Ushuaia before Antarctica

The flight from El Calafate to Ushuaia was full. It is hard to believe how many people visit this most southerly City in the world. The City itself is not very large and does not look too pretty.

It is a mix of commercial harbor and transitional tourist town. Here you can pick up provisions for the Antarctic; here you need to prepare yourself by taking your last glimpse of civilization.

We had arranged a B&B stay in Ushuaia with Bruno from the Hostel del Glaciar in El Calafate. All hostels in Ushuaia were filled to capacity and a B&B was our only option for a stay at a reasonable price. Still the charge was 320 pesos per night (US$ 75.-) incl. breakfast. Our taxi driver had a hard time finding the B & B we had booked for 3 nights. La Maison d’ Ushuaia is a regular house with no name on it and run by a young woman with a 1 year old child. Her name is Solange. She lives in this house with her mother and her grandmother. We were given the uppermost room in the house, right next to the child’s bedroom.
The layout of this place was like an array of stacked boxes with staircases going from one to the next. We felt like an intruders in this private home and kept to our room, especially as it was raining outside and going out of the room meant mingling with Solange and the dog and the small child and the mother and the grandmother who talked nonstop in loud voices from one box/room to the other. The TV was on, the radio played and the tile floors amplified the sound even more. Our bathroom was shared with the family. The little girl cried like all small children do.
During the first night strange sounds woke me up. It sounded like a strong wind blowing someplace. I even got up, looked out the window to see if it came from the outside but all was calm outside. This noise lasted for hours. I checked the room for any sign of water running, for heater fans running but found nothing. I never did find out what that noise was at night but I made up my mind to move the next day. Never mind the price I would have to pay for the next hotel or hostel.
During breakfast the next morning Solange tried very hard, too hard, to sell Carol and me an Antarctic Cruise. She had a friend who knew someone etc. I listened, took notes and then walked out to find a better place to stay. Solange was just too intense for me, too much at home in her home to have guests.
After breakfast Carol and I found the Hostal Malvinas

in the center of town and booked a room while our suitcases were still at the B & B. The price was only marginally higher at 390 pesos/night.
Then we walked to the Info bureau down at the harbor to look for a trip to Antarctica. The Information people told us to check with the Antarctic Information Center next door and we did just that. During all of these talks, we learned that there is a Travel Agency that only deals in tickets for cruises to the Ultimate Continent and they will have ‘last minute deals’. This travel agency, “Ushuaia Turismo” is on a street named Gob. Paz, helped us a lot. We knew already that the prices ranged from US $ 3500. - to US $ 4000. - per person from Solange. But we wanted to be sure to get the best price and we wanted to deal with a reliable agent and not with some ‘maybe’ shady ticket seller and then get stuck holding just a piece of worthless paper. Additional concerns were what ship we were going to be on. Did they have lectures on board? Did they stop at good spots in Antarctica? Was the trip for 8 days, 10 days or even 11 days? Did we have to buy extra boots for the muck, jackets? What languages did they speak on board? How good was their performance record? How many years have they been in business? Etc, etc, etc.
We were going to spend a lot of money and wanted the best we could get. When we walked into the travel agency, a quick check on the computer gave us the option of three ships. One ship was eliminated immediately because it meant getting two single rooms that were very, very small. The other two ships, the Terra Nova and the Antarctic Dream had just one or two open spots for a trip starting two and three days later. While we were talking, the Terra Nova filled their last open cabin. We missed that spot on the Terra Nova, which left us with only one ship to book on, the ship named Antarctic Dream. Even getting this spot on the Antarctic Dream turned into a cliff hanger because when we finally said yes to the agent, she was told the last cabin had been booked already.
Luckily for us, this agent knows her stuff. Some time ago she had reserved a number of spots on this ship and had sold all but one. When she went to book this last cabin for us, she was told it had already been sold. She immediately told the booking agent the cabin was not his to sell; she wanted it back and had customers right in front of her who had already paid. We later returned to the travel agent to find we had our cabin.

