Patagonia

Wow, what do you do after Antarctica?   Well, for us, going to Patagonia is a big deal.  We tried to go there in 2010 on a hiking vacation, but never got there because of the earthquake that hit Chile while we were en route to Patagonia.  We were stranded in Santiago, Chile for 13 days unable to get to the southern part of Chile to join our hiking tour.  While we consider ourselves lucky not to have been killed or injured in an earthquake that killed over 800 people, we have always longed to see this part of the World so a second chance to get there is considered a gift by us.

Scenery as we leave Antarctica sailing to Patagonia

Incredible icebergs and ice formations everywhere

Patagonia is a region of South America located in the southern parts of Chile and Argentina and has coasts on the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.  It extends from the middle of Chile and Argentina down to the very end.  The southern tip is an island area called Tierra del Fuego ("Land of Fire") so called because the indigenous people built fires to stay warm.  The explorers saw all the fire and smoke and thought the land was completely on fire.  The word  "Patagonia" comes from a word that means "big feet" and was given to the region by the Spanish explorers that discovered this area and refers to the indigenous people that they found there.  No doubt, as the explorers settled the area and fought with the inhabitants they described them as giants to embellish their accounts of the conquests.  Today, the area is politically divided between Chile on the west and Argentina on the east and incorporates a beautiful area of the southern Andes mountains down to the end of the continent of South America.

Stops in Ushuaia, Punta Arenas, Island of Chiloe (below Puerto Montt)
 and Puerto Montt passing fjords and glaciers and mountains along the way

After leaving Antarctica, we crossed the notorious Drake Passage with only mildly rough seas.  Our Captain described it as the Drake Lake since our crossing went relatively smooth. The channel leading to our next stop is called the Beagle Channel and is named after the HMS Beagle, a British naval ship that explored the area in the 1830s.   Our first stop was in the town of Ushuaia, Argentina (population 57,000).  The town touts itself as being the "End of the World" because of its location at the end of the continent.  Upon arriving, we walked around this outdoorsy town exploring on our own.  It reminded us of a typical hiking town with hostels and backpacker lodges on the backstreets; adventure and outdoor gear shops and restaurants along the main drag.  We found a local café on a backstreet where we lunched on empanadas and a local beer called Beagle.  Since we were overnighting in the Port, we went back out into town that evening where we found a local Irish pub that was popular with backpackers and visitors.  We enjoyed a couple of Beagles and hung out with other passengers and crew members.  It was a fun, unstructured day for us in this outpost.

Beautiful scenery along the Beagle Channel

 

Arriving in Ushuaia, Argentina

"Fin del Mundo" (End of the World)

 

Irish Pub (they are all over the World)

Enjoying a Beagle

The first Irish Pub at the end of the World
(Another history lesson for the Ladells)

 

On our second day in Ushuaia, we took a tour to go on a guided hike in a wilderness area called Tierra Mayor Valley.  We took a bus to the park, then donned special waterproof hiking boots and set out on a 2 hour hike in the park.  It was a totally desolate area set in a valley of peat moss surrounded by green forested mountains with snow covered peaks in the distance.  We did a challenging hike through the muddy peat bogs of the valley (thus, the special waterproof  boots) looking up at the peaks above.  After slogging through the mud, we ascended a rustic trail up a mountain through the forest.  The air was clean and the area was completely unspoiled.  It felt so good to us to be out in this unusual wilderness.

Hiking in a remote valley in a park near Ushuaia

Passing by a beaver dam

Beaver dams cause the landscape to change because
the flooding kills the trees.  They are amazing engineers.

Beautiful landscape - muddy peat bog, green forest and
snow capped peaks --- no people except us orange clad hikers

We left Ushuaia in the afternoon and sailed along an area informally referred to as "Glacier Alley".  It was a stunning sail along this stretch of water.  The slopes of the mountains ran down to the waterline and were covered in dark green forest with rock outcrops adding dramatic relief to the mountainside.  There were waterfalls everywhere.  The Captain took us on a side trip to see a magnificent glacier in the area.  We were able to get really close for good views of the glacier from all sides of the ship as he maneuvered around in the bay.   There was so much natural beauty in this area we could hardly pull ourselves back inside to warm up. 

Glacier and waterfall

Impressive glacier

 

We continued our journey along the Strait of Magellan en route to our second stop in the Patagonia region.  The Strait of Magellan was discovered by Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese explorer and navigator, in 1520 during his circumnavigation of the globe.  Although he was Portuguese, his expedition was under the flag of Spain.  The discovery of this passageway from the Atlantic Ocean through to the Pacific Ocean was significant because it cut off the need to go all the way around the tip of South America to get through.  At the tip of South America is the dreaded Cape Horn where so many ships wrecked in the rough seas and weather.  This cutoff was of great significance to the trade routes.  For us on the Seabourn Quest, it was just jaw-dropping beauty along the way!

We arrived in Punta Arenas, Chile (population 127,000) for our second stop.  We were excited to visit here because this was our destination in 2010 that we never got to because of the earthquake.  We walked around the  town on our own for awhile, then joined a bus tour to see more highlights of this colorful outpost.  Like most Spanish towns, there is a square in the middle and the city spreads out on a grid from the square.  There are monuments paying tribute to explorers and heroes all around.  We visited an interesting museum that had a replica of Magellan's ship, the Victoria, that we explored.  After sailing on the luxurious Seabourn Quest, we could really appreciate the hardships of sailing through these uncharted, treacherous waters in such a small vessel with only the stars and crude navigational instruments to guide them.  These were very brave seamen.  At least they didn't have to worry about fitting into their tuxedos on formal night after so many days at sea like us passengers on the Quest.

Overlook of colorful Punta Arenas

 

Statue of Magellan in the town square

Town square in Punta Arenas

Big Feet of Patagonia native
The custom is to kiss the foot so you will
return one day, but us Wimps
elected to touch only then sanitize

 

To finish up our day in Punta Arenas we stumbled upon the Hotel Cabo de Hornos (Cape Horn Hotel) at the square,   It was the same hotel we had booked for our trip in 2010, but never made it there.  We felt compelled to go in and enjoy a couple of Pisco Sours at the hotel bar.  It was a great way to finish up our day before going back to the ship to continue on the Strait of Magellan.  Here's to Magellan!!!!

Cape Horn Hotel

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Ahhh - Pisco Sours at the Cape Horn Hotel