Embarcation Time! - Our First Look at the Endurance

Gangway's down! Ready to board the Endurance

Tuesday, October 31 - Boarding the Endurance

The Nat Geo/Linblad Endurance docked at the pier in Ushuaia

"The Boss" Ernest Shackleton, captain of the original Endurance

We finished our afternoon catamaran tour of the Beagle Channel and returned back to the location of our busses to take us to the pier and the Endurance.  We arrived around 4:45 and were greeted by the staff as we prepared to walk up the gangway and board the ship.

We entered at the Reception area on the  5th deck, and were able to easily access our room on the same floor (520).  We enjoyed our first look at our cabin, which is really nice.  Good sized bathroom on the left, lots of closets on the right, a couch on the left with a beautiful print of a blue, tabular iceberg hanging over it, on the right a large screen TV, desk, atlas, water bottles; next our queen sized bed, with lots of storage underneath and finally, our balcony with table and 2 chairs.

Our first look at Cabin 520, with our orange polar coats waiting on the bed

Desk with closed channel TV and beautiful world atlas

Comfy couch, and doorwall to our outside balcony

Our orange two - layered polar coats were waiting for us in packages on the bed.  We tried them on - I was a bit swimming in mine, probably should have downsized at least by one, but I definitely could fit lots of layers underneath.  Under the bed was our folded hammock for the deck.  Would we really use it?  Our lifejackets were stored in the upper closet by the door.  We had our mandatory evacuation drills and put on our lifejackets properly - they’re quite heavy, with a belt around our waist and a strap between our legs. 

ORANGE! - we won't get lost on the ice! They will be handy at home during hunting season!

We all met on Deck 6 in the Ice Lounge for our on-board briefing, and then were called by deck to see the location of our lifeboat.  I kept unpacking after we completed the evacuation drill, until it was time for our briefing and dinner. Lots of space for everything, and our suitcases tuck away easily under our bed.

The Ice Lounge on Deck 6 - our gathering place for many briefings and lectures

Scenery while traveling along the Beagle Channel

A Visit to Tierra del Fuego National Park

 

A lovely white, wild horse in the Tierra del Fuego National Park

Tuesday, October 31 - Tierra del Fuego National Park, Ushuaia

Our bus ride to the Tierra del Fuego National Park was accompanied by a knowledgable guide.  The park is about 10 km west of the airport and the road followed the Rio Pipo and the railway built by prisoners that ends in the park.  We were traveling on Argentina Highway #3 - which is the terminus of the Pan American Highway.

Entrance to Tierra del Fuego National Park

Typical new growth forest of the national park

Bogs were a prevalent feature along the drive

We entered the park and learned that an important goal is to preserve the ravaged and rapidly disappearing unique Tierra del Fuego forest. The park was  established in 1960 and includes 240 square miles with waterfalls, forests, mountains, glaciers and shoreline. The forest consists of 4 species of native trees, including the lenga and nire, in the beech family, and the guindo and Winter’s Bark evergreens. Colonizers introduced a number of non-native mammals which have been harsh on the ecosystem, including the North American beaver, European rabbit and muskrats.  The timber from the forest was systematically removed by the prison workforce in the 1900 - 1940 era. The color of the vegetation is a pleasing grayish green, with an undergrowth of shrubs, ferns, moss and other plants. We also passed some peat bogs, that were just starting to green up from their resting fall rust colors. The park is home to many native species of birds, including the Andean condor, the crested caracara and a number of species of geese.

Patagonian wild horses are called baguales

A beautiful view of Mount Condor, which is just across the border in Chile.

We stopped at the Alakush Visitor Center - the native language name for a highly valued local duck - and took photos of the wetlands, birds and feral horses. Across a small pond, looking west into Chile is the impressive Mount Condor. We were told to watch for the Andean Condor, which can be seen soaring around the slopes, but no such luck. We did see a number of small wild horses - which are found in various locations in Patagonia and are called baguales. I also saw a number of crested caracara, which is the size and approximate shape of a large goshawk.

The Alakush Visitor Center had a small museum and a restaurant

Lago Acigami

We drove to a second parking area, on a beach at Lago Acigami (Lago Roca), where we had a different view of Mount Condor and some of the higher Chilean peaks beyond. We also saw a pair of  Upland Geese on the beach - an attractive, dimorphic pair, with pretty white and brown feathers of the male and a buff and brown female.

A different view of Mount Condor, with a pair of Upland Geese

The terminus of the Pan American Highway (which begins in Alaska)

Next, we headed down to the end of the PanAmerican Highway - the terminus of the road and the location where we would pick up our catamaran for our lunch and cruise. A pretty walkway led us to the boat dock on the Bahia Lapataia - which is at the end of the only fjord located in Argentina (although, of course, Chile has many).

A panoramic view of Lapataia Bay

Our catamaran - for lunch and a tour of the Beagle Channel

Lunch was already set up when we boarded the boat. And we stayed docked while we ate our lunch - which I understood later, once we were underway, as it was quite choppy.  Michael and I went to sit up at the top deck, and were joined by David and Kathy, a couple who lived in Chicago and near Scottsdale AZ.  We had a mixed salad, some kind of chicken fricassee for an entree and a creme brûlée for desert, served with a nice local Malbec wine.  Once underway, we saw lots of birds.  

