The main reason I took my first cruise was to be able to see things you can’t see by land, primarily Antarctica, but also the coast of South America, mainly Chile. This is home to some spectacular scenery, not easily accessible other than from the water.
Our starting point of San Antonio, 115km from Santiago, had no natural beauty but some impressive man-made equipment, befitting it being the largest port on the west coast of South America. There wasn’t much to see as we headed south down the coast though.
The scenery really kicked in from Puerto Montt heading south to Castro, with the snow capped Osorno and Calbuco volcanoes.
The sunset was pretty impressive. By adjusting the contrast on these photos of the clouds slightly they remind me of Jupiter, wonderful colours. As was the jet stream of a plane passing overhead.
The combination of volcanoes and sunsets continued further south cruising from Castro to Puerto Chacabuco, passing Corcovado Volcano and Mt Melimoyu, after which we entered the Chilean fjords which I’ll cover separately.
Both stunning and serene