Description
Day 1:
Reception at Ushuaia airport and transfer to hotel. Accommodation. Free time.
Day 2:
In the morning, after breakfast, depart to Tierra del Fuego National Park: This is a half day excursion to the only National protected area of the Island. The park is located 12 kilometres to the west of Ushuaia city, near the international borderline with Chile.
While leaving the city towards national Route Nº3, the guide will go over the best details of the past and present of Ushuaia.
Inside the park you will appreciate the local flora composed of beech trees and different kinds of bushes and flowers. Fauna is represented by native and introduced animals, such as fuegian reddish foxes, beavers, rabbits and many species of birds (more than 90).
Ensenada Bay, Roca Lake and Lapataia Bay are the tourist attractions you will visit; including some short walks near the lake, where you will see beaver dams
At Lapataia Bay, at the end of the National Park, you will reach the end of the National Route Nº 3 (Panamerican Highway) located 3.063 kilometres far from Buenos Aires. One of the attractions in Ensenada Bay is the post office that certifies the passage through the "End of the World" and from where you can send postcards.
After 4 hours of excursion you will return to Ushuaia.
For the transport of materials, a XILORAIL was mounted, that is to say, a train which circulates upon wooden rails. At the end of 1909 the first railway movements were recorded. The “Decauville” rails with a 60 centimeter gauge were put into service and the work of the “Prison Train” began.
In 1952 the “Prison Train” was decommissioned and with it the rude voices of those inmates faded away. Forty two years after its last service, in 1994, the southernmost train in the world, the “Prison Train”, retakes its historic path.
The "Ferrocarril Austral Fueguino" (FCAF) is situated outside the city of Ushuaia, continuing on National Route nº3 (15 minutes from the city center), on the way to the Tierra del Fuego National Park.
The "Estación del Fin del Mundo" (End of the World Station) is the headquarters of the railway and is situated in a valley between Mount Susana and the Le Martial mountain range, next to the Pipo´s River. The End of the World Station is located at the beginning of the railway. It is found continuing National Route Nº 3, 8 km. west of the city of Ushuaia. It is made up of an 450 m2 area, housing ticket offices, boutique, waiting area, bathrooms and offices.
The tour is as follows: departing from the port of Ushuaia towards Isla Alicia, which shelters a colony of sea lions, later visiting Isla de los Pajaros (Bird’s Island), where it is possible to see royal and imperial cormorants. Navigation continues to Isla de los Lobos, where there are Southern elephant seals and South American sea lions (which differ especially in the fur), ending at Les Éclaireurs lighthouse, built in 1919.
Here the return starts, along a slightly different route, disembarking at one of the Bridges Islands, where you will walk along a path in order to do some interpretation of the flora and bird fauna. There is an account of the Yamanas’ history as well, as the most important “concheros” of the area inhabit the island. Afterwards, already on board and on the way back to Ushuaia, tea, coffee and liquor, or the typical mate with some cookies are served.
Duration. 4 hours approx.
Timetables: 2 daily departures, at 9:30 am and 3 pm.
Day 3:
After breakfast, the amazing excursion during which the Andes mountain range is crossed the heart of the Tierra del Fuego island: Off road Lakes: The tour starts at approximately 9 in the morning, with the departure from the hotel, taking National Route N °3 northbound. When leaving the Beagle Channel, the landscape reveals Mount Olivia and Mount Cinco Hermanos on the horizon, as well as the Carbajal Valley where the peat is exploited. The road leads to the Tierra Mayor Valley, where you can see mounts Bonete and Alvear and some cirque glaciers. Then you cross the winter center "Cerro Castor", place where in winter thousands of tourists and many residents practice their favorite winter sports (Ski in all its modalities, Snowboard, Sledges with dogs, etc.)
You then continue along the route until reaching a height of 450 meters above sea level to cross the Andes Mountains, and from the viewpoint "Paso Garibaldi" you can enjoy the most incredible panoramic views of Lake Escondido and Lake Fagnano. The trip continues to the Bronsovich sawmill and from there the provincial route 119 to travel about 10 km and find the Off Road circuit, an old footprint of lumberjacks that leads, going through a centenary
Lengas forest (and some obstacles!), to Lake Fagnano. There, in the middle of a beautiful forest, at mid-morning, the guide will propose a break with coffee or tea and biscuits. The off-route journey takes about an hour along the shore of the lake, sometimes along the coast, sometimes through the forest ... and also through the water!
At the end of the Off Road part, the excursion continues to a beautiful place located near the lake, to enjoy a tasty lunch and wonderful views. Finally, after a magical day, we begin the return to Ushuaia where we arrive around 5 PM.
Day 4:
Breakfast and, at scheduled time, transfer to airport.
End of our services.
