Things to know before
(or sometimes after) you come!
Here below
are some interesting books, links and info which you may like
to read before, and indeed after, visiting Chile. Plain text
comments are ours. Italic comments are quotes extracted from
the Amazon.com site and/or other sources.
Most of the books have direct links to its own pages on Amazon.com.
You may visit the Amazon site without any obligation to purchase
the book; there you can see a full-size illustration
of the cover, learn more details, and read recent reviews.
TRAVEL
GUIDES
Moon
Handbook Chile - Wayne Bernhardson (2002)
This is a very good travel guide. Wayne Bernhardson really knows
Chile (he stays in Chile 6 months each year traveling in his
4x4) and he has a great sensibility to recognize and suggest
the good places and best spots of the country.
Frommer's
Argentina and Chile - Shane Christensen et al. (2003) A travel guide to the South American countries of Argentina
and Chile. Offers reviews of the best dining and lodging, as
well as exact pricing for those on a budget. Includes opinions
on the local sites and out-of-the-way gems, and new takes on
popular attractions.
Lonely
Planet Chile and Easter Island - Carolyn Hubbard et al. (2003) The wonders of Chile's long stretch of landscape reach from
tropical splendors in the north to icy behemoths in the south--with
4,000 kilometers of volcanoes, fjords, and lakes in between.
Whether you seek outdoor or urban adventures, this guide has
what you need to eat, sleep, speak, and experience the finest
Chile has to offer. Also included are details for travel to
the Falkland Islands and Antarctica. --Kathryn True
The Rough
Guide to Chile - Melissa Graham (2003) If you're planning a trip to Chile (or wish you were) this
is the book to get you ready. Dealing with everything from
money exchange to lodgings to transportation, it has invaluable
information to carry you from "tourist" to "traveler."
Turistel
- Chilean Travel Guide if you speak Spanish, the Chilean tourist board guides
-Turistel- are really very good as they are updated yearly with
accurate information. Available per region (North, Central,
South) in Santiago's bookshops and street kiosks.
Not
available at Amazon.com
TREKKING
GUIDES & MAPS
Trekking
in The Patagonian Andes - Lonely Planet - Clem Lindenmayer (2003) This convenient guide features trail maps and route descriptions
of walks throughout Patagonia, including a long sections on
Torres del Paine in Chile and Los Glaciares National Park in
Argentina. With detailed practical information, color photography,
31 maps and good background on preparing for your trek. Third
edition.
Trekking
El Chalten and Lago del Desierto - Miguel Alonso (1998) Hiking guide for a region quite unknown until short ago.
Charts, time rates, and heights. History, nature and tips. By
the author of ¨Lago Argentino Handbook¨, who is a experienced
mountain guide. English translation of the different treks.
Chile
and Argentina, The Bradt Trekking Guide - Tim Burford (2001) This guide includes 45 hikes, from northwest Argentina to
Tierra del Fuego; unique descriptions of mountain treks near
Santiago; rafting, kayaking, cycling, horse-riding and skiing;
thorough coverage of national parks, including ecology and wildlife;
wildlife on the Valdes Peninsula. (5 1/4 x 8 1/2, 368 pages,
illustrations, maps, charts)
Cuadernos
Patagonicos - Techint
Only in spanish. La pequeña colección que me
complazco en presentarles se llama "Cuadernos Patagónicos"
y comprende una serie de publicaciones monográficas centradas
en la Patagonia y en las empresas andinistas y de exploración
que han sido efectuadas.
Parque
Nacional Los Glaciares Map 1:250.000
If you don't need the map urgently before coming to Chile or
Argentina, it is maybe a good idea to wait until arriving as
you can buy the same map (and check several others) at airports
and stores in Punta Arenas, Puerto Natales, Calafate and Chalten.
Torres
del Paine Trekking Map 1:80.000
If you don't need the map urgently before coming to Chile or
Argentina, it is maybe a good idea to wait until arriving as
you can buy the same map (and check several others) at airports
and stores in Punta Arenas, Puerto Natales, Calafate and Chalten.
