May 9, 2026
Last full day on the island.
It started raining at 10 pm last night. It hasn’t stopped.
I woke up at 8am this morning after a night of bizarre seafood induced dreams (let’s just say apparently my subconscious mind has given more thought to the realities of disposing a body than my conscious mind has and leave it at that). Decided in spite of the rain I’d walk up to Hanga roa for breakfast.
Discovered places don’t open for breakfast until 1030. Seems like a lost opportunity. Every day there are new arrivals to the island who are on mainland time. Making them wait until damn near lunch time for breakfast is weird. Around 9 I found a guy setting up his cafe and I talked him into serving me coffee.
My plan for the day had been to climb taravaka, but I had decided against it due to the rain before heading to Hanga roa, so I left my water bottle, national park permit, etc, in my tent. Changed my mind once I was in Hanga roa. After all, I’m probably never coming back here, may as well make the most of it, weather be damned. My stuff was 30 minutes in the wrong direction, so I went without it.
Halfway there the trail passes, for like 300 feet or so, through one of the places that requires a guide. I probably could have ignorant touristed my way through if I at least had my national park permit, but I didn’t, so I was turned back.
Decided to take a different route back. There’s a road running from there to the middle of the east coast of the island, and from there I could head back to Hanga roa. It’s about a 10 mile loop.
I actually did enjoy it. Got to slow roll my way through the interior of the island, which is very pretty, and most tourists never go there. It’s also considered very weird by the locals for a lone tourist to be walking there in the middle of a rainstorm. Had seven people stop, and me if I needed help, and offered me a ride back to Hanga roa. I just replied “no gracias. Quiero caminar” and they’d shrug, say “muy bien”, and give me a thumbs up before driving away. In many places the road took the form of a muddy lake, so my boots and wool socks soaked completely through, and I doubt they’ll dry before I fly out tomorrow. My feet also completely pruned up, and started to feel like I was getting massive blisters (thankfully that wasn’t the case, but sure did hurt like it).
When I got back to Hanga roa I looked around until I found a shop selling flip flops ($25, good god), and I’ve been wearing those since then. My feet have de pruned. No blisters thankfully. The hills are definitely a challenge in flip flops tho.
As an example of what I was trundling through all day:
That’s in Hanga roa, where the streets are at least paved. Out in the center of the island the roads are dirt. Not even gravel. Just dirt. Which is to say, mud.
Anyway. I’ll still have tomorrow morning here on the island. I’ll head down to the airport to check in for my flight at 1. Flight is supposed to depart at 3. It’s also supposed to stop raining around 3, dammit.
I’ll land back in Santiago around 930 local time. Uber to my hotel, and then Monday it’ll be mail my friend his honey because I don’t want to carry it for the next three weeks (not sure of the customs issues that may result), and then noon it’ll be back to the airport to fly off to Arica Chile.
