We made it! With Argentinean/Chilean passport stamp numbers 12 and 13, we finally reached the end of the world, Ushuaia (map). We doubled our travel time along the way, but hey, who’s counting? With Walter struggling and refusing here and there, there were times where we weren’t sure we would make it, but once we passed those big Ushuaia gates it was time to celebrate. Definitely a milestone for good old Walter! For the leftovers of Team Seduction (we lost an American along the way), it was another reason to open a bottle of wine or two, maybe three.
Hello, Ushuaia
Arriving there with the sun setting over the ocean and the cargo ships packing up for Antarctica we got charmed by this little town right away. For a second we all got tempted to actually board on one of those ships leaving to the ultimate end of the world, but finding a hut for six wasn’t that easy, unfortunately. Nevertheless, we were pretty excited for finally making it to the most Southern tip of South America and couldn’t wait to explore more.
Celebrations at Tierra del Fuego
Instead of taking a ship to Antarctica, we made our way into the beautiful national park of Tierra del Fuego. Here the roads will take you to the most southern point of the earth. After that only swimming will get you further. While there, the idea of quite a spontaneous sleepover took over, with once again no preparation whatsoever (think: no groceries for dinner of six, later even 9 people, nor enough wine to actually celebrate this milestone). We did what we do best; taking in the gorgeous scenery, drinking wine, making gourmet meals with leftovers, and dancing the night away on Odezsa’s Bloom-song. Days like these may last forever.
March of the King Penguin
With one more mission in Tierra del Fuego, we cruised through the National Park in order to find the King penguins. Apparently, we were already quite late in the season. After asking around a lot and some ultimate backpacker advice we found these little fellas on a deserted beach in the middle of nowhere. Being the only ones on that beach, it almost felt like we were being part of March of the Penguins. They seriously are the funniest animals alive. I could’ve sat there for hours watching them very persistently walk up and down the beach and the next moment forget where they were going.
Ushuaia: The end of an era
Our big Patagonia road trip is nearly coming to an end. Unfortunately, we are saying goodbye to most of the crew after Ushuaia and it’s just the Aussie and I working our way up the coast back to Buenos Aires. We still got about 3000km to go and lots to see along the way, but this goes way too quickly! Time really flies when you’re having fun…
Marthe
Photos by: M. Barends ©
