Chile has always had special meaning for us as it is here that Rich's youngest brother, Jerry, met and married his wife, Patty, while teaching in Santiago.  They and their children, Rocio and Ryan, each add immensely to our lives.  Therefore we were VERY pleased when Field Guides, Inc, whom we had traveled with previously, decided to do an "author's tour" to Chile in celebration of the publication of _The Birds of Chile_ written by one of their guides, Alvaro Jaramillo, already an acquaintance of ours. 

This provided the perfect opportunity for us to visit this fascinating South American country which stretches for 4,200 km from the Atacama Desert and rich waters of the Humboldt Current to the wind-swept wilds of Patagonia, the Straits of Magellan and Tierra del Fuego.  

Two Copihue blossoms, Lapageria rosea or Chilean Bellflower, the national flower

Behind Chilean Flags, the Presidential Palace, which had been bombed 30 years ago during the overthrow of Allende by General Pinochet. 

The Metropolitan Cathedral stands on the original location of the first church on the Plaza de Armas.

At home with the Petersons: Areia, Dan and Marite with Chiara, ALL of whom added to our enjoyment of Chile as they were our WONDERFUL hosts prior to and after our 3 week eco-tour.  'Home' to the BEST Pisco Sours and Pastel de Choclo in Chile.

A fountain at Cerro Santa Lucia Park in Santiago

  Alvaro Jaramillo - distracting us from the sea's motion during one of our pelagic trips.

Our Field Guides' group: (l to r) Al, Dean, Bill, Frank, Rich and Andy, minus Alison, who thoughtfully took the photo

An open-pit copper mine near Santiago.  This mineral produces much wealth for Chile.

                        A wet Bar-winged Cinclodes drying on a rock

  Adult Mountain Caracara in flight over Yerba Loca (Crazy Weed).

                       Yeso River and Valley

Our leader starting to prepare one of his fabulous Field Guides' lunches.

                                                 Diademed Sandpiper-plover

Gray-breasted Seedsnipe 

                       Greater Yellow-finch

Black-necked Swan at El Peral

Many-coloured Rush-Tyrant, Siete colores (7 colors) is its name in Spanish 

Southern Lapwing, common throughout the country, except in the North

Peruvian Pelican near Quintero during our first pelagic.

Humboldt Penguins, one of the 'presents' Rich received on his birthday, which were viewed during this pelagic trip and later from shore at Cachagua.

                       Inca Terns in breeding plumage

A Chilean Seaside Cinclodes

Darwin's Lesser Rhea, common in the Patagonian Steppe

                      Adult Magellanic Penguin at colony on Otway Sound

Coscoroba Swans on a laguna in Tierra del Fuego.  Their call is their name.

Imperial Shags near colony at Puerto Natales

                Us with Torres del Paine in the background

 Vista in the highlands of Sierra Bagules, home to wild horses, gauchos,

and the huge Andean Condors soaring effortlessly using their 108" - 122" wingspans

Torres del Paine, a National Park of unrivaled scenery

This narrow bridge provided access to our lodging in Torres del Paine.  Fortunately, our bus 'just' fit!

Guanacos, a truly wild South American camelid; they are related to llamas and alpacas, which have all been domesticated.

                                                 Austral Pygmy-owl

A pair of Spectacled Ducks 

 A Southern Gray Fox, which were common in Patagonia

A female Striped Woodpecker 

Aerial view of a glacier and the 'bergy bits' it is calving in the Andes taken during one of our Lan Chile flights

Lake view in Conguillio NP in central Chile

                       Araucaria tree branches and 'flower' 

Green lizard

                                Market in Temuco

A 'modern' ox-drawn cart with rubber tires.

Wintering Franklin's Gulls (exhibiting a pinkish flush) and Whimbrels from North America on the coast in Arica near the Peruvian border

Adult Belcher's (Band-tailed) Gull, common on the coast at Arica

A Turkey Vulture perches symbolically

"Absolute" desert, one of the driest places on earth: nothing grows!

A female Torrent Duck swimming near Las Cuevas (The Caves) in Lauca National Park where we ventured to an altitude of 15,274 feet

A Mountain Viscacha, a sleepy-appearing rodent that is like a hare with a long tail, grazes on the grass in Lauca NP, along with Darwin's Big-eared Mouse (below)

A vicuna, the other wild camelid in South America.  Note the light colored wisps on its lower neck: this yields a soft, highly-prized, delicate wool.  One of the reasons Lauca NP was created is to protect this species.

One of Los Payachates (The Brothers) volcanoes emerges snow-covered from the clouds

A Giant Coot forages for nesting material in Lake Chungara

A Black-hooded Sierra-finch feeding on grass seed

Market in Parinacota, an Andean village of 25 inhabitants, near the Bolivian border

Reconstructed 17th century church in Parinacota, an Aymara village within the borders of Lauca National Park.  It is built with walls of stone and mud reinforced by outer stone abutments without mortar.