Instituto
Geografico Militar - Chile Find all the maps you need for your upcoming trekking or
mountaineering trip to Chile here. You can order online digital
or paper versions of the maps. The site is in spanish but easy
to follow once you get there. After clicking the link at the
right, choose "Cartografía" and then continue
until you reach the area you need.
Birds
of Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego an Antarctica Peninsula - Enrique
Couve and Claudio Vidal (2003) This comprehensive field guide describes more than 400 species.
Photographs are opposite descriptive text that details status,
range, habits, and range maps for each species. The introductory
section provides notes on the species accounts, nomenclature
adopted, and conservation issues. Not yet in Amazon.com. You can wait until arriving into
Chile to buy it or can get it from the ABA Sales Store (American
Birding Association)
Birds
of Chile - Alvaro Jaramillo (2003) Birds of Chile offers not just perfect field-portability,
beautiful and accurate artwork with facing text, and clarity
and conciseness throughout: it presents genuinely new scholarship
on the field identification of several cryptic and difficult
groups, as well as on the modern geographic distribution of
Chile's birds.
Union
de Ornitologos de Chile Visit this website (in spanish) that has more information
on birds of Chile.
Wildflowers
of the Chilean Desert - Sebastián Teillier et al. Color illustrations of more than 70 species of flowers,
most of them endemics, of the "Desierto Florido" in
the north de Chile. Available in CONAF's stores (CONAF is the
National Park Administrator) and few bookstores in Santiago.
Check
our Wildflowers of the Chilean Desert Trip!
Not
available at Amazon.com
Flora
Silvestre de Chile - Adriana Hoffmann
Adriana Hoffmann
has covered the country in detail and has several books. In
Spanish, but with pictures and enough info... you can usually
make it out! If you are only able to afford only one the best
for me is Plantas Altoandinas. Not available in Amazon.com but
you can find them at bookstores in Santiago. Check the Fundacion
Gay/Defensores del Bosque website as, if you mail them, they
may send you one!
Charles
Darwin's journal aboard the Beagle. Well known worldwide.
The Patagonia and Chile sections are the most interesting! This
is also available online in English clicking
here.
LITERATURE
Memoirs
- Pablo Neruda "Some of the descriptions of places--India, China, Mexico
especially--are brilliant, but it is Chile that emerges most
clearly with lights and shadows."
--Selden Rodman, National Review.
Pablo Neruda's "Memoirs" is not a comprehensive autobiographical
document. It is a personal memoir, recounted as if the author
was sitting around a table, with good friends and a bottle of
excellent Chilean wine, telling tales of the people, anecdotes
and incidents that were so important in his life. "Confieso
Que He Vivido," means I confess that I have lived. And
Sr. Neruda certainly did that...
Twenty Love
Poems and a Song of Despair - Pablo Neruda First published in 1924, Veinte poemas de amor y una canción
desesperada remains among Pablo Neruda’s most popular
work. Daringly metaphorical and sensuous, this collection
juxtaposes youthful passion with the desolation of grief.
Drawn from the poet’s most intimate and personal associations,
the poems combine eroticism and the natural world with the
influence of expressionism and the genius of a master poet.
This edition features the newly corrected original Spanish
text, with masterly English translations by award-winning
poet W. S. Merwin on facing pages. Pablo
Neruda: see more poems and books!
The Stories
of Eva Luna - Isabel Allende (1992) Born in Chile but now living in Northern California, Allende
is the first female Latin American novelist to become well-known
to the American reading public. Her novels -The House of the
Spirits, Of Love and Shadows, and Eva Luna-are frequently
compared to those of Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
My
Invented Country: A Nostalgic Journey Through Chile - Isabel
Allende (2003) Allende wrote this memoir of Chile and her childhood because
"nation and tribe are confused in my mind." The catalyst
was the "blood-chilling coincidence" of two disasters--the
CIA overthrow of the Chilean government on September 11, 1973,
and the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers on September 11,
2001. Isabel
Allende: see more books!
PATAGONIA
Lucas Bridges,
The Uttermost parts of the Earth.
Hard to get hold of, long, but totally fascinating account
of missionaries living among Tierra del Fuego Indians early
in the 20 century. This is really an excellent book! An outstanding account of the triumph of the human spirit
against all odds. A truly memorable work. A towering achievement
to have written such a telling account of life on the edge
of civilization. Tschiffely's achievement in persuading E.