We literally received the last cabin available in all of Ushuaia with a sailing date in two days for the lowest price we could get, US $3990. - each. Our ship was the Antarctic Dream. We had no clue what the ship looked like, what the accommodations were, how good the English of the ships personnel was, etc. We took a chance on this trip but it was this ship or nothing
Excited that we had secured our trip to Antarctica, I was apprehensive never-the-less. We still had to do a couple of things before leaving. First we had to move out of the B&B, so we walked back towards it, a long distance from the center of town and, as fate would have it, we were picked up by Solange and her mother in their car. During this car trip I told Solange a fib and we moved out delivering our suitcases to the Hostel Malvinas. I told Solange that ‘friends’ had booked a cruise for us already and she let us go with a smile. Solange is a nice person; it is just me who cannot deal with little kids under my feet, a very small dog that I almost stepped on and noisy surroundings.
Now we have 2 days to wait for our ship to come in. Talking to the agent at Ushuaia Turismo, we learned that we needed to have warm and waterproof clothes. Yes, I had brought along some warm clothing but waterproof? But that is why Ushuaia exists; there are businesses all along San Martin, the main street, that cater to the tourists.

Carol and I bought what we needed, namely water proof pants that fit over regular pants and waterproof gloves. I needed long johns too. It took us a full day to buy these things. Walking from store to store to get the best fit and the best ‘bargains’ we managed to find what we needed. Yes, there are ‘rental’ stores for items needed but I would rather have my own, thank you. We were told that the ship would supply a warm jacket and the rubber boots so we did not bother to buy those. Having learned from riding bikes that dressing in layers is the best way to stay warm; I felt we had the right equipment.
Now there is just another day of waiting for our ship to arrive. Antarctica, here we come!

Mate

My first experience with Mate tea was a total disaster. I found some Mate Tea in a glass container in the apartment we rented in BA and I thought, well; let me see how it tastes.
I put the kettle on until the water boiled, poured it over two spoons full of mate tea leaves, had the brew soak for a while, stirred it and then drank it through the special silver straw I found in the kitchen drawer. Yuk!

I added some sugar to the mix and stirred it again but still, Yuk!
So naturally, I never tried it again while in BA. Yet on the buses that Carol and I took to the South of Argentina, I noticed the bus drivers drinking this yucky stuff: sometimes 3 or 4 cups in one sitting. Even some passengers rushed out at gas stops, or rest stops to refill their thermos bottles with hot water from the station offices. It seemed it was ‘normal’ to refill one’s thermos with hot water while on a trip. The refills of hot water were free. A large pot of hot, not boiling water was standing in most offices for either a refill of the thermos or for a fill up of the mate cup. The calabash gourds that held the leaves of the yerba bush or tree, the yerba mate, also had a silver straw sticking out of them. Everybody in a family group or among friends drank from the same straw.
I would watch and wonder how this drink, the mate tea, was being prepared but could not figure it out. Yes, they added water and then drank the tea right away but it seemed more than that. I suspected there was some trick to drinking mate. I sensed there was some way to prepare the brew properly, some way to buy the right leaves, some way to serve it properly, some correct way to drink it, etc.
While this preparation of the tea is not as ritualized as the Japanese Tea Ceremony, there is a correct way to drink mate tea.
So, when I arrived in Ushuaia, at our first B&B, I asked Solange, the woman who ran the place, what is it about Mate Tea? How do you prepare it correctly, how to you serve it, how to you drink it, etc? Because of her excellent English I really understood her and wow, was I in for a lecture.

