Pucon!

Our final trip during Mom and Dad's six week stay was down South to Pucon.  We stayed a week in our friends' cabin and got to see some familiar things and some new ones, too.  

The cabin was lovely, and we got to eat most meals around this campfire.  

Many silly nights on the front porch.

We went on a hike our first morning to see this little place where five waterfalls converge.  Gorgeous. 

 We spent a day wandering around Pucon and having lunch.

We took a walk down by the lake Villarica.

Gorgeous views of Vulcan Villarica.  Incidentally - - this volcano erupted about five days after this photo was taken.  

We spent one amazing afternoon and evening at a husky farm owned by a German man.  He's lived in Chile for some time and owns this lovely farm.  His dream is take his dogs to Alaska for the Iditarod.  

Despite the fact that it was the middle of Summer, we went on a husky ride! 

After meeting all the dogs and getting to ask a million questions, we took off!

Some of the dogs wore little purple socks to protect their feet from the gravel.

Once G, Wy, and I finished our ride, the eight dogs were traded out for eight fresh dogs, and Nana and Grandaddy got to ride.

While the dogs were being traded, we picked roadside blackberries. 

This is Mom and Dad's team of dogs SO EXCITED to get to pull the cart!

Here they come!

For the rest of the night, we wandered around the farm (which also included lamas) and ate dinner with the owners. 

The next day, we hit the termas for some hot springs relaxation.

We hiked around near the top of Vulcan Villarica and learned that it was closed to all foot traffic past the point where we were.  We didn't know then that the park folks were watching it for eruption signs.

Hiking in old lava at the base.

We took a little boat ride around the lake.

We had a relaxing week in the lakes district and around Pucon.  What a fantastic way to end our summer!