On Halloween we ventured away from Pucon to Puzones Hot Springs, a series of pools with temps between 95 and 105 F right along a class IV river. Thankfully there are no nudists howling at the moon with axe in hand here.
In the hottest of pools I met Jerry Laker, an ecologist who moved to Pucon from Scottland to do conservation work, in particular to work with the farmers to curb the puma shootings. The real problem, Jerry says, is the stray dogs. ¨I´d shoot the lot of them.¨
Turns out Jerry worked in Cochrane, where I´ll be working, with the same crew at Conservacion Patagonica. In fact, he knows the very people I have been emailing to set my volunteer project up. He met his wife Piaa there as well, who has since started a school in Pucon. ¨It´s the most beautiful land you will ever know,¨ says Jerry. The animals don´t see humans as a threat like they do everywhere else, and will let you get close, even touch them at times (pic of huemel above).
Jerry instructed me to have Christian show me the huemel. ¨He´s got a special spot. Tell him to take you there.¨ And so I will.
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