Yes, she showed me how to settle a full cup of the dry tea mix in the hollowed out calabash gourd, how to eliminate the powdery residue by tilting the contents upside down on my open palm. She told me to fill the cup with cold water first

after settling the silver straw in its permanent position. This straw has a widened end with holes in it to prevent the Mate leaves from entering the straw. Then after the cold water has been absorbed, pour hot, never boiling water over the concoction. Finally,

I drank it with sugar added for my benefit. It tasted better this time but still left a taste of dried grass in my mouth. I am just not used to its particular flavor.
When I found time and a good internet connection

I looked up the proper way to make mate tea and found there are many different ways to make this yerba tea. It is drunk all over the southern parts of the South American Continent. Some people seem to have an addiction to it. I pass on its consumption but some folks love it, even crave mate tea.
So when you come to Argentina, try Mate but make sure you have it brewed the right way from a person who knows how to make it. Do not make the mistake I made and try to make it yourself. You will first, like me, say it is Yucky! Yet given the right preparation even I could get used to drinking it now. Give it a try,

but do not use the ‘Mate Teabags’. That ‘Teabag’ is not mate. Yerba must be the loose leaf, naturally dried variety to make good mate. Enjoy something new and if you really want to know all the details about how to make mate tea from the yerba plant, follow the link below: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mat%C3%A9_tea

El Calafate - 4x4 Trip

For weeks now we have ridden buses through the landscape and yes, Patagonia is very desolate. Only two people per square km. live here. Naturally, most live in towns or cities and that brings the count way up. Once off the road, paved or gravel, hardly a soul can be found. To walk any distance is not very effective, one cannot see much. So, we booked a tour for a day with driver.

This guy Lucas, picked us up at 9:45 AM at our hostal driving a late model Range Rover Land Cruiser.
It did not take long to get out of El Calafate and our first stop was to be a bird’s eye view of the town after climbing a steep hill, on dirt roads.

El Calafate lies at 140 meters on the shores of Lago Argentina and we now are at 800 meters, so the climb was not that high but the effect was wonderful. We had a view from here over the entire City.

Even the condors liked this spot.

I caught pictures of one of them at take off and in flight.

La Calafate is a sleepy town and has been officially on the map only since 1927. It started out as a wool trading spot on the Lake. Land was cheap at that time. I was told that a parcel of land in the 1920s with dimensions of 62 km. by 45 km. sold for 600 pesos (US 150.-). It truly was dirt cheap then.
The rancher’s family who bought this land years ago still owns it today. Plus they own hotels, banks and stores in El Calafate. Today this same family is well known here and still uses the land that was bought as a ranch for cattle and sheep.
We were joined at this spot by other vehicles since the look-out over El Calafate was spectacular. Yet when we took off, we lost the other cars immediately in the vast real estate all around us. Our driver, Lucas, was very capable. His boss teaches off road driving for Range Rover and he taught this fellow well. His English was very good. I would recommend his company, MIL Outdoor Adventure, to anyone. Just make sure you tell them you want Lucas to drive you.
After leaving the lookout we drove past some fences that the Rancher put up to keep his cattle confined.

We had to open the gates with a key, drive through, and then re-lock the gate. To use the land, to drive over it on a more or less daily basis, the company MIL pays the Rancher a monthly user fee. Nothing is free in Argentina. We could never have driven this stretch of off-road ourselves. The car, with very low gearing, performed flawlessly. We crept forward, very slowly sometimes, but we kept on moving.

The ground is full of ruts, rock strewn with deep inclines

and even steeper declines.

We had a dry day with no rain so the road conditions were ideal for our outing.
I was told by Lucas that it only rains 300 mm. a year here. So water is in very short supply. Yes, the lake has water from the glaciers run-off but the area surrounding Calafate is bone dry. It is truly a desert. Locals have tried to drill for water but found none. In order to get the best use of the land and the few grasses that grow in sheltered areas, the ranchers use 11 hectares (about 28 acres) for one cow. So you must have a very large area to grow beef.
I am so glad we took this road trip in this off-road 4x4 vehicle. It gave me a totally different perspective of Patagonia. Lucas was born in El Calafate and travels a lot during the year but likes his birth town. He is amazed at how fast the town has grown in the last few years. Because of his travels he has a broader appreciation for what Calafate needs; he is the next generation, part of the young Argentineans that will make a difference. Yet he can do little to bring water to this desert. In order to sustain plant life in a better way, at least 700 mm. of rain is needed. A better average would be 1000 mm. With the measly 300 mm. that fall here, what do you do? Can you pump water from the Lake with wind power and water the surroundings? Is this ecologically best for this area? The water would water the trees and would, after that run back into the Lake, creating a circle effect. Lucas and I talked about this but it requires a larger undertaking than just talk.

