"The End of the World" - we have arrived at Ushuaia, Argentina - located on the Beagle Channel in Patagonia. Ushuaia is located with a spectular backdrop of the Darwin Cordillia Mountains.
Fun Facts about Ushuaia and Things to do: "Ushuaia (Spanish pronunciation uˈswaʝa) is the capital of the Argentine province of Tierra del Fuego. It was founded in October of 1884 but the location was considered too remote for most people. It was designated it a penal colony in 1896. Up until that time, the entire region was occupied by the Yamana Indians and a handful of missionaries. The last of the Yamanas perished at the end of the 20th century. It is commonly regarded as the southernmost city in the world. Ushuaia is located in a wide bay on the southern coast of the island of Tierra del Fuego, bounded on the north by the Martial mountain range and on the south by the Beagle Channel. Its population is estimated at about 64,000 and has an area of 3,625 sq miles. Temperatures average 33 °F in the coldest month, and 48 °F in the warmest month. On average the city experiences 160 days of rain or snow a year, with many cloudy and foggy days. Strong winds whip the town. Trees tend to follow the wind direction, and are therefore called "flag-trees", for their uni-directional growth pattern. Cruise ships dock in the center of town, a short walk along the pier to the Coastal Avenue (Maipu) and just a block from the main shopping street, San Martin. The dock itself has several shops in glass-enclosed kiosks for those last-minute purchases, but be warned, prices are much higher than they are in the town itself. At the very end of the dock proper is a visitor's center with maps and info about the area, but unfortunately little of it is in English. In the same area, to the right of the dock's end, are several booths for tourist activities and excursions.
Museo Maritime (Museum Maritime) is located in the old prison ‘Presidio de Ushuaia’ (Jail of the end of the world) building which was started in 1902 and finished in 1920. The prison was built to lodge re-offenders, but it ended up with a mixture of the most dangerous criminals, thieves and political prisoners. It is a building with five two-story pavilions, with 380 cells intended for one prisoner each. The prison held up to 600 prisoners at a time before closing in 1947. There are nine different museums within the building. Pavilion 4 on the ground floor has the prison museum with life-size department store dummies of the most infamous inmates clad in prison stripes. Pavilion 2 on the ground floor has the art gallery. Pavilion 3 on the second floor has an art museum featuring the work of local artists. Pavilion 4 on the second floor has a display on Antarctic exploration. Pavilion 2 on the second floor is perhaps the most worthwhile part of the museum with the exhibit containing incredibly detailed scale models of famous ships such as Darwin's Beagle and Amundsen's Fram spanning 500 years of maritime history. Informative pamphlets in English for this exhibit are available at reception. In the courtyard are the remains of the world's narrowest-gauge freight train, which transported prisoners between town and work stations in Tierra del Fuego. The museum has only two drawbacks: there’s too much to see in a single day, and the English translations could use some polishing.
Museo del Fin del Mundo (Museum of the End of the World) has a collection of birds from Tierra del Fuego, the figurehead of the Duchess of Albany and library dedicated to the history and nature of Tierra del Fuego. Room 1 is devoted to the aboriginal groups of Tierra del Fuego and to the first voyagers that arrived into the island. The most significant one is the figurehead of the Duchess of Albany. The Duchess of Albany was an English vessel that sank on the coasts of Tierra del Fuego in 1883. Room 2 is the Grocery Stores that were the most important trading points in the city. Room 3 contains a large collection of the prisoner’s original uniforms and pieces made by the prisoners such as cigar boxes, sewing baskets, penholders and walking sticks. Room 4 has a collection of 180 different species of birds from Tierra del Fuego.
Antigua Casa de Gobierno is the former governor’s house and legislature, has interesting exhibits on the shipwreck of the Monte Cervantes, Fueguian maps and old photos of the city.
Museo Mundo Yámana is a privately run museum with several dioramas of the indigenous Yámana nation that once lived along the Beagle Channel’s coasts. An open-air section includes representations of a Yámana encampment and dwellings, plus machinery used in early agriculture and forestry.
