Church of Rilán and Church of Colo

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Church of Rilán

   Chiloé is an island of rain, wood and faith, lying off the coast of southern Chile across the narrow Chacao channel, and its wooden churches are its great treasure. Built by island carpenters following a tradition introduced by Jesuit missionaries in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and continued by Franciscans, they combine European church forms with local shipbuilding skills, using native timbers and covering the walls with overlapping wooden shingles called tejuelas. Sixteen of them were listed by UNESCO in 2000, and the church of Santa María de Rilán is one of them. It stands on the Rilán peninsula, east of Castro, facing a quiet inlet, its tall tower and painted wooden facade rising above the low houses and green fields of the village.

   Read the complete Church of Rilán write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Church of Rilán is where the day begins. Next is Church of Detif.

2. 2. Church of Detif

   Of all the islands of the Chiloé archipelago, Lemuy is one of the quietest, and the church at Detif, at its far eastern end, stands almost alone on a grassy slope above the sea, with a few houses scattered around and the islands of the inner sea on the horizon. It is one of the sixteen wooden Churches of Chiloé listed as a World Heritage site, built in the late nineteenth century of native wood, with a simple façade, an arcade at the front and a tower rising above the entrance. The interior is equally simple and beautiful, and the church is cared for by the local community, which still uses it for services and festivals, such as the feast of its patron saint.

   Read the complete Church of Detif write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Church of Detif comes up about 80 km into the recorded legs. Next is Churgh of Caguach.

3. 3. Church of Colo

   Colo is one of the quiet places of Chiloé that most visitors never reach, a small settlement on the eastern side of the big island, with a wooden church on a rise above the water. It belongs to the family of churches that the Jesuits and local carpenters created in the colonial and early republic periods, and which UNESCO protects together. Their charm is simple. A front porch of columns, a tower with an octagonal top and a roof like an upturned boat. Inside, the nave is a hull of curved timbers, the ceilings painted with stars or sky, the altars carved by local hands. They were built without nails in some cases, using wooden pegs, and the big planks were cut by axe.

   Read the complete Church of Colo write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Church of Colo, about halfway. Next is back through Churgh of Caguach.

4. 4. back through Church of Detif

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Church of Detif write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Church of Detif comes up about 296 km into the recorded legs. Next is Church of Rilán.

5. 5. Church of Rilán

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Church of Rilán write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Church of Rilán closes the day.