Puerto Montt to Cape Horn

Puerto Montt, Chile

Puerto Montt was settled in 1853 but in 1960 was destroyed by an earthquake. Having been rebuilt it is now a major fishing port and is known for its salmon production.

Our tour bus took us through downtown and up into the hills of Puerto Montt where we had a fabulous view of the city. We then drove to the town of Puerto Varas which is known for its roses. But the centrepiece of the town is the beautiful Lake Llanquihue, Chile’s largest lake, and the spectacular snow-covered volcanoes we could see from the foreshore.

We had time to wander through the town on this beautiful sunny day and stopped at the square to listen to a band playing popular music on guitar and pan flute. Then we visited a local craft and food market before walking back along the foreshore and admiring the multi-coloured rose gardens.

From Puerto Varas we drove on to Frutillar, famous for its music. Along the foreshore are sculptures of a harp and musical notes and an enormous music hall has been built right on the beach. We wandered through the lovely gardens of the German Settlers’ Museum and stopped in at a café for German berry crumble cake and coffee. The German feel of this entire area goes back to the early days of settlement and the many houses that have been built in that style.

Lake Llanquihue

One of many volcanoes

They take their volcanoes seriously...

At the German Settlers' Museum

Time for coffee and cake in Fruitillar

Chilean Fjords and Magellan Strait

After weeks of great weather, we found ourselves in fog and rain for a day as we cruised down the west coast of Chile. But as we approached the fjords the weather cleared, and the scenery was spectacular.

The fjords are the pathways formed by ancient glaciers and now filled with water, and as the ship navigated through a plethora of islands, we couldn’t help but recognise a distinct ‘Cradle’ look about the snow-capped mountains. Of course the area is volcanic but Australia was also once joined to South America, so perhaps the comparison isn’t so surprising. However, although the Chilean fjords are beautiful, they are nowhere near as dramatic as the Sounds of New Zealand, as many of us here on board agreed.

Punta Arenas, Chile

We arrived in Punta Arenas much earlier than expected, due to the need for an emergency evacuation, and following a ship-wide request for volunteers with O Type blood. And so it was under a pitch black sky and a full moon that we cruised in.

Punta Arenas has a population similar to Launceston with very few high-rise buildings and a lovely leafy square called Plaza de Armas. Here, a statue dedicated to Admiral Fernando de Magallanes (Magellan) also contains an indigenous leader whose big toe you must kiss to ensure your return, but Penny just touched it…

The city has been the focus of recent protests, as in other parts of Chile. Most of the bank buildings were boarded up, along with other public buildings including the beautiful historic museum with its pockmarked glass doors. Hidden behind wooden barricades was a modern shopping centre and the national monument Palacio Sara Braun was impressive, along with Punta Arenas Cathedral, and the sheer number of buildings characterised by French architecture!

Plaza de Armas

The Indigenous leader's big toe (foot at left)

Museum with pockmarked windows

The entrance to the shopping centre...

...and inside the shopping centre

Some of the beautiful buildings

Cathedral

One of many French style buildings - this one is a bank and it is boarded up

Waiting for the tender back to the ship

Ushuaia (pronounced ooswaya), Argentina

Today started early - very early. Penny’s alarm was set for 4.00am so we could usher in the sunrise over the Chilean glaciers, and the early rise was so worth it (see photos)! Then it was back to sleep...

Ushuaia is known as Fin del Mundo or ‘End of the Earth’ and is the most southern city in the world, its backdrop the magnificent Andes Mountains. It is the second largest city on the island of Tierra del Fuego with a population of 70-75,000 - the northern city of Rio Grande has twice that population. The only habitable place further south (before Antarctica) is the very small town of Puerto Williams. Ushuaia’s other claims to fame are that it is the second most important port in Argentina and the world’s most important port in terms of Antarctic travel, providing passage to 98% of travellers to the South Pole. We drove through the city and on to the Tierra del Fuego National Park which is only small but is packed full of beautiful lakes and forests.

These lush forests contain only two main species of tree, both beeches, and their enemy is the introduced Canadian beaver. As you drive through there are masses of dams created by the beavers, and thousands of ‘skeleton’ trees that have died as a result of drowning in those dams. The beaver was brought to Tierra del Fuego to start a fur trade, but the temperatures are much lower than in Canada and the beavers’ fur didn’t grow enough to support an industry, so it was abandoned. Now the beavers, who have no predators, are in plague proportions. Apart from the dams, other areas within the forest not covered in trees are peat bogs, known as ‘natural sponge’.

We stopped for a delicious lunch of BBQ Patagonian lamb and salad, a glass of Argentinian Malbec, and the creamiest ice-cream made from the local blueberry called Calafete. Afterwards we drove back to the city and visited the old Ushuaia Jail and Military Prison which is now a museum. The original timber jail was built in 1896 to cater for re-offending prisoners. In 1902 a national prison replaced it, comprising 380 small cells which housed more than 600 convicts at one time – similar to Port Arthur in style and remoteness. The building is also home to the Maritime Museum of Ushuaia and the Naval Models Hall which we of course found interesting.

Lunch venue

 Patagonian BBQ lamb and Malbec

Siberian Husky dog farm

Jail and Maritime Museum

Around the city

Cape Horn

Early the next morning we approached Cape Horn which lies at the southern tip of an archipelago at the junction of the Pacific, Atlantic and Southern Oceans. It experiences some of the wildest weather on Earth including waves of up to 10 storeys high! We, fortunately, had smooth seas.

On the point is a lighthouse, family home, small chapel and utility building. The lighthouse keeper, who has been resident with his family since 2016, was asked if he gets lonely and his response was, ‘No, there’s a supply boat every two months so I have plenty of people to talk to.’

Also situated on the point is a memorial to the 10,000 sailors and mariners who have lost their lives whilst attempting to ‘round the cape’, and the 800 vessels that have sunk battling the waves. It is a sculpture which features the silhouette of an albatross and it was created by a Chilean, José Balcells, in 1992. We were soon around the cape and heading to Puerto Madryn.