4**** Patagonia Tours to Travel to Ushuaia Torres del Paine Calafate Fitz Roy Perito Moreno

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Patagonia Travel Options

and Tour Info!

Patagonia is Nature pure! Below choose from our tours to best let you enjoy these natural wonders. Following the 12 below proven itineraries guarantees smooth traveling! While we can always try to customize, it has to be said that in this remote part of the world infra-structure and frequency of transportation puts limits on many travel ideas!

 

4 days El Calafate, El Chaten, Fitz Roy, El Calafate

15 days Buenos Aires, Puerto Madryn, Ushuaia, M/V Australis Cruise, Punta Arenas, Puerto Natales, Torres del Paine, El Calafate, Buenos Aires

9 days Puerto Madryn, Ushuaia, Rio Grande, El Rolito, Rio Gallegos, El Calafate

10 days Nature pure from El Calafate to El Calafate

7 days El Calafate, Fitz Roy, Helsingfors, Los Glaciares, El Chalten, El Calafate

8 days Puerto Madryn, Esquel, Epuyen, Bariloche

3 days Comodoro Rivadavia, Puerto Deseado, Comodoro Rivadavia

6 days Comodoro Rivadavia, Petrified Woods, Rio Mayo, Pinturas River, Perito Moreno, Puerto Chacabuco, San Rafael Glacier, Balmaceda

9 days Bariloche, San Martín de Los Andes, Pucón, Puerto Varas, Puella, Bariloche

6 days Bariloche, Esquel, "La Trochita" Train

General Patagonia Travel and Tour Info

Patagonia and the Lake District (see also below "Southern Patagonia")
South of the Rio Colorado, experiences a desert climate, although temperatures range from mild to subzero and terrain varies from bucolic river valleys to the gigantic, ice-capped southern Andes. Its cool grazing grounds support enormous flocks of sheep, and numerous fruit and vegetable farms can be found in the valleys. Patagonia also holds vast reserves of oil and coal.

Tierra del Fuego (see also below "Southern Patagonia")
The Land of Fire is actually an archipelago including the Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego (which Argentina shares with neighbouring Chile) and numerous smaller islands. Northern Isla Grande is similar in terrain to Patagonia's plains, while the mountainous area in the south is filled with forests and glaciers. Its climate is usually mild year-round, although storms are frequent.

SOUTHERN PATAGONIA
The southern extreme of Patagonia offers tourist resources unique in the world. A thousand emotions invade the spirit when discovering the region situated just at the end of the world. A land of legends that many audacious spirits in the world have dreamt to travel. A land rather bleak, barren, inhabited only by those who have accepted to challenge of loneliness and the only company of nature at its best. A land where the visitor will be enraptured by such beauty. Due to its geographical position, it is exposed to strong winds, which is proven by its low constructions and the lack of vegetation in the cities, whose only trees grow bent following the wind direction and are thus called ‘flag-trees’ for the shape they adopt. ‘Los Glaciares National Park’ heads the long list of sites that, passing by the mythical Tierra del Fuego and the Islands of the Southern Atlantic Ocean, ends in the captivating ‘white continent’: Antarctica. A visit along these vast lands will make it possible to get in touch with some of the wonders of nature in constant creation. But once one has been there, it is impossible not to be prompted to return again and again.
The main cities of this region are: Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world and El Calafate, the gateway to an impressive land of glaciers.

