Ushuaia bills itself as the southern-most city in the world, many people come here for that privilege alone. Others continue further south. It is often called the ‘Gateway to Antarctica’ as Antarctic bound ships leave from the port of Ushuaia. However, we will not be going any further south on this trip as it’s a cool $5,000 to $10,000 to take the ship to the seventh continent.
Ushuaia is located at the very tip of South America on the island of Tierra del Fuego, clinging to the shore of the Beagle channel and surrounded by the last of the snow-capped Andes. We arrived in the height of summer yet the wind was bitingly cold and we quickly exchanged our shorts and flip-flops for hats, gloves and hiking gear.
Glacier Marshal
Hiking to the top of the glacier is totally free, a fact most welcome, as everything in Ushuaia is ridiculously expensive. Our only cost was the taxi to the chairlift at the foot of the glacier. From there it’s easy to follow the hiking trails up to the summit.
It’s an odd thing but we really appreciated the cold, after spending so long in hot countries being able to hike without sweating felt amazing. Perhaps I loved the cold a bit too much being the only one walking in a T-shirt. It must be something about coming from Newcastle!
The glacier itself is underwhelming, when compared to the other giants in this area of the world. However, the landscape is amazing, the views over the Beagle channel and of Ushuaia are fantastic. Just being there, the feeling of being at end of the world while standing at the top of the glacier was incredible.
Beagle Chanel
The boat tour through the Beagle channel was expensive. You get to see sea lions, cormorants and a lighthouse all from the confines of the boat. All of which we could easily do at home in Northumberland at the Farne Islands. The only reason we were going to do it was to sail through Beagle channel at the “end of the world”. So when the tour was cancelled due to high winds we were not disappointed and decided to hike to Laguna Esmerelda instead.
Laguna Esmerelda
This free hike costs you nothing except the transport, which made missing the boat trip sweeter. The hike started walking through dense forest.
The trail passed through beautiful scenery, dead forests, glacial streams, beaver dams and peat bogs, all set against the striking backdrop of snow covered peaks.
Arriving at the turquoise Lake Esmerelda took an hour and a half. It was an excellent surprise to see such incredible scenery!
We made it back to the trail head in under an hour where our bus driver welcomed us with pastries and a hot drink to warm us up.
Museums
Like everything else here the museums were overpriced so we only chose one to visit. We decided the Yamana museum, dedicated to the peoples who once lived in the region, would be the most interesting.
Amongst other things we found out why they lived naked in the cold climate, why only the women swam and that Tierra Del Fuego (Land Of Fire) is named after the fires of the Yamama people visible as the first ships sailed by in the 1500s. Like the stories of many natives we have heard in the Americas it is sad and doesn’t end well as they were eventually wiped out.
Tierra Del Fuego National Park
Visiting the Yamana museum before walking through the national park was worthwhile. Walking along the coastal trail across the mussel beds, in the bitterly cold summer wind really puts into perspective the challenges they faced to survive in this region.
After completing the four hour coastal trail, through wind stricken woods, beaches and deserted coves without ever seeing another person we arrived in the centre of the park.
Luckily the sun appeared as we walked some of the smaller trails making it a pleasant experience. The landscape around us was just fantastic.
The park was big enough to spend another few days as we only saw a small part of it, but it was a bit too cold for us to start camping.
