Hornopirén is where the road gives up and the sea takes over. Here, on the edge of a long fjord, the Carretera Austral reaches a gap that engineers have never filled, and anyone heading south has to take a ferry for several hours through channels and inlets before the road resumes in Pumalín country. For riders coming from Puerto Montt, it is the first real taste of the end of the world: the town is small and weather-beaten, strung along the shore with wooden houses, boatyards and stacks of fishing gear.
Behind the settlement, the volcano Hornopirén rises in a neat cone, and the national park of the same name protects the forests, lakes and fjords around it. The land is wet and green, covered in temperate rainforest with ferns and mosses hanging off every trunk, and rain falls most of the year. Salmon farming dominates the economy here as it does along much of the Chilean coast, and the water is dotted with the floating pens. Mussels and other seafood are cheap and very good, and a plate of curanto, the traditional pit-cooked stew of shellfish, potatoes and meat, is the dish of the region.
The ride from Puerto Montt is half the experience. After the city, the road runs along the Reloncaví estuary, with the volcanoes Osorno and Calbuco visible in clear weather, and there is a short ferry crossing at Caleta La Arena before the final run to Hornopirén. The roads are paved for much of the way, but there are gravel stretches and sudden bends, and wet surfaces are common, so go easily. Traffic is light, but trucks and buses are heavy, and drivers do not slow down for photographers.
Practicalities matter a great deal here. Ferry bookings fill up in summer, and the timetable can change with the weather, so check the schedule and arrive early. There is fuel in town, but fill the tank before the ferry to be safe, because the next supply beyond the water may be limited. Bring cash, rain gear, and patience. The best weather runs from December to March, when the days are long and the light low and silver over the fjord.