Cruising the Fjords of Tierra del Fuego

CRUISE VIA AUSTRALIS USHUAIA – PUNTA ARENAS

23 DEC – 27 DEC 2006

Aboard the ship Via Australis (or its twin Mare Australis), from October to March there are 5-day (4-night) or 4-day (3-night) cruises in the fjords of Tierra del Fuego and of Argentine and Chilean Patagonia; on our Patagonia holiday we included this "jewel", departing from Ushuaia (Argentina) and arriving in Punta Arenas (Chile). It was an unforgettable experience, both for the quality of the service offered (certainly 5-star) and for the unique panoramas you can observe. It is not a restful cruise, because the numerous excursions take place (in the greatest safety) with landings by zodiac dinghies, allowing you to get very close to the various chosen places of fascination.

During the transfer stages, moreover, very interesting lectures are held on board about the wildlife, the flora, the history of those places and in particular the legends of the peoples who existed before the arrival of the white man and the consequences of that conquest. Here is a brief account of our journey and the most important stages of the trip:

Day 1 Ushuaia

The ship departs late in the evening but, thanks to the favourable season, we have the spectacle of the southernmost town in the world with the mountains behind it covered in snow.

Day 2: Murray Channel - Nassau Bay - Wollaston Islands - Cape Horn - Nassau Bay - Wulaia - Murray Channel - Beagle Channel The legendary Cape Horn and its adjacent islands await us at this dawn. Its location at 55° 56' South and 67° 19' West, between the two oceans, and the intensity of the weather phenomena that surround it make these parts a unique and unequalled experience. When nature allows it, you can visit the Cape Horn monument, founded on 5 December 1992 on the initiative of the Chilean section of the Confraternity of the "Cape Horners". Since 2005 this place has been declared a World Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. In the afternoon we land at Wulaia Bay, a place rich in history and legends, where the English captain Fitz Roy had contact with the Yámana aborigines in the 19th century.

On board: - Lecture: Flora of Patagonia, Spanish and English - Lecture: "Aborigines of Patagonia", Spanish and English

Day 3: Beagle Channel - Glacier Alley - Pia Fjord - Ocasion Channel - Cockburn Channel

At dawn we sail along the avenue of glaciers, such as those named after Holland, Italy, France, Germany and Romanche. Today's landing was in front of the majestic Pia Glacier, located in the north-western arm of the Beagle Channel. After going ashore we follow a safe trail on a short walk to enjoy the panoramic view of this glacier. This time we are lucky because we see the impressive landslides of ice blocks from the glaciers. Back on board, after a welcome "snack" of hot chocolate and whisky, we sail through the intricate channels of the western coast of Tierra del Fuego. Surroundings of undisputed beauty and solitude that remind us that magnificent territories still remain, some of them still unexplored and rich in natural history.

On board: - Art of culinary decoration in the dining room. - Lecture: "The Strait of Magellan and expeditions", in Spanish and English. - Seamanship knots class with the boatswain in the deck-4 lounge. - Pub night in the deck-4 lounge and a film in the deck-3 lounge.

Day 4: Cockburn Channel - Chico Fjord - Piloto and Nena Glaciers - De Agostini Fjord - Aguila Glacier In groups in the morning we sail by zodiac through Seno Piccolo, which will take us towards our excursion sites (the Piloto and Nena glaciers). At 6 miles (11.2 kilometres) long, this fjord will delight us with its landscape of rock eroded by frost. Then the Pluschow Glacier awaits us with its imposing beauty. The name of this glacier recalls the German aviation pioneer Gunther Pluschow, who aboard his plane "Feuerland" arrived in Punta Arenas in 1928. He then constantly flew over Tierra del Fuego in his aircraft "Condor de Plata", taking the first aerial photos of the Darwin cordillera and carrying out the first airmail between Ushuaia and Punta Arenas. In the afternoon we visit the De Agostini fjord.

Our afternoon landing took us on a walk of varying difficulty in front of the Aguila glacier.

On board: Lecture: "The Magellanic Penguin", in Spanish and English Cocktail, the Jack raffle and auction of the navigation chart used on the crossing to Cape Horn.

Day 5: Magdalena Island - Punta Arenas

Magdalena is an island protected by the National Forestry Corporation (CONAF), the Chilean organisation for the protection of animal and wild life, for the abundance and diversity of the species that use it as a breeding habitat, in particular the "Magellanic" penguins, whose 70,000 pairs account for 95% of the island's faunal biomass. The cormorant family is represented by 3 species: the Rock Cormorant, the Falkland Cormorant and the Imperial Cormorant; only the first nests on Magdalena Island. The Dominican Gull is present on the island and forms large colonies with the Austral Gull, the Dolphin Gull and the skua. Today our southern adventure ends. Mother Nature has been very generous with us: we have discovered the wonderful beauty of these lands of legends. We have entered the native forest and admired the millennial ice of the glaciers of the Darwin Cordillera.

Our bodies have withstood the terrible winds of Tierra del Fuego. We returned happy and covered in mud.