Ushuaia is located 200 Km south of Punta Arenas, Chile - the only permanent settlement south of it is the small town of Puerto Williams, Chile.
Arrival to Ushuaia
We have heard people talk of the beautiful and dramatic landscape visible from the main road between Rio Grande and Ushuaia. However, the windows of our bus are so fogged up that we can only imagine what the scenery may look like! It is a rather unpleasant bus journey from Puerto Natales due to our seat location, next to the toilet where a repugnant odour hovers in the air - peaking at various points during the journey. The most pleasant part of the trip is the ferry from mainland Chile to the island of Tierra del Fuego, land of fire. As we cross the sea, we see some Commerson's dolphins.
Getting the ferry to Tierra del Fuego
Commerson's dolphins (picture stolen from Google!)
Tierra del Fuego is owned in parts by Chile and Argentina
By the time we arrive at our destination, both feel queasy and nauseous. The gale wind blowing in from the Antarctic is a welcome change from the stagnant air inside!
First views of Ushuaia
Our resting place for the next week is the popular Antarctica hostel, which is centrally located and well organised.
Nice communal area at Antarctica hostel
Next day, to learn a little more about the history and culture of city we visit the Maritime museum, the prison museum and local art gallery.
"For most of the first half of the 20th century, the city was centered around a prison for serious criminals. The Argentine government set up this prison following the example of the British with Australia or the French with Devil's Island; escape from a prison on Tierra del Fuego was similarly impossible. The prisoners thus became forced colonists and spent much of their time cutting wood in the forest around the prison and building the town. They also built a railway to the settlement, now a tourist attraction known as the End of the World Train (Tren del Fin del Mundo), the southernmost railway in the world." (Wikipedia, 2009)
Inside the prison
Inside the gallery
Some of my favorites...
Regata XXI, Sergio Boccaccio (2006)
Iberdrola, Micaela Nunez de la Cruz (2006)
Riachuelo, Emilio Biggers (1954)
Afterwards, we take a stroll around town, taking some cheesy pictures en route.
Ushuaia, 'end of the world'
Everything...?!
The sun sets over Ushuaia
Walking home from Dublin
The most popular bar in Ushuaia is Dublin, where locals and tourists gather to drink Beagle beer and (later) dance around like lunatics! We like it. There is a mix of people who work on the Antarctic cruise ships, people who have returned from the Antarctic (a mere 1000km from here), and those of us who cannot afford to go to the Antarctic at this time in our lives! Prices for such cruises are cheaper to buy in Ushuaia than elsewhere, and seem to average round the $3,000- 5,000 USD mark.
Sailing the Beagle Channel
Fanny, a French girl, whom we met at Perrito Moreno, has recommended that we do a short sailing trip on the yacht, "If".
If
We are warned to wear as many layers as possible! The boat trip is very pleasant, and stop for an hour's walk on 'H' island where our guide shares information about the flora and fauna in the area. We spend some time watching cormorants, whom he refers to by their technical name of 'sh1t machines'! We also learn about the Yamana people, who first settled in the area. On the way back to Ushuaia we pause to watch the sea-lions laze about and grumble at each other!
Looking at charts to get a sense of direction
H island, Beagle Channel
Cormorant colony (smelly)
Sealions
Fly-fishing at Rio Ewan, near Tolhuin
Tierra del Fuego is known to provide some of the greatest fishing opportunities in the world, so we are keen to give it a go! The hostel recommends that we talk to Miguel, a local fishing guide to see what we can arrange. There are many companies in the town offers fishing excursions for hundreds of dollars per day, but Miguel can offer much better deals.
Sunrise over Ushuaia
So Monday morning at 7am we set off to Tolhuin, stopping at one of the most famous bakeries in Argentina. The churros are delicious! Inside the walls are lined with photos of celebrities and policians eating churros and other facturas (pastries), and towards the rear of the building there is a type of aviary with parrots and toucans. Miguel feels the only good thing worth knowing about this town is the bakery!
The famous bakery, nothing fancy but delicious!
I have never fly-fished before, but have heard it is much more technical than spinner fishing. Oh dear, but Miguel reassures me that he will give a crash course, but that I shouldn't have too many expectations as the wind can make this location a difficult place to learn. People come from all over the world here, especially hard-core fishermen who come to Rio Grande ($1000 per day). I ask about women fishing in the area, and he tells me many of the wives are 'more fisherman than the fishermen themselves' (not sure if this comment was just for my benefit?!).