RIO GALLEGOS
It is the capital city of Santa Cruz province, 2,700 km (1688 miles) and about 3 hours away from Buenos Aires (by direct flight). Located on the banks of the river of the same name by the Atlantic Ocean, it concentrates all the commercial and administrative activities of the southern region of Patagonia, carried out around the deep-water port from where wool and coal production is exportedt. The international airport links the city with the rest of the country. In the outskirts, stands 'Isla de los Pingüinos' (Penguins' Island), in 'Cabo del Buen Tiempo', that can be reached on foot during low tide. 62 km (39 miles) southward from Río Gallegos is situated the geological reserve of 'Laguna Azul' (Blue Lagoon), formed at the bottom of an inactive volcanic crater, surrounded by the moon-like landscape of lava and stones characteristic of 'Cadena del Diablo' (Devil’s Range - Mount Aymond). The lagoon depth is estimated in some 1,000 m (3,330 ft.). Further on, 134 km (84 miles) south from Río Gallegos, is located 'Cabo Vírgenes' where stands the beautiful and lonely 26-meter (87 feet) tall lighthouse, built at the beginning of the XX century, that indicates the end of Continental Argentina, 2,700 km (1,688 miles) away from Buenos Aires. There is in the area a reserve of Magellan Penguins that houses 80,000 couples of these birds which nest here from October to March. Near the cliff can be seen the meager remains of ‘Ciudad del Nombre de Jesús’ (Christ’s name city) founded by one of the first pioneering Spanish explorers that reached the region in 1584. Southward, it is possible to see the Strait of Magellan, witness of the innumerable attempts made by those pioneers that in the XVI and XVII centuries sailed these waters in search for the passage that linked Europe with the Eastern realms. The strait separates the continent from the island of Tierra del Fuego.
Río Gallegos was formerly the entrance to the glacier region because the closest airport was situated in this city, though there is now a modern International airport in El Calafate, now the real gateway to the glaciers. Anyway, if you wish to catch the true spirit of the Patagonian steppe you may travel at least one way the 320 km (200 miles) northwestward to El Calafate along the never ending Patagonian roads through the vast plateau with the only company of the sky, the poor arid vegetation and the horizon. 150 km from Río Gallegos the tiny town of 'La Esperanza', is the only place to refresh for a while. There is a gas station, a police station, a first-aid ward and a coffee-shop.