Lucas Bridges to commit the story to paper has preserved the
memory of a lost race. Why it is out of print is beyond me...
Cape
Horn and Other Stories of the End of the World - Francisco Coloane.
An anthology of some of the most popular short stories of Francisco
Coloane, a Chilean author well-known for his sea-faring adventure
novels. Coloane has been extensively translated to French. 'The stories in this book reveal a world seldom seen by English-speaking
readers. This is a world of grand vistas, foot-worn trails and
the encroachment of a so-called civilization. If you are searching
for a world left unexplored by American literature or those
who read and write it, "Cape Horn and Other Stories from
the End of the World" is an excellent starting point.' Francisco
Coloane: see more books!
The
Full Circle - Luis Sepulveda
Original name in Spanish: Patagonia Express
All his books are good. Patagonia Express is published in English
under the title 'The Full Circle'. His book "Fin del Fin
del Mundo" is also wonderful if you are planning a trip
to the far south. This may not be available in English (you
will fins many translations to french and german) but his Spanish
is clear and simple and they make excellent beginning Spanish
books for serious students. Luis
Sepulveda: see more books!
In Patagonia
- Bruce Chatwin (1989) A masterpiece of travel, history and adventure. This award-winning
book captures the spirit of the land, history, wildlife and
people of Patagonia. There is no travel writer as engaging,
insightful and just plain wonderful as Bruce Chatwin.
The
Wild Shores of Patagonia: Peninsula Valdes and Punta Tombo -
Jasmine Rossi (2000) A photographic portrait of Patagonia's coastal wildlife,
complemented by first-person accounts.
Riding
Across Patagonia - Florence Dixie When asked in 1879 why she wanted to travel to such an
outlandish place as Patagonia, the author replied without hesitation
that she was taking to the saddle in order to flee from the
strict confines of polite Victorian society.
“Riding Across Patagonia” tells the story of how the
aristocrat successfully traded the perils of a London parlor
for the wind-borne freedom of a wild Patagonian bronco. Her
equestrian exploits became legendary. One of the first Europeans
to ride Criollo horses, on one occasion Lady Dixie escaped from
a rampaging prairie fire by riding directly through the flames!
Long considered a classic of equestrian travel, Lady Dixie’s
book is illustrated with pen and ink drawings that show her
mounted entourage during the course of their remarkable adventures.
EASTER
ISLAND - RAPA NUI
The
Mystery of Easter Island - Katherine Routledge In the early 1900's Katherine Routledge sailed from England
to Easter Island on the schooner 'Mana', leading a group of
experts on the first modern day scientific expedition to uncover
the secrets of the island. This book is a first-hand account
of the expedition. It includes lots of detail on the famous
stone statues (moai), the native people & their legends,
the mysterious script (rongo-rongo), the bird cult, and much
more
The book is well written and fun to read. It includes lots of
fine illustrations, including photos and drawings, depicting
the most important sites. It is definately a must-read for visitors
to the island, or just for anyone interested in Easter Island
and its strange history.
Kon
Tiki: Across the Pacific by Raft - Thor Heyerdahl (1995) A great classic! The story of the Pacific journey by six
men on a raft trying to prove that Easter Island civilization
came from an Andean kingdom that preceed the Inca empire.
ATACAMA
& ALTIPLANO
Hidalgo:
100 days Across the Atacama Desert - Elly & Nathan Foote
(2004) If you were intrigued by the movie Hidalgo, you will want
to read THE DESERT DIARIES. This remarkable journal, enriched
by 50 quality photos in living color, was brought out in answer
to everyone's question: Could anyone actually ride a mustang
across such a lifeless, burning inferno?
Nathan and Elly did. They spent 100 days in the longest, driest
desert on earth, The Atacama of Chile, during their equestrian
odyssey from The Patagonia to Canada(1969-73).
Many thanks
to Rose Deakin, our good friend, enthusiast traveler and webmaster,
who helped us with the selection and comments about several
of the books and info we are sharing here with you. If you have
new ideas of books, links or info to add in this page, please
email us!
