It has been awhile since we've talked of Chaiten, so I thought I'd touch upon "the eruption of 2008" (really, no one else is close). Spring time has arrived in southern Chile, and the Patagonia area has cleaned up a lot of the ash from the eruption (but not the town of Chaiten). National Tourism Service says that most towns and parks in the region are ready for tourists and even some tourist companies near Chaiten are good to go.

As for the volcano itself, the latest USGS update reports ash columns still being erupted and reaching up to 12,000 ft (3,700 meters), along with a "thermal anomaly" in the vent area - likely lava at the dome or near the surface - detected via satellite.