Ushuaia

Ushuaia

The land of fire was tantilisingly close in terms of Argentian travel, so whilst in Puerto Madryn, we made the choice to head down afterall. It had been an aim of mine to reach and have a look around, and perhaps fly south to Antarctica from there too, but it was really a one step at a time scenario.
Tierra Del Fuego was named for the many fires that were sighted by the Spanish explorers, the likes of Magellen and co. when they first saw the fires dotted across the landscape from their tiny ships. Lit by semi nomadic tribes who had wandered down from north america and asia around 20,000 BC, the locals were extremely primitive still wearing furs tied to them rather than sewn, it was the beginning of summer when we arrved and snowed pretty much every day, so I think they must have been pretty damn cold..surely. A hardy bunch I think. The good Spanish and European people clothed and housed the natives, but forget to immunise against diseases related to sedentary living and dirty clothes and rapid development. By the beginning of the 20th Century there were around one hundred native indians left. Why the european explorer stayed is clear. Who doesn’t want to ski at the end of the world? The ancient ski lifts still work there and as we arrived had only just closed for the “summer”. The abundant wildlife and the control of the southern tip of America might actually have been a more relevant reason. The Brits had their eye on the area too and Cook in the Beagle managed to find a slightly safer route past as is now referenced by the Beagle Channel, which Ushuaia guards.
The landscape is incredible as you would expect and the main town and point of reference in the area is Ushuaia, serving as a strategic military base against those pesky Chileaneans who also like the idea of owning the islands, and perhaps the oil that lies beneath the Southern Atlantic ocean?

We had found our hostel with a group of fellow mad dogs and Irishmen, following the Irish contingent who had booked. The hostel only offered bunks, but was extremely clean and tidy with very comfy beds,. and I would highly recommend it. Cruz Del Sur I think.
The next day we headed out for a walk around town to see the sites, i.e. the sea, the surrounding landscapes and absorb the life there, and of course the museum, which I think should be called Museum at the End of the World. I loved it, and would like to return for some skiing next time.
The town is nestled in beneath the mountains and offers the more well healed intrepid explorer a base for expiditions to the the Antarctic, perhaps next time we thought, it looks so close and in reality was a good 48 hours on a ship. We headed off for a day of walking in the national parks nearby which offer a glimpse into what the area was like pre european settlement i suppose. We had inquired about walks and found that sadly a good number were still closed due to the snow line, so wandered along the lakeside to the Chilean border. We had wondered why the track did not run the entirety of the lakes perimeter. The border itself showed of times less peaceful, with old barbed wire fencing in the forest still up. The signage now was quite laughable, but we obayed and stayed on the Argentinian side so as to not lose our lunches.
It was a shame to have to catch the bus back into town, a day or two of camping and walking would have been enjoyable. Apart from the skiing and the walking in the national park there is also a glacier to have a look at. We attempted this and walked up a powder covered ski piste with questionable older snow under it and could feel it cracking every now and then. We heard a couple days later that a fellow tourist had falled into a stream and got a soaking.. The top of the ski lift was the basis for the walk to the Glacier, signs advised against further walking without a guide so sadly we turned back, and faced the wind pelting snow into our faces as blizzard conditions suddenly appeared. The funniest and perhaps most bizarre part of the walk up was our Japanese friend who decided to bring his Ukulale with him and then gave us a mini concert in Japanese at the top. Brilliant and very talented, but in a blizzard, bizarre.
At the bottom of the run we found a small hotel with a tea room that could have been kitted out from Laura Ashley with the full floral curtains and cutlery. They served hot chocolates or Submarinos and great cake and kindly called a cab to take us down the hill to the town once more.
We booked ourselves flights from Ushuaia to El Calafate and then onwards to Buenos Aires as they were only marginally more expensive than the buses and much more comfortable and less dusty. Ushuaia was really more than I imagined it could be and I look forward to returning to do some european summer skiing and walking.