EL CALAFATE
It is a nice tourist village of a little more than 3,000 inhabitants, that nestles at the base of the cliff on the shore of the vast Lake Argentino (‘Argentine Lake’) and which offers very good and varied accommodation. It is surrounded by small farms that grow vegetables and fruit trees forming a belt around the small urban center. The city is crossed by El Calafate Stream, which divides the village in two. A few meters from the center of the city, a gravel road leads to Nimes Lagoon, near the lake shore, a small bird reserve which houses an important population of black-necked swans, flamingoes, ducks and upland geese surrounded by a dark sand beach. Some 8 km (5 miles) from El Calafate the Punta Walichu Cave which gathers some replicas of paintings made by the local aborigines more than 4,000 years ago stands. These reproductions help visitors to understand a world unknown to them.
El Calafate is the National Capital of the Glaciers and the most important city in the area. Traveling 51 km from El Calafate, you reach the 'Parque Nacional Los Glaciares' (Glaciers National Park), which protects an area covered by glacier tongues coming down from the 'Campo de Hielo Sur' (Southern Patagonian Ice Cap), relicts of the last glaciations in the Quaternary Period. Its core is in the Andes between the 40¼ and 51¼ parallels of southern latitude. This field adopts a longitudinal shape running from north to south with an extension of about 350 km (219 miles) and a surface of 14,300 km2 (5,520 sq miles) approximately. 47 major glaciers descend from this ice field, some of them belonging to the Atlantic basin, such as: Marconi, Viedma, Moyano, Upsala, Bolados, Onelli, Agazzis, Peineta, Spegazzini, Mayo, Heims, Ameghino, Perito Moreno and Frías. All of these spill over the Argentino and Viedma Lakes, which determines the particular turquoise color of their waters due to the sediments and minerals dragged from the rocky beds of these ice rivers on the mountain slopes, that remain in suspension in the waters since their specific weight is lower to the water's. This allows natural light to penetrate only to a certain depth. The most renown of all the glaciers is the Perito Moreno Glacier. Situated 80 km (50 miles) from El Calafate, it is the most easily reached among them. This is an imposing ice river, 3-kilometer wide and 70-meter (233 feet) high in its front wall, that descends from the 'Campo de Hielo Sur' down to the lake, at 'Canal de los Témpanos' (Icebergs’ Channel), only 200 meters (666 feet) above sea level. It is the only glacier in the area which is considered to be in equilibrium, that is: not receding. It has always been the most important attraction of the region thanks to its spectacular beauty, but specially because of its unusual behavior. The glacier slowly advances down the mountain slope towards the lake, producing, as it spills down, thunderous noises and ruptures. Till a few years ago, the glacier used to grow till reaching Península Magallanes, on the opposite margin of the lake, across the Canal de los Témpanos, blocking the natural flow of the water from one arm of the lake into the other, thus the pressure of the water trying to recover its natural course increased from year to year until it pierced the ice dam, producing the famous ‘fracture’. This unique phenomenon took place every 4-year periods or so, with tons of ice yielding to the force of the water, and bursting in a fascinating and thunderous dance of huge deep blue and green ice blocks turning upside down. This process lasted up to 36 hours; peace and silence returned afterwards. The last fracture took place in 1988 and from then onwards the glacier has not been able to reach the peninsula; some scientists think it is a natural cycle matter while some others think that the global warming is to be blamed. The Perito Moreno Glacier was declared Mankind’s Heritage by UNESCO. The front wall of the glacier can be appreciated from a series of walkways and belvederes situated on the peninsula.
Adventure tourism has strongly developed in the last decades and it has made it possible for many people to enter intangible areas where there is very little infrastructure. This is the case of the so-called Minitrekking on the surface of the Perito Moreno Glacier. Sailing from Bajo de la Sombra Pier, located on the road that goes to the Perito Moreno Glacier, 7 km (4 miles) before reaching the walkways, the Rico Arm of the lake is crossed towards the southern margin of the lake. A short walk through a virgin forest up to the lateral moraines (or glacial sediments) of the glacier, allows visitors to reach the glacier. Here, the expert guides assist the inexperienced visitors to put on the crampons in order to enjoy an expedition on the millenary ice. An unforgettable experience that does not require any special training.
