Geographical and Political Distances

The nearest town to Caburgua is Pucón, which today is located less than an hour away. For the generations before 1970, the distance was three hours on horseback and four hours walking.

Pucón is on the east end of Lake Villarrica and framed by the magnificent, snow-capped Volcán Villarrica. This volcano, the lake and a town were baptized "Villarrica," by Spanish conquerors who dreamed of precious metals. The legend is that the native Mapuche hid the gold, hoping the Spanish would go away.

Further west is Temuco, the capital of the Cautín Province, and a link to the Pan-American Highway running north to Santiago and south to Patagonia. Given Chile's centralized political system, major decisions about Caburgua's future were usually made in Temuco or Santiago.