Ok ok, so this time I am LITERALLY writing this from the road.. We are currently being bumped around in the back of a mini-bus rumbling along dirt tracks back from estancia harberton With a faint smell of penguin guano wafting up from my trainers and the stains on the knees of my trousers (bright green FYI having knelt in it, yum)
Up early this morning for a 7:30am departure from ushuaia (albatros hotel), cruising past the beagle channel noting the dramatic amount of snow fall in the mountains last night, we are on a Pira tour (booked at 8:30pm last night) - the only tour company where you can actually walk amongst the penguins (all the others you just look from a catamaran). The tour time takes about 6hrs (1.5hrs each way in the bus) stopping off at some stunning sites on route. On arrival we were met by a local guide (Annie) who is fluent in Spanish and English, we boarded a 9m rib with twin 200hp Yamaha EFTL outboards and a VERY useful full awning style canopy (it's pretty darn cold down here) so was good as a wind break when being transported at 30knots across the Beagle channel by a very competent skipper (though still ignores the killcords). On the approach you can hear the squarking and calling of the penguins, 100's of breeding pairs and chicks mid-malting EVERYWHERE! And then the smell of fishy guano hits you.. The skipper beaches the nose of the rib and we pile off with our jaws dropped..
Wondering around you can choose to walk with the guide and hear lots of info & facts or tail back and get up close.. This one had a good gander at me!
The penguins here are predominantly Magellanic which are native to this area (look a bit like the jackass penguins you see in zoos in the UK) but there are also some Gentoo penguins here which have obviously travelled from the sub-Antarctic islands whilst following their food and have stayed, they are breeding fairly successfully too!
There's some obvious and basic rules, be quiet, walk slow, don't get closer than 3m and give a wide berth to nests (remembering they nest under ground here in burrows, every so often you will see sprays of mud & dirt being ejected vertically.. They are obviously adding and extension!)
Clattering noises cause you to pay attention as there's a fair amount of beak battling going on which is amusing to watch, look carefully and you will see penguins in every nook and cranny..with no fear of us whatsoever., truly amazing.
After about an hour of marvelling at the handsome little fellows we head back by rib to a local museum called acatushum where they have a huge collection of full skeletons of Orcas, dolphins, penguins, seals, Sealions and a variety of whales it was set up by a passionate American lady who married a local guy from the area. All of the skeletons are from carcasses which have been found on local beaches.
The people available to tell you more about the skeletons and bones are biology and vet uni students on placement for 6months to study (jealous? I am).
Jo was obviously totally absorbed considering her choice of masters degree (clinical anatomy) - I think she knew more than they did!
Some facts for you:-
- breeding & local waters for magellanic penguins
- though gentoo penguins are sub-Antarctic there approximately 20 breeding pairs here
- gentoo penguins are called pinguino Papua here
- do you know what the difference between a seal and a sealion are? From a distance you can tell immediately as seals scratch with their flippers (they have nails on the end) whereas seamount scratch with their tail fins.
Sealions walk on their front flippers whereas seals flop (undulate) across land.
Seals ears are inside their heads whereas Sealions have cute little ears on the outside of their heads.
Ushuaia is a stunning little town, has just the right amount of necessities to be comfortable without going over the top. Tierra del fuego national park is 20mins away, martial glacier 7km, penguins 1.5hrs and a ski resort within minutes.. We intend to come back here without a doubt but hiring a car and having a tent and sleeping bags in tow. It may be the most southern city in the world but it's not lacking anything.
- Posted whilst on the road
Location:Ushuaia
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