Pelluhue

Pelluhue (in mapudungun: "land of clams") is a municipality in the Chilean Province of Cauquenes, located in the Maule Region (Chile's VII Region).

Geography

The municipality of Pelluhue has an area of 371 km² and is bordered on the north by Chanco, on the south by Cobquecura (Province of Ñuble), on the east by Cauquenes and on the west by the Pacific Ocean. Its seat is the town of Curanipe.

Demography

The municipality of Pelluhue has 6,414 inhabitants (2002 census) of which 3,877 (61%) live in urban areas and 2,537 (39%) in rural ones. Although Curanipe is the municipal seat, Pelluhue has a greater population, both permanent and seasonal.

Because of its appeal as a tourism and retirement center, Pelluhue has been steadily growing over the last two decades. Its population increase rate has been one of the highest in the Maule Region: 17,2%, in the decade 1992-2002.

History

Both towns, Pelluhue and Curanipe, are nowadays popular coastal resorts. Pelluhue evolved from a humble fishermen's cove to a crowded summer resort in less than 50 years. The town's population swells to over several thousand in the summer week-ends when vacationers from the "hinterland" (Cauquenes, Linares, Talca, Parral) visit the seaside.

Curanipe has a more "patrician" past, having been already a well-known and secluded coastal resort for the Cauquenes elite and a proud "minor port", in the mid- and late 19th century and early 20th century. Both Pelluhue and Curanipe were part of the municipality of Chanco until 1979. The municipality and "comuna" of Pelluhue was officially created on Oct 26 1979, when both towns, together with their adjacent territories, formed a new municipality.

The Curanipe parish church of Santo Toribio, is a beautifully preserved religious building overlooking the charming and quaint town.

From the ecclesiastical point of view, Pelluhue belongs to the Parish of Curanipe, of the Diocese of Linares, Chile.

Attractions and tourism

In the southernmost corner of the municipality, which borders the Bío Bío Region, lies the semi-isolated and beautiful beach of Tregualemu, next to which there are two beautiful old, large rural houses of Chilean colonial style.

The "Los Ruiles" National Reserve is a beautiful park in the easternmost part of the municipality, located in the foothills of the "Cordillera de la Costa". A small oasis next to the road that connects Chanco and Cauquenes, the park contains many native species of trees and plants. Several of them are unique to the region and some are in danger of extinction. The reserve has a surface of 29 hectares. There is a reception area, several picnic tables and two footpaths.