Day 6 – Sunday, February 1, 2026

To continue with the generosity of the Chileans, I was offered a full employee breakfast - for $0.00. Is this dome kind of a candy camera that I am being drawn into?? The chef prepared an amazing omelet with paprika and tomatoes.

I thought of staying one more day, but even if the pass would be opened the following day, I would come across wintry conditions (snow, ice, wind) - so I started descending - again enjoying the spectacle Nature provided (on empty roads, not like the way up)..

I did have some bike trouble, which I managed to fix in Los Andes, where I had ridden through on Day One. Following Los Andes, I started riding in a rather affluent, wine-growing area, which strongly resembles rural Italy. Interesting to see was a number of picnic spots with pools - they also offer camping - at least a dozen of them are in my vicinity. They were full for the day, it being Sunday, but I found one open for business - and paid dome €12 for the smooth patch of grass I pitched my tent on.

Dinner was in a busy kiosk - street food at its finest! It was a Chilean version of a hamburger - for way less than €10!! I rode 100km, and ascended around 500m (the major altitude change was a gigantic drop from 2,880m to a couple of hundred).