Volunteer Work in Ecotourism in a Nature Park

Booking Number

CL-WN107

Program Place

Nature park with a small tourist operation

Location

Rio Puelo, Cochamó, Patagonia.
The Cochamó region is located more than 1,000 km south of Santiago de Chile and is one of the most beautiful and unspoilt areas in Chile.

Tasks

Assistance in the visitor center
Receiving visitors (trail talk, leave no trace agreements, and biodiversity)
If the volunteer speaks Spanish fluently, they may conduct the introductory talk at the Information Center, provided they have practiced it beforehand with a park ranger.
Maintenance of the hiking trails
Maintenance/cleaning of the mountain huts and camping area
Forest work
Chop and stack wood
Supporting the park rangers
Other tasks in the area of nature protection

(We would like to point out that the tasks may vary and depend on factors such as the number of volunteers, weather, season, current needs of the project, and self-motivation. Volunteers may not be fully involved in all the tasks mentioned above.)

Working Hours

About 40 hours / week

You will be assigned to work in shifts consisting of 4 days and 3 nights to facilitate job rotation. The shifts may vary based on the workload and the requirements at each refuge to assist the park rangers. You will always be accompanied by a park ranger who works shifts of 6 days and 5 nights. The scheduling of shifts and days off falls under the purview of the volunteer coordinator or the park ranger coordinator.

The work schedules for volunteers are influenced by the shift patterns, team organization, and the number of visitors; however, in general, the work hours total 40 hours per week. Volunteers will not be working alone during their shifts; they will always be under the supervision of the volunteer coordinator and/or the park ranger on duty.

You will receive 1 day off each week. Please note that days off do not carry over from one week to the next. Additionally, be aware that leaving the park during your stay is not easily accomplished, as it requires a significant amount of time.

Start Date

Start and end dates are flexible. In the winter months between end of April and the end of September, the weather is very cold, rainy, sometimes with snowfall, so there are often no tourists on site. For non-weather-resistant participants, the best tieme to participe is between the beginning of October and the end of April.

Duration

Minimum 4 weeks, maximum 12 weeks

Minimum Age

18 years

Language

Intermediate Spanish (book your language course in Chile with us!)

Accommodation

Shared rooms in the park (mountain hut)

Food

Full-board (3 meals/day)

Internet

Internet is only available via the mobile phone. Internet connection (Wifi) is only available in the lodge, but not always stable.

In-Country Support

Our English-speaking team in the Chile Inside office in Santiago de Chile is always there for you.

24/7 Emergency Number

With the booking confirmation you will receive our 24-hour emergency number, under which you can reach us 24/7 in case of emergency.

Application

Please send us your detailed CV with photo and the completed registration form. For more information on the registration process, please see the instructions on the first page of the registration form or contact one of our experienced staff members.

Application Deadline

There are no application deadlines. We recommend submitting the documents as early as possible, at least 12 weeks before the desired start of the program, so that there is sufficient time to assure a smooth placement process. For short-term applications please contact us.

Insurance

You need to have a travel health insurance for Chile. You can buy your travel insurance, tailored to the needs of our participants, online with us, at convenient rates. See: Travel health insurance

Program Highlights

Volunteering in untouched nature
Cultural exchange with local people
No application deadlines
Flexible start and end dates
Participation possible even without prior knowledge
English-speaking support through our local office

This is the perfect project for adventurers and nature lovers! The volunteer project takes place in a 3000-hectare nature park in a fairytale-like, almost untouched landscape of jungle, lakes, clear rivers and mountains, right at the foot of the Chilean Andes.

Inside the park, there are ecosystems that are typical for southern Chile, temperate rainforests overgrown by thousand-year-old trees (such as larch, mañío, and coihue), providing a green habitat to a rich variety of wildlife. The only way to make this magical piece of land accessible to the public without causing damage is through controlled ecotourism: tourists are welcome, but nature is paramount.

Only a limited number of guests can stay there at the same time, so that capacity is never exceeded, and the natural course of things is not disturbed. Tourists are informed in an information center about the biodiversity of the park and how visitors leave as few footprints as possible.

Hikers can explore the park on a total of 18 km of hiking trails and choose between accommodation in simple mountain cabins in the middle of the park or a more comfortable lodge on the edge of the park. Another great way to explore this little paradise is by kayaking, as the area borders Tagua-Tagua Lake, which is connected to the Reloncaví Fjord by a river.

Volunteers who like to work hard can get involved in a variety of tasks: as a tour guide, in the maintenance of hiking trails and mountain huts, at the information center, forest work and much more. As is usual for work in the mountains, you cannot divide the working week into traditional working hours.

In Patagonia it is the weather that dictates the working days and schedule. When the weather is good, people tend to work more and in bad weather, the days are easier-going, and work is less. Another factor that influenced volunteering here is the workload; sometimes there are periods, with a lot of work and something less is going on.

You should be prepared for the fact that the project is so unique because it is very remote, so it can sometimes be unusually quiet and lonely. The nearest cities Puerto Varas and Puerto Montt are each about a three-hour drive away and can therefore only be visited on days off. The nearest village is 11 km away.

The program includes:

Shared room
Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Advice from our experienced staff
On-going support via WhatsApp, phone or mail
Elaboration of your application profile in Spanish
Your Volunteer Work placement
Pre-departure information
Packing list
Country handbook
Intercultural guide
On-site volunteer coordinator
24/7 emergency number
Advice on travel insurance
Certificate of participation

Costs

Instance 1

RegistraTION FEE

US$ 150

Program costs

US$ 460

minumum duration 4 week

each additional week

US$ 50

As add-on you can book:

Spanish course in Chile: Choose your favorite Spanish school among 4 different loations

Apply now!

- Swipe left/right to see more