Ship Ahoy!!! Sailing with Darwin!

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Hola firstly my apologies for the text intrusions in the last blog not sure what that was all about!1 lets hope the gremlins are sorted.

Cruceros Australis –well what a fantastic experience- this was be supposed to be our little jauntette ( for Lou and me while Al was battling it against the wind rain and waves) If we thought this was going to be a leisurely sail down the fjords of Tierra del Fuego sipping cocktails sunning ourselves and enjoying the view from our sun loungers, we were to be rudely awakened!!! This was four nights and five days packed with truly wonderful things, presentations and films about the areas to be visited from knowledgeable and good looking tour guides, treks, hikes, journeys on zodiac boats , not to mention great food and what is more free drinks for the entire journey!!! This part of the world offers a unique coast line with scores of fjords and a glacial landscape studded with waterfalls and glaciers of various sizes It has forests and snow capped mountains and a beautiful tranquil quality that reaches the soul.

we have visited the most iconic places and feel very privileged to have done so, had the most wonderful experiences and shared our challenges with our fellow travellers. There were around 120 of us from 14 nations on a relatively small ship so we were able to get to places that larger ships were not and if our ship could not nose itself in, the zodiacs certainly could. Lets first get the important things out the way, the wine was of excellent quality, Chilean and available all day if you wanted it !! We have been very good just having alcohol with our evening meal. Having said that on the second day we didn’t go out in the afternoon and discovered the cocktail menu, OMG free cocktails – say no more.!!!

The daily itinerary was packed to the gunnels, you could do as little or all of the activities as you wished, we did most though not all!!. The weather behaved as it had said in our pre hols bumf in other words mostly 4 seasons in a day. There seems to be a micro climate here as temperature rise and fall happen pretty quickly and spookerly as we neared glaciers the thermometer fell!!! It got progressively cooler , the winds increased and the rain came but no matter we had thermal underwear, water proof outer clothing and vistas a plenty. So we had our first adventure on the zodiacs having been briefed on the safety issues and how to get in and out of the dinghies- rather a daunting task at first!!! We sped through the waters to the mythical Hornos island ( cape horn) where over the centuries scores of brave sailors lost their lives while trying to navigate around the treacherous seas where the southern Atlantic meets the Pacific. We walked up and across to the light house and to the iconic monument to those lost sailors.

The afternoon saw us again on the zodiacs disembarking Wulaia Bay for a hill hike, the weather was wet and cold and the hike described as medium to high difficulty turned out to be quite a challenge for me. It was extremely muddy steep and slippery and at one point we had hail , I was so wet and cold by the time we reached our view point I couldn’t enjoy the view and was frightened about the downward journey. I did make it, though did take a tumble landing on my front in soft grass and not at the edge of the cliff thank goodness!!! The following day we sailed through the Beagle Chanel named by Captain Robert Fitz Roy in 1830 after his ship and in which Darwin sailed as a young man. This adventure was to walk up the side of Pia glacier and was described as a “short journey along a rocky path”. Well - more like slippery sheer glacial granite was my definition! my walking pole was not much use and I freeked and knew this one was not for me!!! Oh well you can’t do everything! We had more walking fun and games planned by the guides though only 8 of the 120 passengers decided to meet the challenge on a forest hike through ranging streams and onto a high waterfall!! Lou and I stayed on board and enjoyed the marvellous sight of the garibaldi glacier- see what you think! .

We had a much easier time when visiting the Alberto Agostini national Park over 3.5 million acres of magnificent scenery and wildlife. And what is more the sun poked its head out for the first time in 3 days. We strolled around a small bay in Agostini Sound to see the glacier bearing the same name. This was truly beautiful we had hoped to catch sight of Argentinean condors 2 of which had nested in the one of the mountain sides in the Darwin range but alas we were not lucky this time. Indeed we really haven’t seen much of the local wildlife , some far off glimpses of dolphins but then our trips to shore have only been fairly short.

Our final day saw us disembark at the crack of dawn onto Magdalena Island where 140,000 penguins are running around and how gorgeous they are too. They are so cute all of the small breed and really quite small but perfectly formed!!

We have had a lot of fun played Chilean bingo , chatted to the bar men, made friends , seen some wonderful places, ate and drunk the vino/cocktail. We have seen glaciers by the score , If you want some-one to explain glacial formation , I’m your gal, I know how they are formed, whether they are advancing or retreating, what moraines are what makes the water so blue, and how they shape the land. I shall be giving lectures on my return at £50 per ticket ( calafete Sour Cocktail thrown in to boot)- reserve your seats NOW!!!!!

This has truly been a most amazing experience and one I will take with me and treasure for ever, the end of the world – Fin de mundo – what a place

Let me leave you with this poem:

I am the albatross who awaits you

At the end of the world

I am the forgotten soul of the dead seamen who sailed across cape Horn from all the seas of the world

But they have not died in the fury of the waves

today they fly on my wings towards eternity

in the last crevice of the Antarctic winds



Sara Vial



We are now off to the enigmatic Torres de paine national park for more adventures – come with me……..

x

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Comments

[Patricia]

No words ....
..just to say what amazing pic. - feel that I have been there with you guys. Sounds truly an adventure Caroline ... heights, depths, boats - you have gone up in my estimatiion of bravery!! Enjoy enjoy enjoy xxx

[josie]

lecture tix
please book me, but claim a senior discount! more amazing tales/pix. So glad you survived the perilous treks to tell the rather tall tales - tall as in high up there! safe onward voyages! x