Tren del Fin del Mundo (Southern Railway Fueguino) was originally constructed in 1902 as a train to move prisoners logging the Tierra del Fuego region to provide wood for the population in Argentina’s interior. It is the first train to be used for tourist purposes in Latin America. Today it is an elegant and antique formation of heated wagons, with wide windows pulled by a German steam locomotive that was built in 1938. You have unbeatable panoramic views of the Tierra del Fuego region as it tranquilly traverses the 8 miles between its “Fin del Mundo” and “Del Parque” Stations. You pass by the "cemetery of the trees" and go to Macarena Waterfalls, where a short stop of 10-15 minutes will give you enough time to walk up to the waterfalls. The round trip journey lasts 2 hours and 15 minutes. There are three to seven daily departures from the “Fin del Mundo” Station that is five miles outside town.
Tierra del Fuego National Park is just 10 miles outside of the city. It is one of the largest natural preserves and maintained National Parks in the world, with 150,000 acres of lush natural beauty to explore. Some highlights of the park include Lake Roca, the vista point looking into the Beagle Channel and Lapataia Bay.
Cerro Castor is the most modern and newest ski resort in Argentina. It has 9 ski lifts (4 quadruple chair lifts, 3 teleski and 2 magic carpets). The ski area has 1 terrain park. 1 ski cross circuit, 2 moguls courses and 25 slopes. The 6 Ski Lifts of Cerro Castor are able to uplift 7,000 skiers and snowboarders per hour. Cerro Castor has 4 restaurants. It also has artificial snow (snow making) on 2 slopes: EL Condor and Halcon Peregrino. Cerro Castor can boast a very impressive 2,533 feet of vertical descent. Cerro Castor ski resort was opened in 1999 and is in the National Park Tierra del Fuego. Castor resort is only 640 feet above sea level and the chair lift reaches a height of 3,470 feet. It is located 15.6 miles from Ushuaia.
Martial Glacier Resort is only 4.5 miles northeast from the city. The tourist resort opened in 1983 and one of the main attractions is the chair lift. The 100 double-seat chairs move parallel to the ski slope for 3,870 feet. The trip takes 8 to 10 minutes. The glacier is at an elevation of 3,450 feet. The chair-lift trip is an attraction because of the beautiful sights of the city from the top, but it also offers an interesting opportunity to go for walks to the glacier. From the top station, different paths lead to places such as the "portillo", from where you can observe the Andorra Canyon. Toward one side you will be able to see a panorama of the Beagle Channel and on the other side you will see the Martial Glacier. The chairlift operates daily from 10:00am to 7:00pm at a cost of $8USD.
Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse is five miles east of Ushuaia in the Beagle Channel. The brick-built tower is 33 feet high and 10 feet wide at the base. The light is 74 feet above sea level. The lighthouse is remote-controlled, automated, uninhabited, and not open to the public. Put into service in 1920 it is probably the most photographed lighthouse in South America.
Isla de Los Lobos (Sea Lions' Island) visit to observe the magnificent South American sea lions. Sea lions are called sea wolves in Spanish.
Isla de Los Pájaros (Bird Island) where magnificent imperial cormorants, Magellan cormorants, Fullman petrels, giant petrels, squas and albatross can be observed.
Beagle Channel Boat Tours start at the city port, where a catamaran is boarded to sail along the coast of Ushuaia and have a view of the most important buildings in the city, the Maritime Museum and the End of the World Museum. The boat then sails to the center of the Beagle Channel until reaching Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse. Then heading towards Isla de Los Lobos (Sea Lions Island), you can watch sea lions playing while the boat sails around the island for about 20 minutes. Then, the catamaran sails to Isla de los Pájaros (Birds Island) to have a view of the different species of sea birds: Magellan Cormorants, Imperial Cormorants, Albatrosses, Fullman Petrels, Giant Petrels, and Skuas. This tour will cost around $35 USD per person for a 2.5-hour trip on oversized catamarans such as the Ana B, Ezequiel B, and Luciano Beta. A longer tour of about 5 hours will include Isla Martillo and Estancia Harberton for about $50 USD. However you look at the penguins from the boat, as you cannot land on the island.
Estancia Harberton is the oldest ranch in Tierra del Fuego; it was founded in 1886 by the Reverend Thomas Bridges and declared a National Historical Monument in 1999. The principal house of the estancia is on the shores of a protected bay in Beagle Channel. It has been preserved in its original form and is built out of timber and zinc. Other buildings include a shearing shed, carpentry, stables and staff housing. The garden contains many species of native flora. It is located 53 miles to the east of Ushuaia." (facts provided by Lyle!)
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