Other ways to approach to the Perito Moreno Glacier are the boat excursions that depart from the local piers: the Nautical Safari, a 1-hour navigation facing the south wall of the glacier, embarking at Bajo de las Sombras Pier; or the Moreno Fiesta, another 1-hour navigation along the north wall of the glacier, embarking at Moreno Pier.
Some of the other glaciers are accessible by boat, most of the excursions departing from Puerto Bandera, situated 47 km (30 miles) from El Calafate. A few kilometers away from the port the boats reach the narrowest strait of the Lake Argentino, known as 'Boca del Diablo' (Devil’s Mouth). It is 1.5 km (1 mile) wide and it is the gateway to the North Arm of the lake. Pushed by the wind, numerous icebergs detached from the glacier fronts drift majestically on the water surface. The Spegazzini Glacier, located on the channel of the same name, has a surface of only 66 km2 (25 sq miles), and is one of the most beautiful glaciers in the area with easy access. It is the one that boasts the highest wall over the lake surface due to its position between mountains. Once in the Onelli Bay, located on the channel of the same name, it is possible to disembark at the Juan Piñeiro Pier to walk through an ancient forest of lengas and ñires. After an 800-meter (2,665 feet) walk, you reach Lake Onelli where the Bolado, Onelli and Agassiz glaciers come down together towards the lagoon filling the waters with drifting icebergs. On the shore of the Onelli Bay, there is a comfortable restaurant where it is possible to shelter from the cold and enjoy a bit of the simple but delicious local cuisine.
The Lake Argentino reaches its deepest point (over 1,000 m/3,330 ft.) in front of Upsala Glacier, located two and a half hours away from Puerto Bandera. It is the largest continental glacier in the southern hemisphere with 595 km2 (230 sq miles). The vessels approach to the glacial front as much as it is permitted by the mass of drifting icebergs. The glacier can also be reached by land, navigating into the Cristina Channel, towards the west of the Upsala Channel, and disembarking on the east bank of Península Herminita, at Estancia Cristina, to start a 3-hour walk upward along an old path opened by the Argentine Navy. During the walk, you will go across a lengas and ñires forest with a series of carved terraces and rocks perfectly polished by glacial erosion. The 'Cañadón de los Fósiles' (Gorge of the Fossils) is a very good example thereof. Some 800 meters before arriving at the east wall of the glacier the Upsala Refuge, former seat of the ‘Instituto del Hielo Continental Patagónico Argentino’ (‘Argentine Patagonian Continental Ice Cap Institute’), built in 1953 to study the behavior of the glaciers of the area is based. The final point of this walk is a natural belvedere with a magnificent view of the Upsala Glacier, the valley and Mounts Cono, Bertachi and Murallón and their hanging glaciers.
Sailing across the South Arm of the Lake Argentino, it is possible to reach Bull’s Bay. In this area, the highest mountains reflect into the bottom of the lake and create an imposing combination of green forests and eternal glaciers. This is the image of Mount Mayo with its glacier and of Mounts Negro and Ballena. A small black sand beach on the Toro Bay allows the access to a sector of the Andean-Patagonian forest of particular beauty where, besides the typical flora of the region, it is possible to see huge trees whose trunks are over 2 m. (7 feet) wide and up to 25 m. (83 feet) tall. Going through this forest, you arrive to the Del Toro Cascade, whose last fall is 60 m. (200 ft.) high. The most important glacier in this area is Glacier Mayo, located in one of the most abrupt fjords of the Andes, surrounded by a dense forest. The icebergs of this glacier flow in a small lagoon, under the imposing towering mass of Mount Mayo.
Lake Roca, located to the south of Lake Argentino, only 65 km (41 miles) from El Calafate, is an ideal place to walk around, horse ride, fish and camp. The way up to this place is a typically Patagonian road, where it is possible to observe the local flora (broom sedge, calafate shrubs and other weeds) and several ovine cattle-raising ranches, where is interesting to visit the huge shearing barns, which come to life during the shearing season from December to February. It is also possible to observe a few original rupestrian paintings that will allow visitors to get in touch with the history of the primitive inhabitants of this lands. Passing by Lake Roca, the road finally ends at Estancia Nibepo Aike, located on the South Arm of Lake Argentino, where you can take advantage of the chance to taste some delicious Patagonian lamb. From here you can take a walking path that skirts the shore of the South Arm towards the 'Tres de Abril' and Fría Lagoons, offering a great view of the majestic mountains of the Torres del Paine National Park in Chile (in spite of the proximity between the national parks 'Los Glaciares' and 'Torres del Paine', there is no direct road that links them).

