Remembering the Past

Volcán Villarrica

Although this visual archive shows some of Caburgua's transitions from isolation to modernization, it emphasizes the period of the 1960s.

The community's residents at the time lived in a rural environment based on farming and some forestry.

This gate near Rio Blanco shows typical Caburgua scenery of the 1960s.

Residents rode horses, or occasionally a truck, but often walked the three hours to Pucón. Without a vehicle with four-wheel drive, it was nearly impossible for visitors or civil servants to reach the community.

There was no mail delivery, public health service, or agricultural extension.

A typical path in Caburgua, circa 1967.

The narrative and images of Caburgua here represent a visual archive of an earlier era before an all-weather road broke down this isolation.

As a Peace Corps Volunteer from 1965-1968, this author (Lorenzo) observed the beginning of the community's transition. In later decades he continued to visit friends from Caburgua, but never again lived there permanently.