Day 33,Ushuaia

Day 33

Ushuaia

This is the third time we have been to Ushuaia.  The previous two times we did not take a tour, but simply walked around this small, touristy town.  This time we decided to visit the main attraction here – Tierra del Fuego National Park.

Tours by Locals

Using the internet, I first look for freelance guides with a good reputation and reviews, and then try the commercial tour operators.  I couldn’t find a freelance guide but I did find a guide using the website “Tours by Locals”, which are usually more expensive than other tours in the area, but if the tour is high quality, then the extra cost is worth it.

A guide offering a 5 hour tour for $600 was available and I found another couple to share the cost.  I could have added 2 more people for the same price, but with only 4 people in the large van, everyone would have window seat.  Finding other people to share expenses is a breeze using the Cruise Critic Roll Call.  The other couple responded to our notice within 45 minutes of posting. 

Our tour guide, Gaston Bretti, met us on the pier within feet of the gangway in his Hyundai H1 van which had room for 7 passengers and was quite comfortable for the four of us.  When booking a private guide, inquire if they have the permits to drive directly onto the pier which will save ¼ mile of walking to get the entrance to the pier. 

Here is a map with an overview of Ushuaia and the places we visited.  Nothing is that far away and there is little traffic that could delay getting back to the ship. 

TIERRA DEL FUEGO

On the way out of town, we drove through what I called the “real downtown”, where the non-tourists shop.  Next time we are here, I may visit this area for a change of pace.  We drove by one yarn shop, but couldn’t really tell what they were selling based on the sign in the window. 

Admission to the National Park in $560 Pesos per person.  Our driver paid and we reimbursed him in USD, about $10 each.  If we had already had enough Pesos, we could have paid this directly ourselves.  The rangers at the entrance didn’t appear to take USD, so be sure to make it clear how this entry fee will be paid before starting out. 

Throughout the day we saw numerous other tourists at the same view points who arrived in Taxis.  This would be easy to do, especially with aid of my map, depending on the English speaking skills of the driver, you may not get much else beyond transportation. 

At the end of the pier, there are numerous small buildings hosting various tour operators.  If you come here without a plan, it will be easy to put something together at the last moment.  Ushuaia is a big tourist town that gets many people arriving to start Antarctica cruises on the expedition ships as well has others on various land tours.  Unlike other small towns, the ship doesn’t overwhelm the businesses and there are more non cruise ship people around than you will see from your ship. 

Everyone we encountered took USD and credit cards. 

There are 5 stops involved with any complete tour of Tierra del Fuego, 3 view spots, the Visitor Center and the End of the World Post Office at Ensenada Beach. 

Another advantage of a private guide, is that he knows the order and timing of the giant motor coaches the larger tour operators use.  Your guide will be able to sequence your visit so you will be able to take in the beauty of most of the spots by yourselves.  With the exception our visit to the Visitors Center and Ensenada Beach, we saw the 3 main view spots before any other tour buses arrived.  

LAGO ROCA – STOP 1

Our first stop was a view spot on the eastern end of the Lake, “Lago Roca.”  As we arrived, we spotted a large, beautiful Southern Cara Cara sitting on a fence rail.  By the time we got closer, it flew away, buy Judy managed to capture a nice snapshot before it left.  We spent about 30 minutes here enjoying the view and walking down to the mouth of the river that leads down to the Beagle Channel.   

MIRADOR LAGUNA VERDE – STOP 2

Our second stop was at the end of a 100 yard long boardwalk overlooking Mirador Laguna Verde.  There were some steps toward the end, with no ramp, so you have to be able to navigate a few steps to get to the viewpoint.  Once again, thanks to the timing of our driver, we had the spot to ourselves for a few minutes.  A few other people arrived by taxi as we were leaving.  

PAN AM HIGHWAY – STOP 3

The Pan American Highway runs 19,000 miles from Ushuaia, Argentina, to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska.  The starting point, or depending on your perspective, the ending point, is here in Tierra del Fuego.  This was our third stop in the Park. 

There is a huge parking lot as this spot is quite popular for the Pan American Highway sign alone.  Beyond the sign, there is a 300 yard walkway to a view point overlooking an inlet that leads to the Beagle Channel.  This is also the starting point for a HAL tour, where you take a bus from town out to this point, and then ride a boat back to Ushuaia.  We spoke to our tablemate, Susan, who took this tour, and she loved it, reporting that they saw numerous birds, sea lions and other wildlife – highly recommended. 

