Here's a story told in ash: a person came out to walk their dog along a track by the side of a volcano - an undulating, three-mile route defined by bamboo and untidy bushes and trees. To their left, the mighty Osorno volcano stood tall and intimidating beneath a high Chilean sky. The dog wasn't on a lead and presumably before the owner could react - it ran off. It had caught the scent of a pudu (one of the world's smallest deer species), which it followed to a clearing. The dog found tracks, stuck its nose to the ground, and tried to work out where its quarry had gone. Eventually, the owner caught up, retrieved their pet, and, hopefully, got it under better control. The unharmed pudu's tracks disappeared into the bushes.
Guide Marcelo Campos tells me this story while looking at imprints in the granular, grey earth. His forensic analysis is possible thanks to an accumulation of detritus, not from the nearby Osorno Volcano, but Calbuco, around 10 miles away, which blew its top in 2015. Here in the heart of Chile's Lake District, it helps to know which eruption from which volcano is responsible for the landscape in front of you - and which is likely to erupt next.
Media photographs of that particular eruption are spectacular. It may have gone off with the force of a nuclear bomb, generating its own electrical storms as it spewed volcanic matter into the sky, but there's something elemental and even beautiful captured in the shots. The aftermath is decidedly less photogenic. As I follow Marcelo along the path, he stops to pluck some ripe murta berries and shows me some photos of Calbuco's immediate aftermath. In them, ash covers every surface, knee-deep in places.
Denne historien er fra July/August 2022-utgaven av National Geographic Traveller (UK).
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Denne historien er fra July/August 2022-utgaven av National Geographic Traveller (UK).
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
DIRECTORY
Lush Paul Valley, located at the foot of the COVA crater, is surrounded by rocky peaks, constituting one of the most spectacular landscapes of the island of Santo Antão.
CLIMBING KILIMANJARO
To summit Kilimanjaro is an expedition of a lifetime. Whether you're a seasoned mountaineer or a first-timer, there are key questions to consider before tackling the Tanzanian peak.
SEARCHING FOR BIGFOOT
TO VISIT OREGON IS TO EMBRACE THE ELEMENTAL POSSIBILITY OF BIGFOOT, THE HAIRY, HUMAN-LIKE MYTHICAL CREATURE. THE PROSPECT AND THRILL OF THE CHASE MAKES THE AREA'S THICK FORESTS, GURGLING CREEKS AND SCENIC HIKING TRAILS A TRUE WALK ON THE WILD SIDE.
FOR THE BIRDS
A visit to the Scottish Highlands offers one of the best bird- and wildlife-watching experiences in the UK, with the promise of rare encounters with unique species.
ON THE WATER
From swimming to standup paddleboarding, boating to biking, here's how to have the ultimate adventure on and around six of world's most beautiful lakes.
HOW I GOT THE SHOT
PHOTOGRAPHER MATT DUTILE ON SNAPPING THE FROZEN CONTINENT'S CHARISMATIC WILDLIFE FOR OUR MAY ISSUE
THE EVOLVING GAP YEAR
FROM ENHANCING A CV TO BENEFITTING A LOCAL COMMUNITY OR TRAVELLING WITH PURPOSE, THE MOTIVES FOR STUDENTS TO TAKE A GAP YEAR ARE INCREASINGLY NUANCED.
VALLETTA
In Malta’s harbour-framed capital, a rich and evolving art scene unfolds among honeyed baroque facades, echoing the global influences that have shaped the city over the centuries
A timeless city
Wander through artistic alleyways and along modern beachfronts in South Korea’s second city — a place where tradition and innovationgo hand in hand.
SANDS OF TIME
COVERING AROUND 800,000 SQUARE MILES, ALGERIA'S SHARE OF THE SAHARA TAKES UP OVER 80% OF THE COUNTRY - THE VOLCANIC PEAKS, CANYONS AND VAST SAND SEAS FORM A STRIKING BACKDROP TO OASIS CITIES AND UNIQUE NORTH AFRICAN CULTURES