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Published: March 18th 2007
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By the time I reached Ushuaia, I had had enough of fast travel. I had been up by 6 am every day for a week, moving from one place to another or catching the sunrise. I was ready to chill out, and I chose end of the world for it. That’s how Ushuaia, the southernmost city of the continent and the world is advertised - the end of the world. In reality, not quite so, I though, as I arrived and saw the touristy shops accepting credit cards, Dollars, Euros. Must have been quite a different place when Darwin came here many years ago to explore the fauna. Forgetting the tourists and the cheesy shops catering to them, the town is quite lovely, though, nicely placed in the mountains nested at a beautiful bay. The animals seem to enjoy themselves here as well, as the bay is inhabited with sea lions, cormorants, and penguins. I later took a short boat trip in the bay, on an antique boat made in the 50s, to get close to them.
I came here with Miguel, a Spaniard that I met in Punta Arenas, and later Judith and Isa from my earlier trips
joined me for couple days here. For much of the trip I spent in absolute solitude though, alone in the national park, observing the nature and putting my mind in a relaxation mode. It took a surprising effort to force myself to take it slow, and really not until these few days had I been able to turn my brain off. Having worked for 6 years before embarking on this trip, I almost forgot how to relax. That’s why this trip.
The Tierra Fuego National Park is just 15 km west of Ushuaia, but there is a whole different world here. Since there was already the fall in South America, the trees were beautifully colored in yellow and red, many completely covered in lichens, sometime as much as foot long. I set my tent in a remote campground, absolutely alone there for the whole three days. I had a book, chocolates, and a bottle of nice wine to keep me company. I soon realized that I was staying in a rabbit paradise. The place was just swarming with these creatures that cleaned the grass into a perfect golf-quality lawn. And then there were the birds, a great variety of
them, but the most amusing to watch were the youngsters of an eagle-like specie. They truthfully did not stop screaming until the sun was behind the horizon, flying in couples practicing their maneuvering skills, one following the other one rapidly changing direction and diving in. And then the cormorants that so elegantly dived in the water looking for fish (or muscles perhaps?). The loudest ones though were the sea ducks. At first I thought there must have for sure been boars in the woods. But those were the ducks making the sounds! By the end of my trip I also made a friend in a fox who came to say hello quite often (really, wanting my sausages, I think).
I did not have to wait too long for my first adventure. While I was taking a shot of a bird, the wind took my mattress to the lake and it was floating away! It was freaking cold there (I had 4 layers on and two pairs of pants), and swimming was not my first choice for entertainment. Unwillingly, but rather quickly, I got undressed and jumped in. By then the mattress floated a nice distance. Finally I caught up
with the mattress and hauled it on the shore, angrily holding the object like a naughty child. The birds must have thought I was an idiot, and they were indeed observing me with a great interest. Good think I had my wine to warm me up. Almost by miracle, I avoided another disaster. I think the ocean really wanted my mattress. I left my things by the shore and went for a stroll in the woods. When I returned, I to my amazement discovered that the water had advanced by more than a meter in height and was just about to claim my things again. I was in an ocean bay, and not by a lake! The tide was quick. When I secured my belongings, I looked around and saw that I was not the only one who was taken by surprise.
There was a rabbit trapped on an island - that’s what was left from what was a peninsula just an hour ago. The island was getting smaller and the rabbit more nervous. It could not swim! Should I be the hero and rescue the poor animal? I remembered my encounter with the penguins. May be the rabbit
is not as peaceful after all and will attack me viciously, protecting its land, or what’s left of it. Having collected enough courage, I left for my tent to pick up my towel to get ready for a swim. It was not necessary. On the way there I saw a large bird chilling out by the water, with a great calm looking into my eyes. I left the prime spot, on the peninsula right next to the rabbit, and the bird took it as an approval to do its thing now. He could sense that I was good for nothing and I was certainly not going to claim the rabbit. It took just a minute and the bird took my place and in few seconds the rabbit was in its hands. The most amazing site was when the bird landed just centimeters from the rabbit, for a second looking into its eyes, before killing it with one punch of its monstrous beak. In the morning, the rabbit family happily played on the same peninsula where this scene took place. I wonder how many rabbits this bird has for dinner every week?
The following morning I wondered further in the
woods, walking through a land of mosses, mushrooms, ancient trees, and bogs. Quite like Boundary Waters in Minnesota, I though, with plentiful lakes, small islands, and wet ground. My absolutely favorite landscape. But surprisingly, there are no coniferous trees here (and in fact nowhere in Patagonia). I was up early and the colors were beautiful with the sun just peaking over the mountains. Soon I met a friend on the road. A lonely fox. It sniffed around and quite like the bird from the night before, it looked me in the eyes and went its own way. In just a second, I heard a child scream. No, it was a rabbit! The fox was quick and soon there was no sound at all. (This reminded me of my childhood when we had our own rabbits at home. Exactly the same child like scream before the rabbit dies.) Wow! I am in a real nature now, having seen two killings in just 24 hours. Do I feel safe here? I survived the vicious penguin in Patagonia and so I decided to stay, knowing I could defend myself.
My last day was quite peaceful. There was a slight drizzle, and the
whole nature seemed to slow down that day. I explored the area little more, and discovered an archeological site. That’s what the sign said. No trespassing! Of course this meant I had to look around some more. The only thing I saw were rabbit holes and their excrements. And then I finally discovered what might have been so special about this place. The rabbit holes and what was around them were quite different. The mussel shells; everywhere! This must have been a site of the indigenous people. Earlier I read in my guide book (and later confirmed in the museum) that the Yamani people who used to inhabit these islands used to build these temporary tents, collect mussels and throw them around their dwellings. With the changing wind, they rotated the tent and thus the tent was soon surrounded by a wall of mussel shells. When the mussels were exhausted, they would move elsewhere, but leaving the shells behind. What a beautiful bay they chose, I though, looking around. Sadly, there are no Yamani people left today, as they all died of European diseases. I trembled in the cold and thought of these people how they used to roam this
territory, absolutely naked, diving in the ocean gathering the mussels.
I read my book, finished the bottle of wine, and left for Ushuaia. Still thinking about the natives and how much effort they would have to expend to get it, I bought myself a king crab and ordered a glass of nice Malbec. I guess I still prefer to live in these days and our way of life.
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