EL CHALTEN
The legendary peaks of the Mounts Torre and Fitz Roy stand out in the middle of the flat Patagonian steppe and they attract numerous professional climbers and amateur trekkers from all over the world. Short lateral valleys stretched before the mountain chains make the access to this amazing scenery quite difficult. A wide variety of walks differing in difficulty and length can be done in this region. From El Calafate, this area is reached through 220 km (138 miles) most of which are done along the legendary Route 40, that runs parallel to the Andes up to the north of the country. El Chaltén was the name given by the local tehuelche aborigines, primitive inhabitants of the region, to the mountain known nowadays as Mount Fitz Roy. The word 'Chaltén' means ‘mountain that smokes’, probably because its summit is always covered with a layer of clouds. Its particular shape, huge height and the constant clouds must have served them as an orientation signal during their annual migrations from the Atlantic Ocean to the Andes. Its summit can be easily seen from different places. This tiny village, of less than 500 inhabitants, situated at the foothill of this impressive massif, is in constant growth. It has inns, hostels, restaurants and campsites. The town is the starting point of several paths that lead to places that offer unique scenic beauties. One of the most popular walks is the one that leads to the first camping site of Mount Torre, from where is possible to admire the pick-carved-like granite walls of the summit which for many decades was considered inextricable, until it was conquered for the first time by the expedition headed by the Italian Cesare Maestri in 1970. The road up to Torre Lagoon is well indicated and easy to follow. There are about 10 km (6 miles) along a difficult steep path through forests, valleys and rivers of extraordinary beauty. The effort is rewarded, however, by the astonishing landscape offered by the mountain that reflects into the lagoon at its foothill. Another of the walks that are a ‘must’ in the area is the one up to Mount Fitz Roy camp base. The first stop is at Capri Lagoon, reached after a one and a half-hour walk, to get an impressive view of Mount Fitz Roy, which does not diminish, however, the beauty of the unique and lonely landscape of the lagoon and its surrounding forests and peaks. Going on westward you reach the Blanco River, from where the camp basis is just a few steps away. Therefrom the last effort up the steep slope that separates the Laguna de los Tres from the campsite is faced, to reach finally the most outstanding and rewarding view of the lagoon and the huge massif reflecting into the waters.
A shorter walk leads to Chorrillo del Salto, another of the attractions of the area; and another path leads to Piedra del Fraile from where a great view of the whole massifs of Mount Torre and Fitz Roy is obtained. It is also interesting to visit by car or on horseback the renown Lago del Desierto.
Besides these classical full day hikes, there are several other adventures that take a few days spending the nights at campsites. The most interesting ones are those that ascend to the gates of the Continental Ice Field up to the spot called Paso del Viento or to the one known as Paso Marconi. But the most challenging experience is to traverse a portion of the enormous ice cap, joining some of the organized expeditions, called ‘Continental Ice Cap Traverse’. They take about 12 days, to cross the extraordinary mass of ice from Paso Marconi to Lake Viedma. These traverses involve walking across glacial moraines; climbing up and down sharp slopes; traversing over the bare ice itself or over deep, fresh snow blanketing the glacier surfaces and traversing over crevasses as well, which often make it necessary to rope the expedition members. The experience requires not only a strong sense of adventure, but also psychological and physical conditions to afford one of the most severe climate conditions in the world.
Route 40 goes on northward and following it will provide an endless variety of impressive landscapes, as it pierces the Central Patagonian steppe.