For lunch, which is provided on this tour, we stopped at a natural watering hole. It must be the consistency of the soil that keeps the water at this spot. A very shallow depression collects run offs and this spot served us as a picnic area.

A chuck wagon was set up with two yurts nearby for shelter in the snow or during extreme cold spells in winter. This tour runs all year long, day in and day out; it is a business after all.
Lucas was our cook too; and a very fine chef indeed.

With supplies he had in this car, he whisked together a barbeque of strip or flank steaks and served them on fresh baguettes with sliced tomatoes. It was so delicious I had two of those sandwiches. As soon as Lucas showed up to cook our lunch we had a visit from a desert fox.

This fox kept his distance but was there because he knew there would be left-overs for him at the end of the meal or even a morsel thrown to him from us. I say us because after some time another Range Rover van showed up with five other people. We all shared the lunch Lucas prepared.

Even the fox, now accompanied by his mate, got his share.
This sheltered spot in the middle of nowhere was surrounded by huge boulders some 70 million years old. Those colossuses sat strewn around us, giving us protection from the wind, giving us a feeling of security, of coziness.
After his truly outstanding lunch, after cleaning up and locking up the chuck wagon, we proceeded to the Mexican Hat Rocks. When I first heard this from Lucas I thought of a rock formation that looks like a sombrero, a Mexican hat. So I was looking around from inside the truck to spot it from far away. Again we bounced along some tough roads, even meeting a larger group of people in an off road bus, an Italian made Iveco truck but we never felt crowded on the road. The spaces we were in were just too vast.
When Lucas stopped to show us the Mexican hats I was confused. Looking around I saw nothing until he stepped to the back side of large boulder and there in the middle of the rock I saw a brown stone that looked like a Mexican hat stuck to the boulder.

Lucas told us it was created by erosion but I am not sure how that happened; especially since I saw other, similar looking examples nearby on other rocks. It looked like a cannon ball hit the boulder and flattened out, leaving a rim and the main part of the ball stuck in its center. Of course there are no such cannons around; it was just my impression of the way it looked to me.

But then I read some more on line and found out that those ‘crashed projectiles’ are from the violence of nearby volcanoes which shot heavier, melting rock pieces into the air which embedded themselves into the softer boulder.

Erosion over eons helped and viola, a Mexican Hat. This area is millions and millions year old. A lot happened here before I was around.
So this is my theory, you can disprove it if you like.

After this 4x4 tour we needed an ice cream to sit and talk things out. Entering an Ice cream parlor back in El Calafate we met the chattiest Argentinean yet. She practiced her ‘Spanglish’ on me and did not stop. We had already paid for the ice cream and were waiting for our two scoops but she talked, talked, talked and talked. Oh was she happy, chatty and bubbly.
It truly took 20 minutes to get the 2 scoops served. Non-stop she talked in a mix of very bad English and Spanish about her family, her life, her ambitions, etc. We did earn this ice cream I want you to know.
Back at the hotel we had another chat with Walter from the BMW group who was later joined by John before they had to rush out for dinner.
It was a good day, I learned about real life away from touristy Argentina. I liked that a lot.

El Calafate – Perito Moreno Glacier

We arrived without a hitch at the Bus Terminal in El Calafate around 5 PM and with a little pushiness got a taxi that took us to our Hostel Del Glaciar on Av Libertator (careful, there are 2 hostels with the same name). This fairly new Hostel is a great place.
Glenda in BA had booked it for us and yes, the Hostel Del Glaciar received a call from Dingbat who did not cancel our first day, but moved the whole 4 days we had booked one day forward.

So instead of cancelling the 18th of Feb as I told Dingbat to do, they moved all our days starting now on the 19th. Ok, we can live with that, we just have to cancel the last day now because we have airline tickets booked for a flight to Ushuaia on the 22nd.

