Ushuaia

Wednesday 3rd Nov

Mike Green had already warned me that Ushuaia is an oasis for the traveller here, and he was right.

Ushuaia is the capital of the Argentine province of Tierra Del Fuego. It is commonly regarded as the southernmost city, bounded on the north by the Martial mountain range and on the south by the Beagle Channel. During the first half of the 20th century, the city centred around a prison built by the Argentine government to increase the Argentine population here and to ensure Argentine sovereignty over Tierra del Fuego. The prison was intended for repeat offenders and serious criminals, following the example of the British in Tasmania and the French in Devils Island.





These days it not only is a container port, but a port for the cruise ships that call in here and also a departure point for the tour ships that head for Antarctica. There is a good variety of shops in the main street, and the restaurants cater for the European tourists and open at around seven o’clock, which is great for me as I don’t have to eat in the middle of the night for the next three days.

The National Park is about 20km outside town, and in-between the coaches pulling in I managed to get the bike in front of the sign for the obligatory photo shoot.



Once done a look around and more photo’s of the magnificent views, on once again a perfect day. The fairies must have kissed me again!! I’m sure my luck with the weather is going to run out sooner or later.





On the way back into town I decided to give the wombat a treat and to it to the local car wash to get rid of the grime and dust of the last 3000km. Given the right conditions it will be covered again in no time!! But for now it’s clean.

The next step is to turn around and start heading north, for the next 18000km!! The next stop will be up to Rio Grande then across Tierra Del Fuego to the Chilean town of Puerto Natalis. I’ve also bought a 4ltr fuel can for the next leg.