I practice my casting for a while (without fly), until Miguel feels I am ready to try with the hook. You will not believe this, but on my very first cast with the fly I reel in a 3kg brown trout!!!! A little slimier than I expected. For the next 10 hours (with breaks) we move along the river catching and releasing brown trout. A total of 6 fish for Adam, and 4 fish for me - not too bad at all! There are no other people around, the only noises are from the guanaco on top of the hill and the cara cara who are busily scanning the area for food. To complete the day, we have an icy-cold Quilmes to refresh before heading back to Ushuaia. A good day all around!
We trek to an isolated spot along the River Ewan
Surrounding landscape (note lack of shelter for those instances when nature calls)
First catch of the day
My first cast, and first fish!!
Ok, ok... the first fish I'm not so enthusiastic to hold alone!
Poor little feisty fishy!!
Cara Cara
Pro!
Miguel, our guide
Guanaco watching us from above
Happiness!
Horse-riding around Tierra del Fuego
Adam has never riden a horse before, so I book us in for a 7-hour ride around the island. 20-year old Nahuel is our very sweet and knowledgeable guide. My horse is Cocolucho, and is full of mischief (apparently is an expert escape-artist!). Within minutes of getting on Imperador, Adam is doing great. By the end of the day he is able to walk, trot and canter - and by no means is this terrain easy to negotiate! The horses we are riding are called criollos, sure-footed and calm creatures, accustomed to the landscape. Nahuel gives me some insight into the horse-culture in Argentina. We talk about rodeos (common here and in Uruguay) and Nahuel shakes his head - once a horse has been to a rodeo they will never be a good working horse - they will always fear their rider. He has just bought himself a two-year old, quarterhorse for a mere $3,000 pesos. During the course of the day we circle Mount Susana and ride along the coast of the island. It is beautiful, and luckily the weather is great! We stop for a asado at lunchtime, but bad news - we are missing the grill for the fire! However, the lady from the kitchen has instead provided us with two bottles of wine! No meat for us, so we stock up on salad and bread. Despite his grumbling of a sore derriere, Adam enjoys the day greatly!
Adam's first moments on his horse, Emperador!
Born to be a gangsta'
For the first 20 minutes we trek with Fran Cabo (a famous US comedienne!)
The mischievious Cocolucho!
Tierra del Fuego National Park
It is not the most spectacular park that we have been to in Argentina and it is expensive to get transport and entry to - however, it is still worth a day trip. The paths here are more like Sunday strolls than trekking paths, but they are very pleasant to follow. The park is emmaculate and the water is clear as crystals.
End-of-the-world stamp
It is very touristy but we get our passports stamped!
Bed bugs
It is here in Ushuaia that we have our first know encounter with bed bugs. It really is disgusting but we do some research into how to get rid of them - we change rooms in the hostel, they fumagate the beds and we wash all our cloths and belongings at a high-degree heat. It is a horrible experience but from what the internet says beg bugs are becoming more and more prevalent around the world - even in fancy hotels. Yuck.
A picture is necessary to reinforce my disgust
Did you know that is can take up to 9 days for bites to appear? Also, these disgusting skuttling creatures can live up to one year without eating (i.e. sucking your blood)......
So aside from bedbugs, we have had a wonderful trip! We stay in Ushuaia for 7 days, which is enough time to get a good feel for the place. The locals I chat to in shops and restaurants are really lovely - friendly and delighted that I am able to speak a few words of Spanish! The food is quite good in Ushuaia - king crab and trout are the essential must-tries. We hear that the lamb here is the best in Argentina, so we go to an 'all-you-can-eat' parilla where the meat is certainly tasty - but not the best we have had so far.
It is hard to resist buying steak at this price (£1.79)!
Trying the 'best lamb in the country!'
Now it is time to fly back to Buenos Aires, which after a month in Patagonia, may be a shock to the system! Meanwhile we hear of heavy snow in Ireland and the UK, and that all tickets for Glastonbury 2009 are sold out!!!!
Wow it looks fantastic down there! What price was the steak in proper money?
ReplyDelete£1.79 for about 4 fillet steaks!! hmmmm
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