Day 19 - Ushuaia to Tierra dell Fuego to Buenos Aires

Day 19 - Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego to Buenos Aires

Date - 4 December

Weather -  Sunny, very windy and cold in Ushuaia. 

We were woken at 5.45am to a rare sunny day in Ushuaia. 

As requested we put our bags outside our cabin at 6.00am and we did not see them again until we arrived at Buenos Aires at four-thirty. Quark Expeditions were very efficient in organising us into our various groups for departure. Ours was the largest group, the Humpbacks, and after making our way down the gangplank we were personally farewelled by the expedition staff. It was a lovely touch.  We boarded coaches at 9.00am and spent the morning touring the picturesque Tierra Del Fuego National Park before catching our private charter plane at 1.00pm to return to Buenos Aires. 

Our tour guide for the morning was excellent as she gave the history of Ushuaia and the heavily forested national park. From the park we could see Chile close by on the other side of the Beagle Channel. 

We were taken by surprise by the cold as it was such a sunny day. It was disturbing to see the damage to the national park by the beavers which were introduced to the area from Canada in the mid 1900's. As they have no predator the population has now exploded to an estimated 100,000 and they seem to be chewing their way through the thick forest. They are now allowed to be hunted. 

On arrival at the Buenos Aires airport I was able to order a taxi in Spanish and we arrived at the hotel at six o'clock. We had a quick turn-around and met the British people, Sonia, Sally and Roy in the hotel's lounge for drinks followed by dinner at one of Buenos Aires' leading meat restaurants, Don Julio in Palermo. When we arrived the restaurant was full and people were lined up on the footpath. Roy had booked a table so we were seated immediately. It was a great night and a fitting end to our Antarctic adventure.

There was a quote on our Daily Program in the morning which stated: 

"For those who have experienced it, no explanation is necessary. For those who haven't, none is possible." Unknown. 

Antarctica is beyond words and we have been very fortunate to have the opportunity to visit it.