Bruno at Hostel Del Glaciar was very helpful. But he could not refund me the money because I did not book the Hostel. It was booked by Supernova, the travel agency, and only Supernova can be refunded. So for that to happen, I contacted Glenda and she is working on it. Let us see when and if I get the $97. returned. Glenda understands, Bruno understands, I understand - but this is Argentina, do you understand?
Now that we have one day less than planned in El Calafate, we immediately booked the famous boat tour to see the glaciers. There are many glaciers in this area and the most famous of them all is the Perito Moreno Glaciar. Yes, as you can see the name Perito Moreno pops up all the time. There is a town called Perito Moreno, there is a river by that name, a mountain and a glacier, a National Park and who knows what else.
Perito Moreno was the discoverer of this area. He mapped this lonely terrain, he and his men made the area known and famous. Born in BA in 1852 to a wealthy family he started his expeditions at the age of 20. This was the golden age of Argentina when this county was wealthier than the U.S. As director of the Museum of National History he discovered many lakes, mountain ranges and even forgotten indigenous tribes; some of them not so friendly like the Tehuelche. More about them later but the name means ‘fierce’ in their language and they were very tall and war-like. Perito Moreno was captured by a clan of the Tehuelche and sentenced to death but escaped the day before his execution.
He spent his life as a discoverer until his death in 1919. His name can maybe be compared to Lewis and Clark in U.S. history. He loved to chart the unknown; he did this for years and years; loved to prove a point. Honor was given him by Universities but he was most happy on his trips. He realigned the continental divide in the southern part of Argentina.
Perito Moreno helped settle land disputes with Chile and explained why some rivers, previously going East are now going West. (Glacial Ice flows blocked and diverted the rivers which were the boundaries between Argentina and Chile). He was a busy man, a dynamo of Argentina who now has his name on many Argentinean National features.
Our boat trip was the best we could do given our age and physical stamina. There are walking and climbing tours on the glaciers but there is an age limit here, a cutoff date. Nobody over the age of 65 is allowed on those ‘walking’ tours. I could technically have qualified but I preferred the comfy seat on a big boat.
Our pick up by mini bus was at 7 AM and we arrived at the harbor gate on Lake Argentina about 8:10 am.

A mass of people stood already lined up for the cruises leaving from this location. The morning winds were blowing a stiff breeze and standing in line for 20 minutes really chilled me to the bones. Boy, am I glad I am not walking on the Glaciers. It is cold, it is f r e e z i n g cold.
The gates opened up on time and like a herd of cattle, we all rushed to get on board our respective boats.

In addition to the fee of 500 pesos ($120.-) for this tour, there is an additional entrance fee to the National Park of 100 Pesos, which we forgot to pay. But because the masses were so great, the ranger just pushed us past the border check line. We saved that expense.

Finding a good seat on the ship was not that easy, we were among a pushy bunch of people. Our boat, a large Catamaran, held about 250 passengers and the boat was loaded to capacity.
Our official trip began at 9 AM and we were met immediately by icebergs.

Some had a very intense blue color to them. The bergs looked like floating jewels, huge and in every conceivable shape.

As beautiful as those icebergs are, we all know they can be a menace too.

So the boat proceeded slowly at first until we reached more open waters. We were in a canal of some sorts and slipped through a very narrow opening in the rock walls called Boca Del Diablo (throat of the devil) only to be in another channel.
After about 2 hours of just more or less open waters we approached the first glacier named Upsala.

There was no way to get close to this glacier. So many icebergs blocked our way that we could only see the real ice fields, the wall of ice from a far distance. Chunks and chunks of huge bergs blocked us. The temperature was cold, the wind blew hard. Only the most adventuresome folks dared to stand on deck and expose themselves to the chilling winds as we proceeded towards our next stop, the glaciers Bolado and Onelli. Since those glaciers are small compared to the rest of the others we had more or less a drive by for photos only.
Our first look and what most people see on their trip out here is the glacier Spegazzini. Wide and majestic, this river of ice empties itself into an iceberg filled channel that is wide enough for the boat to navigate through. The boat could get fairly close and the sight we had was one of the natural wonders of Nature. I saw a frozen river, flowing down a snow-filled, ice-filled mountainside.

