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So Friday morning rolled around and we caught our 8am flight out of Buenos Aires to Ushuaia.
So we landed at the airport and despite this being an internal transfer so no customs to navigate we still had to answer 101 questions as to where we were staying, how long, contact telephone numbers and other personal information we were let through to collect our bags. After a taxi ride to the hostel we decided our first mission was to find the local launderette as it was becoming a desperate situation!! After some Spanish directions from our friendly hostel host we set off on our mission. Anyway we left our washing all neatly separated in two bags (whites and darks). We were told to collect it after 5pm so we wandered around the town, had some food and caught up on blogs and e:mails. Anyway we went to collect our washing all excited to find that they had not kept our clothing separate fortunately for me I have only one item that has been dyed grey and thats my new white bra!!! NICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Saturday came around and most of the day was spent at the local doctors/hospital as Sharon had
been suffering from stomach cramps for 6 days and so it was time to admit defeat and ensure it wasn't anything serious. After a once over and a few tests she was told it was a virus and handed a prescription. Thankfully she is now pretty much back to normal so please do not start panicking just yet.
Sunday morning came around and I was starting to climb the walls as we were surrounded by snow peaked mountains and fantastic scenery and I had not had chance to get to see any of it properly. The day before I had called in at the tourist information and they told me that you can walk through the town and then from the town along a path up the mountain to the bottom of the glacier where you can then get a chairlift up to the top. I was told it was a 5 mile walk and should take me an hour and a half walk to the chairlift. I had been slightly disappointed to find that the ski season doesn't start here for another 18 days although the tourist information guy thought that if I got up there there may
be a chance of hiring some gear and skiing.
Sharon still wasn't 100%!s(MISSING)o I decided that I was going to tackle the walk so map in hand I set of and it all went fine. Half way up I met a guy from Belgium, Rasfak , and we ended up keeping each other company for the rest of the day. The pathway up between the road and river was snow and ice and there was no way I was going to get to the top of the mountain by following it (anyone who was with me in Canada knows that I am like Bambi when it comes to walking on ice). So my companion for the day and I walked up the side of the road but even this was icy and had not been gritted so yes I did fall over a few times (Marie-Eve you will be impressed as I managed to bruise the palm of my hand!!) Anyway we navigated the 7km to the top but unfortunately when we got to the ski area the chairlift wasn't working. I will openly admit that if I had been on my own I would have turned back
and come down however we decided to walk up and I am glad we did. The views when we got to the top were amazing however we didn't go too far as there was no definitive path due to the snow and obviously it is dangerous on the glacier although the glacier wasn't too apparent!
We both had some lunch with us so headed back down and stopped at the top chairlift cabin but after 15 minutes the weather became colder so I layered up with my clothes and we headed down the mountain. As soon as we hit the road it started to try and snow and by the time we were half way down the mountain you couldn't even see where we had been as the cloud etc had closed in. I parted ways with the guy when we reached the town. It was nice to get out although I walked for a lot longer and a lot further than I had anticipated! I was out for 6 hours and I reckon that I walked about 12 miles. Hight wise I climbed from sea level up around 800meters!! As for skiing well it was out of the
Abandoned boat in the harbour
The waters were so calm hence the brilliant reflection. question. Some dedicated locals were up there and attempting to ski however due to the chairlift being closed they were having to walk to the top and then skiing down a rock solid sheet of ice with lots of rocks sticking out of the ground (even I would not have been that stupid or desperate to ski and it cannot have been fun). Skiing will have to wait for me till later in the trip....
Monday came around and Sharon was felling better and it was a bank holiday over here as well as in England and once again the whole town was shut down so we decided to go on a boat trip down the Beagle Channel and partially follow in Darwins footsteps. At this time of year there is limited sealife to be seen as al the penguins have headed off on their jollies so we knew we would get to see two different species of sealion and birds. We stopped near one island and there were various colonies of sealions basking in the sun. We then moved onto a different island and as we did so we did spot a lone penguin dive into the sea
but he disappeared and I didn't get a photo. At the next island we were surrounded by sealions playing in the sea. The captain of our boat told those of us stood at the front to crouch down and hold on to the sides. All soon became apparent why when we started turning in circles and the sealions started playing in the wake of the boat (I have got a short video of this however am having problems with uploading it so watch this space.....). We then headed down to the lighthouse near the mouth of the Beagle Channel and then back for a quick tour of Bridges Island. I also tasted Beagle beer which for the records should be avoided, Cape Horn beer isn't too bad nor is Austral!!
On our return to Ushuaia the rest of the afternoon was spent determining the next part of our trip since we have found that we have a few weeks to spare in our itinerary as everything to date has gone smoothly. Anyway Lonely Planet and my map of South America in hand we sat in the "Invisible Pub" and whilst I tasted another type of local beer we mapped
out our next few weeks.
This morning was an early start and first stop was the travel agency next door to our hostel to book our bustickets as there is no bus station here in Ushuaia. Bus tickets booked, bank accounts emptied we headed off for a walk around the Tierra del Fuego National Park. I will openly admit that this was not what I expected and if anything I was slightly disappointed. Map in hand and a route planned Sharon and I set off into the woodland and whilst I appreciate we may have come here at the wrong time of year I had expected to see a bit more wildlife than three birds, two ducks and four rabbits. I had also expected for the surrounding scenery to be more dramatic and for us to be in the middle of soaring mountains.
So that is the end of our encounter with the fin del mondo, two border crossings (into and out back out of Chile) and El Calafate and the glaciers await.
P.S For those that are receiving postcards the next batch have been sent plus please ensure you appreciate and cherish them as they cost
A mad and over dedicated skiier!
Even I wouldn't have been as stupid to ski in these conditions. Rocks showing everywhere and the "piste" was sheet ice following freezing rain. a lot out of my small daily budget!!!
P.P.S Mum you should be proud my education has stood for something whilst down here as I remembered that Cape Horn is where all the ships used to sink thought to be due to the two oceans meeting. I told Sharon this and she looked skeptical until the guide on the boat confirmed it. See it hasn't all been a waste of time!!!!!!!!! Just most of it......
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