Ushuaia, Argentina 1/17.18/24

 Ushuaia, Argentina

Authored by Laurie Hardcastle Seil

And what are you going to do during your two days at the “City at the End of the World”, Ushuaia? I looked this one up a long time ago to find out the pronunciation is “oo-shway-ah”, at least that’s the way I’ve been saying it, the “oo” is like the “ou” in “you”. The name comes from the native Yaghan language and means “deep bay”, which works for this city’s beautiful location on the Beagle Channel that has forests, mountains, and sea all within sight.

We’ll be in the southernmost city in the world and the capital of Argentina’s Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica and Southern Atlantic Islands Province, what a mouthful! If you weren’t aware already the words Tierra del Fuego mean “Land of Fire’, so named because of all the smoke the first European explorers saw rising from the land, not realizing it came from the native’s fires. The Martial Mountains rise behind Ushuaia, unique in that unlike the rest of the Andes, these run east/west rather than north/south. Just an fyi, the channel here was named for the same ship Darwin sailed on, The Beagle, which explored the area in the 1830s. The Yaghan, or Yámana, were the native people who inhabited the area along the shores of the Beagle Channel to Cabo de Hornos, traveling and hunting in family-size canoes made of tree bark. Inside one you’d find Dad with his harpoon in hand, Mom doing the paddling and the kids taking care of the fire that was always burning in the boat on a base of earth and stones, I know, it seems counterintuitive to have flames going in a wooden boat, but they had to keep warm somehow. There are still descendants of the Yaghan who live in Ushuaia today and you can learn more about their culture at the End of the World Museum.

This area was known to British and French pirates during the early 1800s when they used it as a hiding place, or a way to escape the Spanish fleet after a ship raid. The first European settlement was begun by English missionary Wasti Stirling in 1870, an Argentine naval base was established in 1884, and Ushuaia was finally made an official village in 1893 when the archipelago was partitioned between Argentina and Chile. 1902 saw the opening of a penal colony here where some of the country’s worst criminals were sent. After they arrived, they had to build their own prison and a railway to get the lumber for it into town. It’s been called the “Siberia of Argentina”. The prison was closed in 1947 after reports of inhumane living conditions and abuse, however the murderers and thugs were replaced clandestinely in the late 1950s by political adversaries of then President Arturo Frondizi, whose military coup had overthrown Juan Peron. The inmates remained here until another coup overthrew Frondizi in 1961.

Fifty years ago, there was hardly even a town here but in the 1970s the Argentine government decided to expand the port and create manufacturing industries to entice people to come here for jobs, they were motivated to get people moved to the area to keep Chile from making a land grab. Today the economy is based on lumber, sheep farming, fishing, fur-trapping, and tourism. One last note, sunrise in Ushuaia is supposed to be incredible on a clear day, another type of “fire” in Tierra del Fuego, so checking the forecast and setting an alarm may be in order.

 One of the great activities here with kids is the Train to the End of the World, which goes from Ushuaia to nearby Tierra del Fuego National Park. The park isn’t actually world’s end, but it does have some beautiful scenery that the bilingual guide on board will talk about, along with the area’s history. A few spots in town for photo ops include the Ushuaia sign, another that says “End of the World” so you can prove you were here, as well as various pieces of street art throughout town.

We’re going on a tour to visit Tierra del Fuego National Park The park goes to the border with Chile and contains rivers, lakes, mountains, forests, glaciers and all kinds of interesting wildlife including more guanacos, penguins and sea lions. There are supposed to be lots of great hiking trails here as well if you’re looking for a day outdoors. Also out in the channel is Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse which also goes by the names of San Juan de Salvamento Lighthouse, the Lighthouse at the End of the World, and Faro del Fin del Mondo, take your pick. It was built in 1884 and you can only reach it by boat. 

We had a full day enjoying beautiful Patagonia.  Ushuaia is a relatively small city, about 40K population but if feels much larger.  It very much reminded us of some of the cities in Alaska we have visited.  It was about 45 - 50 degrees, and we are in summertime here.  Light rains in the morning and then it cleared up and we had a glorious day with 4 fellow cruisers that we have been getting to know.  They are only on the ship till LA though so we will miss them.... we overnighted in port and there were Antarctica explorer ships docked next to us.  Those passengers actually make landfall there.... Had dinner off the ship that night at a local restaurant - we finished out tour around 4 pm, were ready to eat only to find that all restaurants were closed till 7 pm. but the bar was open so we killed time (and quite a few bottles of wine) waiting to have our dinner, ending up in the Hard Rock Cafe for a nightcap.  The next day, Mickey and I walked around the city looking to get haircuts and a manicure for me!  We both got our hair cut for $20 (total) and I got a gel manicure for $8....sure beats the prices on the ship!  Reboarded our ship at 1:30 pm, heading to our next port, Punta Arenas Chile....