Mountain peaks line the Beagle Channel

By around 3 PM, we left fjord and entered Beagle Channel, with much more rough seas! I went out a few times to take photos of the beautiful mountains, but the wind was rugged! So I mostly enjoyed watching the scenery go by from the warmth of the cabin.  As we got closer to Ushuaia and the airport, we circled around the Isla de los Pajaros (Bird Island), which supported a huge colony of nesting cormorants (Imperial Shag or King Cormorant).

Nesting cormorants on Bird Island

Ushuaia - El Fin del Mundo

 

Spectacular Ushuaia, with our cruise ship Endurance in port.

Tuesday, October 31 - Arriving in Ushuaia

We flew from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia via a charter flight.  When we arrived, after collecting our luggage, we boarded busses to take a drive through the Tierra del Fuego National Park.  After touring the park, we took a catamaran ride in the Beagle Channel - with lunch provided.  We were ready to board the Endurance by about 4 PM.

Views of the terminal Andes as we approach Ushuaia

Lake Fagnano, on our approach to landing in Ushuaia

You can see the airport landing strip, in the Beagle Channel, south of Ushuaia.

On the charter flight, we were served a nice, prepackaged breakfast snack, which was welcome as I really didn’t eat any breakfast this morning.  I couldn’t see much out my western facing window - as most of the flight was along Atlantic Ocean, without land in sight.  As our landing neared, we started to see the snow capped mountains of the terminal Andes.  We flew over two bodies of water - Lake Fagnano and Beagle Channel.  The mountain peaks are up to 4000 feet around Ushuaia, even higher further west into Chile.  The airport is located on the Beagle Channel, south of the city and the views upon landing were just breathtaking with sharp, snowcapped black mountains forming a cirque around Ushuaia, perched agains the seaside.

The Martial Mountains line the skyline behind Ushuaia as you look to the north from the airport

Ushuaia is located within the archipelago of Tierra del Fuego and is known as the southernmost city in the world.  Tierra del Fuego is divided in two, based on a treaty between Chile and Argentina that was negotiated by the Vatican in 1985.  Ushuaia is located on a wide bay on the southern coast of Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego in the Argentina section.  It’s bounded on the north by the Martial Mountains.  The Isla Grande is surrounded by the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans and is separated from the continent in the north by the Strait of Magellan and bordered in the south by the Beagle Channel.

Ushuaia is located at latitude 54 degrees south and is more than 3000 km from Buenos Aires and 1000 km from Antarctica.  The mountains here in Ushuaia run east and west and represent the termination of the Andes.  The orientation is caused by the Scotia tectonic plate location in proximity to the South American plate.

Ushuaia's airport serves as a gateway for tours to the Antarctic 

Our landing at the southernmost  international airport in the world was at 11:15.  It’s a petite structure, newly built about 12 years ago and located on a flat peninsula about 4 km south of the city and the port.  We waited at baggage claim, and our last piece of luggage was the second to last off the plane.  We all boarded buses, which were waiting to take us to see the Tierra del Fuego National Park.

Road to theTierra del Fuego National Park

Following the Rio Pipo, traveling west to the national park

We had a guide on our bus who narrated our trip to the National Park, about 10 km west of the airport.  On our left, as we drove out, we passed a small mountain, Mount Susana, and on the right, we followed the Rio Pipo and the railway built by prisoners that ends in the park.  We were traveling on Argentina Highway #3 - which is the terminus of the Pan American Highway.

The first of many feral horses we observed along our bus ride

On our Way to Ushuaia - Heading to the Deep South!

Buenos Aires International Airport at 5 AM on Halloween

Tuesday, October 31 - Buenos Aires to Ushuaia

Happy Halloween!  It’s cold at home - snowing in both Waunakee and Bete Gris.  The local weather we're heading into seems like it will be very similar.  We are finally on our way to the southern tip of the American continents.  We were told to expect a wakeup call at 3:30 AM to allow for a bus departure to the airport at 4:45.

Michael was up at 3 AM, even before the wakeup call.  We got dressed and packed our carryons for today’s flight, and headed down to breakfast at 4 AM.  It was too early for me to eat, so I had a cup of tea and a mini croissant.  We picked up our boarding passes for our charter flight to Ushuaia and found that we’d been assigned to seats 18E & F.  We had a funny checkout experience this morning.  We received a bill last night for $3, as we had exceeded our $50 meal credit and we owed money for the pumpkin soup!!

We waited in line for a while outside the hotel to board bus number three (of four) to the Buenos Aires International Airport (EZE). We arrived around 5:30 and proceeded to stand in long lines for check in and security clearance.  By 6:15 we were in the gate area and needed to wait until 7:45 for our departure.  We boarded by groups (Group 2) on a bus to drive to our Aerolineas plane to depart for Ushuaia.  Michael and I lucked out that there was no one assigned to seat 8D, so we have a free middle seat for this 3 plus hour flight.  Finally took off at 8 AM.