This is rather disagreeable, for the foaming
water, though not deep, rushes so quickly over the bed of large
rounded stones, that one's head becomes quite confused, and it is
difficult even to perceive whether the horse is moving onward or
standing still. In summer, when the snow melts, the torrents are
quite impassable; their strength and fury are then extremely great,
as might be plainly seen by the marks which they had left. We
reached the baths in the evening, and stayed there five days, being
confined the two last by heavy rain. The buildings consist of a
square of miserable little hovels, each with a single table and
bench. They are situated in a narrow deep valley just without the
central Cordillera. It is a quiet, solitary spot, with a good deal
of wild beauty.
The mineral springs of Cauquenes burst forth on a line of
dislocation, crossing a mass of stratified rock, the whole of which
betrays the action of heat. A considerable quantity of gas is
continually escaping from the same orifices with the water. Though
the springs are only a few yards apart, they have very different
temperatures; and this appears to be the result of an unequal
mixture of cold water: for those with the lowest temperature have
scarcely any mineral taste.
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