Why this ride
270 km from Dalcahue to Dalcahue, about 6 h 14 of riding. It goes by way of Church of Castro, Church of Quinchao, Church of Dalcahue and back through Church of Quinchao. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Churgh of Caguach and Church of Dalcahue
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 270 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 6 h 14
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Chiloe Island Route
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For 36 km this is Chiloe Island Route, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 50 km
- Named road
- Chiloe Island Route
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Church of San Juan
San Juan is a tiny village on a sheltered inlet on the east coast of Chiloé, the big green island off the coast of southern Chile, and its wooden church stands right by the water, painted white with a tall tower, looking out over the boats moored in the channel. It is one of the sixteen Churches of Chiloé on the World Heritage list, a unique school of wooden architecture that grew out of the Jesuit missions of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and was continued by the Franciscans and the islanders themselves. The churches were built by local carpenters using native woods, with techniques borrowed from boat building, and many of them are covered in wooden shingles. Inside, the vaulted ceilings often look like the hull of an upturned ship.
Read the complete Church of San Juan write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Church of San Juan comes up about 0 km into the recorded legs. Next is Church of Castro.
2. Church of Castro
Castro's church is the first thing that makes visitors to Chiloé stop talking. San Francisco stands on the Plaza de Armas of the island's capital, a big building with a corrugated-metal skin painted in yellow and violet, two towers and a wooden interior that is mostly hand-cut native timber. It was built in the early twentieth century to replace an earlier church that burned, by an Italian architect, and it is one of the sixteen Chiloé churches that UNESCO listed in 2000. The rest are mostly smaller and older, scattered along the coast, built by Jesuit missionaries and their Chilote carpenters, who were boat builders first and used what they knew. If you tip your head back inside, the vaulted ceiling looks like an upturned hull.
Read the complete Church of Castro write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 53 km into the recorded legs you reach Church of Castro. Next is Church of Quinchao.
3. Church of Quinchao
Chiloé is an island of wooden churches, and the one at Achao on Quinchao island is the oldest of the survivors. The Church of Santa María de Loreto was built in the eighteenth century by Jesuit missionaries and local carpenters, using native timber, cypress and larch, joined with wooden pegs and not a single iron nail. The facade has a long portico with a tower, and the interior, with its vaulted ceiling shaped like an upturned boat hull, shows the skill of the island's shipbuilders. The Churches of Chiloé are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and this is one of the stars.
Read the complete Church of Quinchao write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Church of Quinchao, about halfway. Next is Church of Dalcahue.
4. Church of Dalcahue
Chiloé is a damp, green island off the coast of southern Chile, and its wooden churches are its soul. The Church of Dalcahue stands on the waterfront of a small town on the eastern side of the island, facing the inner sea and the islands of the archipelago, with a long arcaded porch along its front and a tall tower rising above. Built entirely of wood, with shingles cut from native trees, it is one of sixteen churches inscribed in 2000 as the Churches of Chiloé.
Read the complete Church of Dalcahue write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Church of Dalcahue sits at 146 km, about halfway. Next is back through Church of Quinchao.
5. back through Church of Quinchao
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Church of Quinchao 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 Quinchao comes up about 168 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Church of Castro.
6. back through Church of Castro
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Church of Castro write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 218 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Church of Castro. Next is back through Church of San Juan.
7. back through Church of San Juan
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Church of San Juan 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 San Juan, late in the day. Next is Churgh of Caguach.
Leg by leg
Church of San Juan to Church of Castro
Church of San Juan → Church of Castro is 53 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Church of Castro to Church of Quinchao
Church of Castro → Church of Quinchao is 50 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Church of Quinchao to Church of Dalcahue
Church of Quinchao → Church of Dalcahue is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Church of Dalcahue to back through Church of Quinchao
Church of Dalcahue → back through Church of Quinchao is 33 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Church of Quinchao to back through Church of Castro
back through Church of Quinchao → back through Church of Castro is 50 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Church of Castro to back through Church of San Juan
back through Church of Castro → back through Church of San Juan is 53 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.