RIO TURBIO
The tiny town of Río Turbio is situated in the southwest extreme of Santa Cruz province, near the Chilean frontier, 278 km (17 miles) from Río Gallegos and 300 km from El Calafate. It has a permanent population of about 7,000 inhabitants, most of whom work in the coal industry. There is also a cross-country and alpine ski station called Valdelen, near the Chilean border, visited mainly by local people. From the top of the slope, it is possible to see the deep bays and fjords of the Chilean channels on the Pacific Ocean and the summits of Torres del Paine National Park. From Río Turbio, it is possible to reach Puerto Natales, Chilean city deemed as the gateway to the National Park. The area is more closely accessible from El Calafate through the border crossing of Cancha Carrera – Cerro Castillo.
Torres del Paine is, undoubtedly, the most attractive of the Chilean National Parks, specially because of the characteristic bold features of the Paine Range Peaks reflected in the deep bluish waters of its glacial lakes. Paine, as well as the Mount Fitz Roy area, is worldwide considered a trekking paradise. The highlight of the Park is the Paine Massif, a set of mountains towering at the southwestern rim of the Continental Ice Field, outstanding due to the attractive shapes of its peaks: The Horns, colored horn-shaped spires of intrusive granite into dark sedimentary rock, and The Towers, consisting of three granite tower-shaped peaks with perfectly vertical walls, with the dark glacial lake stretching at their feet, increasing the dramatic beauty of the landscape. Hiking or driving around to discover the most fascinating views in the park, a ‘must’ for any visitor. Surrounding the Paine Range, the impressive views of Lakes Pehoé, Njordenskjold and Grey; the latter with bluish icebergs detached from the enormous glacier of the same name. Mighty rivers, powerful cascades, dense forests, and a varied fauna give the final touch to this marvelous scenery. One of the most challenging adventures available, is a traverse all around the Paine Massif, that takes 9 to 11 days.
From Argentina, its is possible to reach the region through any of the five border crossing that follows:
*Cancha Carrera (AR) – Cerro Castillo (CH): it is the one closest to the Torres del Paine area, located 88 km (55 miles) from the administrative center of the National Park and 292 km (182 miles) from El Calafate. This pass is closed in winter.
*Río Turbio: (AR) – Casas Viejas or La Laurita (CH): it links Río Turbio with Puerto Natales
*Mina Uno (AR) - Dorotea (CH): it also links the cities of Río Turbio and Puerto Natales; located 350 km from El Calafate and 247 km (155 miles) north from Punta Arenas. It is open all year round.
*Monte Aymond (AR): it links Río Gallegos with Punta Arenas (252 km/157 miles).
*San Sebastián (AR): it is the only border crossing which links Tierra del Fuego to the continent. There are ferries that cross the Magellan Strait from San Sebastián to Porvenir in two hours. From there to Ushuaia there are 456 km (285 miles) by land, passing by the city of Río Grande.

