My cruise around the fjords in the Tierra del Fuego. Patagonia, Argentina

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VIA AUSTRALIS CRUISE USHUAIA - PUNTA ARENAS
23 DEC - 27 DEC 2006

On the ship Via Australis (or sister Mare Australis) take place from October to March cruises 5 days (4 nights) or 4 days (3 nights) in the fjords of Tierra del Fuego and the Chilean and Argentine Patagonia, in our vacation in Patagonia we put this "jewel" start USHUAIA (Argentina) and arrive in PUNTA ARENAS (Chile).
E 'was an unforgettable experience, both for the quality of service (no 5 stars), both for the unique landscapes that can be observed. This is not a cruise-rest because of the many planned trips are held (in the maximum security) and landings by zodiac rafts thus much closer to the various places of charm chosen.
During the transfer, then, the ship is kept very interesting lectures on wildlife, flora, the history of those places and in particular the legends of pre-existing populations the arrival of the white man and the consequences of this conquest.
Briefly detail our journey and the most important stages of the journey:



1st Day USHUAIA

Departure of the ship later in the evening but due to weather, we have the spectacle of the southernmost city in the world behind with the mountains covered with snow.

2nd Day: Channel Murray - Nassau Bay Islands-Wollaston - Cape Horn - Nassau Bay - Wulaia - Murray Channel - Beagle Channel
II mythical Cape Horn and its adjacent islands ahead quest'alba. Its location 55 ° '56' South and 67 ° 19 'west between the two oceans and intensity of weather phenomena that surround these Paraggi make a unique and unparalleled. When nature permits it, you can visit the monument to Cape Horn which was founded December 5 of 1992 on the initiative of the Chilean section of the Confraternity of the "Caphornìers". Since 2005 this place was declared a World Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO.
In the afternoon, landing at Bay Wulaia, a place rich in history and legends, the place where Captain Fitz Roy had English with the Aborigines in the nineteenth century Yaman.

On board:
- Conference: Flora of Patagonia Spanish and English
- Conference: "Aborigines of Patagonia" Spanish and English

3rd Day 3: Beagle Channel - Glaciers of course-Fiordo Pia-Channel occasion 'Channel Cockburn

At dawn we sail the course of the glaciers such as those called the Netherlands, Italy, France, Germany and Romanche.
The land was now in front of the majestic Glacier Pia, located in the northwest arm of Beagle Channel. After the descent to land a short walk with a walking trail in safety to enjoy the panoramic view of this glacier. This time we are lucky because we see the impressive rock blocks of ice.
Returned on board, after a popular "snack" made with hot chocolate and whiskey, we sail for the intricate channels of the west coast of Tierra del Fuego. Paraggi of unquestionable beauty and loneliness that reminds us that still remain magnificent territories, of which some still unexplored and rich in natural history.

On board:
- Culinary Arts decoration in the dining room.
- Conference: "Strait of Magellan and" in Spanish and English.
- Class knots sailors with the boatswain in the hall 4th deck.
- Pub Night in the lounge deck 4th movie in the living room and 3rd deck.

4th Day: Canal Cockburn - Chico Fiordo - Glacier Piloto and Nena - De Agostini Fjord - Glacier Aguila
A group in the morning we sail with the zodiac Seno Piccolo which will take us to our places of excursion (Piloto and Nena glaciers). With 6 miles (11.2 kilometers) long, this fjord delighted us with its landscape of rock eroded by the frosts. After Glacier Pluschow us with its majestic beauty. The name of this glacier reminds us of the pioneer German Pluschow Gunther, who on board his plane "Feuerland" arrived in PUNTA ARENAS in 1928. After constantly overflying the Tierra del Fuego, with his airplane "Condor de Piata, making the first aerial photos of the Cordillera Darwin and making the first airmail between USHUAIA and PUNTA ARENAS. In the afternoon we visit the fjord De Agostini. Our landing afternoon led us to take a walk with scalable difficulty facing the glacier Aquila.

On board:
Conference: "Penguins of Magellan" in Spanish and English
Cocktail, Jack riffa the auction and shipping paper used in the crossing to Cape de Horn.

5th Day 5: Magdalena Island - PUNTA ARENAS
Magdalena "is an island protected by the National Forestry Corporation (CONAF) Organization of the Chilean Protectress wild animal life and for the abundance and diversity of species that use them as breeding habitat of the penguins in particular" Magellan "which represent the 70,000 pairs 95% of the biomass of the fauna. Cormorani The family is represented by 3 species: rock Cormorant, Cormorant and Cormorant Malvine of Imperial, only the 1st nest on the Magdalena. Dominicano The Seagull is on the island and form large gull colonies with the southern hemisphere, the gull and skua saltarino.
Today ends our adventure southern Africa. Mother Nature was very generous with us, we discovered the wonderful beauty of this land of legends. We penetrated the native forest and we admired the millennial ice of the glaciers of the Cordillera Darwin. Our bodies have endured the terrible winds of Tierra del Fuego. We returned happy and full of mud.