monkey tail motherland

National parks never let me down. Conguillio National Park was no exception. Upon entering the park my jaw dropped just the way it did when I passed through the gates of Yellowstone or Crater Lake. Conguillio has some things in common with several of the parks of the western US since it was also formed by volcanic activity. The ground is made of black lava pebbles that contrast against piercing blue lakes and the white of glaciers on mountaintops. But when you look more in detail you see the bizarre plant life which is predominated by araucarias (monkey tail trees) that are hundreds of years old. They are everywhere in the park, living amongst oaks and bamboo-like stalks. Light green moss lives on the araucarias and is a soft compliment to the pokey armor of the gigantic trees' leaves.

My coworker and I took the bus to the park entrance and were prepared to walk the 18 km to the camping area. Luckily we got picked up by a couple of nice young fellows on motos and they took us to the lake where we arranged to stay in a tent of one of the park employees. We explored the park that afternoon with our new friends, Pablo and Gerson, and the next day did a rewarding hike that ended in a beautiful view of the lake, the mountains, and the forests of monkey tails.