USHUAIA (Tierra del Fuego)
Under the Patagonian sky, between Cape Horn and the Magellan Strait, an extended archipelago emerges. The largest island is Tierra del Fuego , a land of legends that lit the popular imagination in the era of the conquerors; it attracted gold chasers, adventurers, pirates, missionaries and scientists. The widespread idea of Tierra del Fuego as a barren and icy region, is far from reality. This is a lively and fertile land full of flowers, woods and birds. This is a paradise of eternally snowed peaks, majestic millenary glaciers, the so-called ‘flag trees’ shaped-by-the-wind and a great deal of marine fauna.
At the southern end of the American Continent, the Andean Cordillera plunges into the ocean producing a large archipelago of islands and rock keys, where there is a variety of channels, fiords and bays, glaciers, lakes and peat bogs, with lush forests and important fauna reserves. Here, the so resistant Nothophagus species of trees impose their almost exclusive presence. Likens, ferns and mosses appear all over, as well, particularly the sphagnum moss that form huge peat bogs.
The island is divided between Argentina and Chile. The capital city of the Argentine Tierra del Fuego province, known as the southernmost city in the world, is 3,040 km (1,900 miles) from Buenos Aires. It is located in the southern end, facing the Beagle Channel, and surrounded by the Martial Mounts Range, towering at its back. In fact, the city stretches over its slopes, framed by a one-of-a-kind scenery of mountains, ocean, glaciers, lakes and woods. Southwards from the coast, the view of the Ushuaia Bay and the Beagle Channel, and the Chilean islands of Navarino and Hoste is superb. The End of the World Museum exhibits an important patrimony related to the history of the city and its primitive inhabitants. Near downtown, the Ushuaia Maritime Museum occupies the building belonging to the former maximum security presidium of Ushuaia called ‘Presidio y Cárcel de Reincidentes’. Very dangerous convicts and well known political prisoners made this prison famous. It worked as a prison until 1947 though one of its buildings is still kept in its original conditions, relating the history of this prison that played an important role in the history of the city, since all its staff lived therein and even the prisoners contributed with their work to its development. The Admiral’s Berisso Navy Base operates here.
Only 12 km (7 miles) west from Ushuaia the access to the Tierra del Fuego National Park is reached. The park is a fantastic natural space where numerous flora and fauna species live together in harmony. The park offers a different landscape during each season of the year; the flowers and the varied bird species are the main attraction in the summer. About 500 flower species, distributed from the sea level to a height of 700 meters (2,300 feet) have been classified. Thirty percent of the total surface of the park is occupied by the Andean-Patagonian or Sub-Antarctic Woods with trees belonging to the family of the Nothophagus, such as: ñires (low deciduous beach tree), coihues or guindos (evergreen beach tree) and the most important: lengas (high deciduous beach tree) as well as some other species in a lower proportion. Due to the diversity of climates and vegetation of this territory, over 200 bird species have been registered including the majestic Condor, known as the ‘King of the Andes’. In the woods, two mammalian species stand out : the rabbit and the beaver (both species exotic to the local environment). The latter is the one that has caused the greatest impact on the environment, specially on the hydraulic system, building dams that change the course of the waters and flood extended sections of the woods. The park is also an excellent place for adventure tours. One choice is a one-day hike focused on flora and fauna understanding, visiting beaver dams and climbing up to a panoramic view point that allows to get a great view covering the area from Lake Roca to Lapataia Bay. A more demanding choice is a three-day trekking to the Laguna del Caminante ('Walker's Lagoon’), whose extraordinary beauty framed by one of the most beautiful landscapes of Tierra del Fuego, is rarely visited in spite of being so close to the city, due to its difficult access.
On the way to the park, the road goes through the 'Estancia Río Pipo' where the typical Restaurant Tolkeyén, offers the possibility of tasting the delicious Patagonian lamb barbecue, one of the typical dishes of the regional cuisine, along with the king-crab. Nearby, the Central Station stands close to Pipo River. This is the departing point of the already famous Southern Fuegian Railway, renown as the Train of the End of the World. It is a small 120-seat train that enters the National Park stopping at different interesting sites. The train follows the old terreplein of the small train that worked until 1947 carrying prisoners from the Ushuaia Presidium to the woods in search of wood for heating. Traces of this destructive activity are still sadly notorious in the woods. The train goes through Pipo River across the ‘Burnt Bridge’ and makes its first stop at 'Cascada de la Macarena' (Macarena’s Cascade). Here, you can see a reconstruction of an aboriginal Yamana or Selknam settlement, called ‘Río Ajej’. The final section of the journey, runs along the 'Cañadón del Toro' (Bull’s Canyon), to reach finally the end of the railways. It is possible to choose then between continuing the excursion to the National Park, or undoing the way back to the Central Station. The excursion goes on to Lapataia Bay, the southernmost tip of Argentina, on the coasts of Beagle Channel, and the final end of National Route 3, at 3,300 km (2,063 miles) from Buenos Aires. It is most interesting to observe there the ‘concheros’, invaluable archaeological sites which have produced incredible information about the customs of the primitive local inhabitants, their habits and their every day life. Other interesting places within the National Park are, Lake Roca and its nearby tea-house, Pipo River Cascade and Ensenada Bay, from where it is possible to embark into a little boat towards 'Isla Redonda' (Round-shaped Island), an intangible zone of the park, where an interesting flora interpretation path has been outlined and where the southernmost post office in Argentina is located.