HAL TOUR DESCRIPTION FOR THE NATIONAL PARK & BEAGLE CHANNEL TOUR – 7:45 AM – 5.5 Hours $185

Located only seven miles from Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego National Park encompasses a protected area of mountains and sea.  Travel southwest, through the suburbs of Ushuaia and past the Pipo River to the National Park.  Head to Roca Lake, traveling along a narrow and picturesque route that teems with local fauna.  Walk alongside the edge of the lake and the Lapataia River with its natural estuary.  Heading on towards Lapataia Bay, you will board a catamaran and sail through Lapataia and Ensenada Bay with views of Redonda Island and across the channel are the stunning Nevados Mountains in the Sampaio Range.  Navigate the Beagle Channel all the way to the Bridges Islands and Les Eclaireurs lighthouse.  During your navigation you are likely to encounter a great variety of seabirds and sea lions.” 

HAL Tour Description

VISITOR’S CENTER

We passed the National Park Visitor Center as we first entered the park, but thanks to our guide, we were now arriving as most of the big tour busses were starting to leave.  There is a small museum, a gift shop (USD and credit cards OK) as well as clean bathrooms and a cafeteria that sells hot drinks and snacks.  There is an information booth as soon as you enter where they will stamp the back of your ticket, or anything else, with a Tierra del Fuego National Park ink stamp. 

POST OFFICE AT THE END OF THE WORLD

Our final stop of our tour was Ensenada Bay, home of the most southerly Post Office in the world.  We didn’t miss the crowds here and the parking lot was full of buses and a group of motorcycles which were part of an organized tour.  This tour company “Motoaventura” offers motorcycle tours and rentals all over the world.  More information HERE: 

If you want to mail a postcard from this special post office, buy a stamp and card in town and then you can simply drop your card into the post box and avoid the line – (probably 15 minutes) 

This was the final stop of our tour of Tierra del Fuego National Park.  It was now 11:20 AM when we started the short drive back to the city.  If you are planning a tour on your own, plan on 4 hours and you can see it all at a leisurely pace.  If you don’t want any guide narration along the way, you could probably negotiate a taxi to take you to the same places for less.  If you do this, I would take the Park entrance fee in Pesos to avoid any issues when you enter the park. 

CITY TOUR

On the way back to the port, we drove around Ushuaia and thru a few housing developments which is home to local residents. 

Our tour ended around 12:30 PM.  Gaston dropped us off in town and we walked back to the ship after browsing the shops for about 1 hour.  He would have taken us back to the gangway if we chose. 

The town is full of tourist shops and restaurants.  It’s possible to walk around and see most everything in a couple of hours. 

Within easy walking distance of the port is a large “USHUAIA” sign which makes for great photos.  There is also a memorial to the sailors who died on the ARA General Belgrano, the Argentine ship that was sunk during the Falklands War in 1982.   Ushuaia is a base for the Argentine Navy and was homeport to the ARA General Belgrano. 

BACK ON THE SHIP

After passing thru Shore-side Security on the way back to the ship, there is a row of gift shops on the pier selling everything from T-shirts to wine.  If you are coming back from a tour and this is your only chance for shopping, you will find a selection of what you would have found out in town.

The sailaway party was held in the Crow’s nest.   For the next few hours we enjoyed some scenic cruising down Beagle Channel. 

DINNER WITH DARWIN

The theme in the dining room was “Dinner with Darwin”  celebrating Food, Drink and Evolution.  Darwin was the Naturalist on the HMS Beagle which explored South America for 5 years in the 1830’s.   It was on this trip he discovered some fossils near Punta Alta which helped form the basis for his groundbreaking theory on evolution.

The waiters wore distinctive brown tweed style vests that resembled what the explorers wore in the 1800’s.  The best Judy and I could come up with was large “I Heart Darwin” buttons.   Large commemorative menus complete with a raised wax stamp showed the selections for this evening’s dinner.

MAIN STAGE

Ruben Viligrand was back on the Main Stage with his second show which included him speaking.   As with the first show, he concluded the show with a display of shadow puppets.

• Ruben Viligrand