At the End of the World....

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Greetings all from Ushuaia ---- literally the end of the world. The archipelagos of the Beagle Channel are scattered around like croutons in a bowl of soup and then if you go far enough, the land literally just runs out on you…

The mountainous peaks of Tierra del Fuego National park surround this isolated port which is as far South as a human can go (unless you get on a boat to Antarctica) and it sits in a concave scoop (a little like La Paz) enduring the gales and unpredictable weather mood changes of the region´s topography.

I arrived a couple of days ago and have now parted company with my fellow Kumuka buddies, having endured two continuous days of 14 hours in the truck with a visit to the Otway Sound Penguin colony squashed in.

My brother Adam and I have take the view that you can never have a bad day in a water park (unless you ride the Jumeirah Scarer in Dubai…there lies a tale known only by my nearest and dearest) and equally I would like to put forward the view that a ppppp…penguin is guaranteed to put a smile on even the most miserable of people. Forget Prozac… if you are clinically depressed the NHS should ship you out to a penguin colony or failing that London Zoo and plop you down to watch these fascinating creatures.

One cannot help but squeak and gurgle with delight (or perhaps that was just me) watching these ungainly birds as they flop themselves out of the sea and waddle like overweight humans across their land. Wings flapping, webbed feet slapping the sands, their elliptical bodies bounce from side to side and I dare anyone not to feel totally enraptured. These penguins were Magellanic Penguins or to be precise, Spheniscus magellanicus, and breed in coastal Argentina, Chile and the Falkland Islands. I have been fortunate before to be “entertained” by penguins in both the Galapagos Islands and Boulder Beach in Cape Town but there was something about these Magellanic ones that enthralled me…photos you will have seen. When I say entertained, they didn’t dress up and tap dance for me but put on a mighty display as though out of the Ministry of Silly Walks.

The penguin colony was a moment of joy in 2 days of arduous travel in a truck which has not improved the longer Ive spent in it. I am not sad that I shall never set foot inside Macetito (the name of the truck) again. Other trucks Ive been in (Cameron…I miss you!) leave this one looking like some aged monstrosity out of the Cold War and when given the opportunity to send feedback to Kumuka, I will bring to their attention that they need to not only invest some money in their tents but also their modes of transport….I don’t wish to moan here and certainly don’t want to list the catalogue of faults with the whole Kumuka experience but to give you an idea of what travelling on Macetito was like… well, somehow I got snowed on …IN the truck. I jest ye not….

The drafts from the doors and windows were so great that any toupee wearers would have needed vast quantities of Araldite or the like to stop their wigs from being blown away whilst on board… the winds howling round the truck meant you were permanently frozen unless wrapped up in all your wind and wet weather gear and shrouded in the manky blankets onboard. Trust me when you have 14 hours to spend in these conditions, sharing a space which really should only seat 12 but 20 people are crammed in, you do start to wonder WTF???!!!

Leaving Patagonia, we crossed the Straits of Magellan on a small transport ferry which took us into Tierra del Fuego…the final reaches of the South American continent. Climbing in altitude as we approached Ushuaia the snow started to fall and suddenly we were enveloped in a blizzard which rendered the world alabaster white. A Narnian vision from the windows of the Truck which caused extreme joy for all the Antipodeans…the English on board were less than enamored by the snow. Call me jaded but I left London to get away from this…now if there had been a vista of cobalt ocean, palm trees and a cute guy serving mohitos I too would have leapt out of the truck and jumped around like the others. Suffice to say I didn’t tremor with excitement but clutched my hot water bottle even tighter. The snow fell so quickly and heavily that tree branches were actually snapping off and on a particularly evil incline we came to a soggy halt. In front of us a number of vehicles had failed to cope with the slush on the road and blocked the passage ahead. There we were marooned until the snow plow arrived to clear the obstructions and we made the final descent into Ushuaia.

I now have one week in this strange place until my boat leaves for Antarctica…. I am as excited as a child on Xmas morning with a full stocking to open as regards to my impending 11 day voyage around the peninsula…following in the footsteps of Shackleton. However, if im honest Im also a little scared...3 days ago a cruise ship by the name of Clelia II (what happened to Clelia I?) suffered at the hands of Mother Nature and lost an engine in high seas. By high seas they mean waves which hit the bows so heavily, the boat lost an engine and the ship declared an “emergency situation”. It had to be rescued by the Argentine Navy…knowing my propensity to sea sickness I am hoping that if I dose myself up enough with Valium and Dramamine I may live to survive the inimitable Drake Passage… 2 days of extreme weather conditions. If you think I am exaggerating for dramatic effect then just look at this clip….

So the Kumuka Group has dispersed and I am flying solo again… In the delightful hostal Yakush I am holed up in, I have coincidentally met up with a Dutch chap who was on the Navimag and today we ventured up into the mountains and walked in the snow amidst a forest of lenga trees and glacial runoff. Later tonight I am meeting Steve & Carol from the Truck to go eat beaver. Giggle all you like…we have! But come on, surely this is a culinary experience not to be missed…. Apparently in these parts “castor” is not readily available but I have been advised of a restaurant that will ..nudge nudge, wink wink serve you if you ask nicely….In the meantime, I have a pile of handwashing to attend to and a number of bottles of the rather fine Callia Alta Syrah Malbec stashed in my dorm locker. Damn and blast, this liquid nectar is on offer in the local supermercado and something tells me that as I board the Polar Pioneer I will be clinking like a branch of Threshers…..

So, for the time being hope you have enjoyed Parts 1 & 2 of my photographic exploits in Chile and Argentina… internet access is readily available here so I can be online a lot over the coming days….and hope to be in touch again.

Buenos noches.

Han x

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