For millennia this process never changes. Nothing stops this river of ice until it can empty itself into a lake or the ocean. Mountains that are in the way will be pushed aside or will be worn and scrubbed away. The frozen water will win in the long run. Slowly, without remorse, the ice moves on until it can finally relieve itself and unload its burden.

While we were there, a loud crack preceded the fall of a small section of the giant ice wall into the channels, which are all part of this huge lake named Lago Argentina, the largest lake in this county with the same name. This glacier is very active; a constant melting in the summer and refreezing in the winter makes for a great visit and an almost guaranteed sighting of chunks of ice falling into the water.
After maybe 30 minutes for taking pictures, for finding the best angle for a once-in-a-lifetime photograph, we moved on to the jewel of the area, the renowned Glaciar Perito Moreno.
Finding our way back through the channels of icebergs, through the channels of rocks to where we were facing the glacier Perito Moreno took a good two hours. People became more daring and the warmth of the middle of the day helped many to be on deck instead of being in the cabin. At one point a rather large wave suddenly gushed over the starboard side of the catamaran and doused a lot of the people with ice water. Carol was one of those who got soaked.

She was lucky; her waterproof parka took the brunt of the wave. It took a long time to dry out the wet jeans however.
Arriving at the highlight of this tour did make some people stop talking. Argentineans are a chatty people and for a moment their natural exuberance was overshadowed by the sheer size of the ice wall facing us.

Our boat kept a respectable distance from the ice wall. We could, theoretically have floated really close to this wall of ice but it would not have been safe.

At any moment huge blocks of ice could have come loose and crushed our boat with no trouble. We looked small compared to this display of Nature. The

wind blowing off the glacier was cold.
At one point the crew of the boat obtained a large piece of ice, a tiny iceberg.

They heaved it aboard and chopped it up and used the ice as ice cubs in drinks one could buy. A larger ‘trophy’ piece was given around to hold and was used as a prop for a photo op. I passed on the drinks but had a picture taken on the bow of the ship amid the winds blowing off the glacier.

It was cold as you can see from the way Carol is bundled up.
It is hard to describe the feelings one gets when faced with huge natural phenomenon. I basically feel so tiny, so unimportant. It is silly actually to even have an opinion. Mother Nature does not really care one way or the other what we think, I believe.
I am always awestruck.
Our return took us back to our starting point and we got to the waiting bus at around 4 PM only to sit and wait for other people who were somehow delayed until 4:30PM.
We were back in the Hostel Los Glaciares at about 5:30 PM.
Just as we were getting warmed up and checking our emails in the lobby of the Hostel, in walked a group of BMW riders.

This group, lead by guides of the Australian Company “Compass Expeditions”, seemed like old friends to us by now. We met them first in Bariloche; one of them seemed to have remembered my lovely face from a GlobeRiders DVD. Then we met again in the town of Perito Moreno just as they were standing in front of their nice hotel. And now we meet them again right here at the Hostel Los Glaciares in El Calafate. We met them three times and I wonder if these meetings have any cosmic significance. So let me add some pictures here and let me say that all of the riders must be good riders.

They did ride on this awful Route 40, some did fall down, all did get dirty and felt cold and felt scared and all of them can now be very proud. John you made it,

Walter Maurer you even rode 2 up on some of these stretches. All of you accomplished an amazing feat. I take my hat off to you. This was not an easy trip but the comments you left about Compass Expeditions were all very positive. I am glad to have met you all. As you can see from the photo the company runs new 650 GS bikes for this tour. The bikes performed perfectly, too and the chase vehicle was a bonus.

After some leftover food from last night’s Parrilla in the kitchen of the Hostel, washed down with a bottle of wine we still had from our wine tour in Mendoza we called it a day.
We crashed into bed at about 11 PM right after we had booked a 4x4 tour for tomorrow morning.