about a dozen on the main street alone) and rented two cool looking mountain bikes for the afternoon. After parting with about US$5 each the friendly owner gave us a map suggesting a 'nice gentle ride perfectly suitable for lardasses' and off we went. 45kms later I understood why he was laughing as we peddled off.

Although I used to bike around London regularly, I had never done any off ride biking. Despite being Dutch, my girlfriend, who nearly became ex-girlfriend and persoa non grata around about the 30km mark, had never ridden a mountain bike so perhaps we are not the best people to write subjectively about this. However, our considered opinion of the biking was "wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, this is cooooooooooooool".

We took a circular route heading south out of town, past the small airfield and then turned left onto a dirt track which had an ominous sign 'bikes and 4x4s only'. From this point it was a juddering shaking white knuckle ride of about 20kms to the beautiful Ojos del Caburgua.

By the time we arrived there, panting, covered in dust and terribly sunburnt and sweaty we were looking forward to spending a few quiet moments swimming naked in the unbelievably azure waters. However, not only was the water staggeringly cold (I think it was glacial water) but no sooner had I whipped off my shirt than a coach load of tourists turned up (this often happens to me - once in Japan I was sitting in my boxers on top of a mountain after a long and arduous climb when a party of Japanese school girls turned up).

The ride back to town from the falls would have been a simple 5km off-road and then a gentle 20km on tarmac if Saskia hadn't decided to take us on a mystery adventure tour to some god-forsaken beach another 12 km up the road - the emphasis on 'up'. However, the beach had two things in its favor - cold water and semi naked Chilean girls.

My verdict: One of the coolest things I have ever done. Although I sweated and swore for the whole day and couldn't walk the next day it was worth all the pain for the stunning scenery. Chile is simply an incredibly beautiful country and really should be on the top of every traveler's wish list.

River Rafting
My friends and I have a New Year's Dangerous Sport Club which started, surprisingly enough, one new year's day in Africa. Club rules say that no matter where we are in the world each new year's day we have to partake in something dangerous.

One especially memorably new year we went white water boogie-boarding on Grade 5 rapids. The guide, I distinctly remember, had a sadistic nature and just as we floated off down the mighty Zambezi called out after us, "'hold on to your board....or die!" Although it wasn't new year, which for the record I spend on the Straights of Magellan, I was keen to get back in the water and chance my arm again.

There are two main options, a fun filled adrenaline type trip (about US$21 - good value eh?) in which the tourist company promised "Once on the river you will instantly experience the full flowing effects of the class 4 & 5 rapids along with the booming surround sound of the rushing waters with waves crashing against each other. Here you will need to work hard with the rowing to pass over the torrents. After approximately 1½ hours of excitement you will reach the end of the descent where you will be given some refreshment before heading back to Pucon."

The second option is a bit more mellow and suitable for entertaining your granny (US$8). "Once on the river you will experience the full flowing effects of the raft passing over class 3 rapids along with the surround sound of the rushing waters with waves crashing against each other. After approximately 1½ hours of excitement you will reach the end of the descent where you will be given some refreshment before heading back to Pucon."

My verdict: At these prices who can resist spending the day messing about on the river and coming home feeling like you have spent a day in a washing machine. Excellent!

Hot Pools
After all this exercise most people head off to one of Pucon's hotsprings (I would have gone if I had been able to walk after the great mountain biking adventure). Almost everyone who went there said it was good value and came back feeling radiant and ready for the next challenge. The general idea was to take sufficient wine with you to get a small country drunk, lay in the pools and brag about your volcano climbing skills. Almost all the tour companies run this trip for a few dollars.

My verdict: most people spoke very highly of this trip, especially if they had been travelling long and hard for a few months. Recommended.

Other Activities
The above is just a selection of the many affordable possibilities for activities. There are many other cool things to do such as sky diving, horse riding, walking, trekking, skiing etc, etc all organized by the local travel agencies.  

Questions?
If you want more information about this area you can email the author or check out our South America Insiders page.