Sailing the waters of Beagle Channel is a ‘must’, the gateway to the waters of the ‘end of the world’. Different vessels set sail from the ‘Tourist Pier’, near downtown. Sailing across Ushuaia Bay, a charming view of the city and the surrounding mountains is admired, till reaching 'Paso Chico' (Narrow Pass), which indicates the entrance to the mythical Beagle Channel, which still preserves its halo of mystery and ancient memories of old shipwrecks. However, it is the perfect place to observe marine fauna in its natural environment. The boat reaches the Birds’ Island, close to Bridges Archipelago, where, as guardians over the rocks, the Imperial and Magellan cormorants deceive visitors with their appearance of penguins, living along with a wide variety of marine fauna formed by albatrosses, petrels, seagulls and ducks. Within short distance, the Sea Lions' Island, emerges packed with both one-haired and tow-haired sea lions that seem to be sunbathing. Nearby, the Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse, only witness to the wreckage of the German ship Monte Cervantes, back in 1930, stands on the island of the same name. Further on, the Martillo Island, known as Penguins’ Island, boasts an important rookery of Magellan penguins. Just in front of it, Estancia Harberton is located on the homonymous bay, facing the crystal clear waters of the channel. The estancia may also be reached overland from Ushuaia. It belongs to the Bridges family and it is the oldest construction of the Island with elements brought directly from England in the XIX century. From Harberton Bay, it is possible to glimpse the Chilean Hoste Island, chosen by Jules Verne as the setting for an improbable republic in one of his novels. Further east from the estancia, which is probably the most unexplored section of the island, stretches a 5,000 km2 (1,930 sq miles) triangle inhabited only by guanacos, foxes, geese and varied marine fauna, including penguins, sea lions, and occasionally, even some whales. It is called Península Mitre. It was a mythical land for the Onas, primitive inhabitants of the land and also the stage of the first encounter of these cultures with white men. Hundreds of vessels shipwrecked near its coasts, and the relics of some of them still remain laid on the beaches as well as devices that belonged to the old gold searchers that lucklessly wandered in the region; speechless witnesses of the useless attempts of ‘civilized men’ to tame this hostile land. A ten-day horse riding expedition along the coast to the eastern extreme of the island is a superb choice for those in search of challenging adventures.
The western portion of Tierra del Fuego Island, in Chilean territory, stretches in an enormous peninsula where the highest peaks of the Insular Andes soar up. Massifs up to 2,000 meter-high (6,660 feet) seem to emerge out of the ocean such as the 'Cordillera Darwin', a legendary territory largely covered by a massive ice layer, just a small example, of what was the last glacier period. The deep fjords characteristic of its coastal line are another fantastic trace left by the erosive action of the glaciers. Glaciers that slide unnoticed from the Ice Field towards those fjords, finally breaking off in hundreds of incredibly bluish or greenish icebergs. The iced peaks of 'Cordillera Darwin', most of them unconquered, are always amazing for the few visitors that have the rare privilege of admiring them. A cruise sailing from Punta Arenas to Ushuaia (or vice versa) makes it possible to get in touch with this untouched beauty. Another way is joining one of the few trekking and climbing expeditions explorations organized in this area.
Leaving Ushuaia northbound, bordering the river that descends from Mount Olivia, symbol of the city, the road goes through the Andes. The landscape is featured by a series of beautiful valleys and mountain ranges such as the Carbajal Valley and the Alvear Range that extend up to the Garibaldi Pass (430 meters/1,430 feet above sea level). Many winter sport resorts have taken advantage of these most proper terrain for the practice of different activities such us cross-country ski, mainly, and also Alpine ski, dog sled, snow cat and hiking with racquet snowshoes. Some of them are: Cerro Castor, Tierra Mayor, Las Cotorras, Valle de los Huskies and Haruwen. From Paso Garibaldi, a great view of the Lake Escondido (Hidden Lake) in the first term, and Lake Fagnano as a backdrop, is obtained. Down, by the lake shore, the charming Hostería Petrel is settled. Going on northbound, towards Lake Fagnano, along the main route, it is possible to observe several sawmills, most of which are nowadays closed, even if they were prosperous in the past. Traveling just a few miles away from the main road, you enter a harsh and barren land, with quite rare traces of human presence, without paved roads or human settlements. The ideal setting for those who love nature, adventure and solitude. Notwithstanding wandering in such a terrain poses some obstacles, such us overcoming fallen trees, walking over beaver dams, crossing dense woods, avoiding peat bogs and crossing rivers though improvised trunk bridges or, sometimes, fording barefoot through the cold water. The difficulties involved in the task are a lot, but they precisely bring along its main attractiveness: to feel an intimate contact with pristine nature. One of the best trekking alternatives available, is to cross the Beban's Pass. Beban was an old inhabitant of the island who, around 1920, while he was chasing some prisoners escaped from the presidium, reached the pass for the first time, discovering the mirror of water that the local aborigines used to call Kami. The area still preserves the same mystery and amazing beauty that Beban found in the old times. Lake Kami is the one known nowadays as Lake Fagnano. The lake, that occupies an important geological fault, parallel to the one that formed the Beagle Channel, is the largest one in the island (110 km/69 miles long and 5 to 8 km/3 to 5 miles wide), and flows into the Pacific Ocean. Lake Fagnano appears in the middle of a bleak and mostly inhabited area, with the only exception of Tolhuin, town situated in the eastern head of the lake, just in the ‘Heart of the Island’, as the area has come to be called. And the name itself is an Ona aboriginal word meaning ‘heart-shaped’. The town is starting point of many different alternative tourism excursions. North from Lake Fagnano, an area of transition between the Andean and the steppe environment appears, the area where Lake Yehuín and Lake Chepelmut are situated. Their turquoise waters flowing southwards, across a system of connected mountain valleys, lead to Lake Fagnano. Canoeing along this streams and connected lakes, facing a myriad of obstacles becomes a unique experience that allows a close contact with nature.
By then, all traces of the Andean-Patagonian woods have been left behind. Landscape is definitively dominated by the characteristic steppe vegetation. The city of Río Grande is located in this area. It is mainly dedicated to oil exploitation and exploration but there are also some industries, mostly electronic and textile companies, that are what remains of the Law of Industrial Encouragement dating back to 1972. At present many of them are closed. In the outskirts of the city, there are numerous estancias devoted to sheep raising. Its location, by the homonymous river, makes the city an important center of game fishing, specially for trout and salmon. From there, National Route 3, to the north, leads to San Sebastián, from where it is possible to cross the border to Chile and then, across the Magellan Strait, reach the continent.