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Experts since 1991, making Cold Oceans Expeditions
for hundreds of delighted guests.
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Sailing to the Antarctic Peninsula,
South Georgia, Cape Horn,
Falklands & Tierra Del Fuego
On this virtual tour you may see:
Majestic mountains dipped in snow...
Crystalline waterways...
Whales, seals, Soaring Andes condors...
Ice-blue Glaciers that shimmer like jewels...
SOME TIERRA DEL FUEGO MAPS
THIS MAP SHOWS SOME DETAILS OF THE GLACIER AREA
The map above shows the full
extent of Tierra Del Fuego &
also the Torres Del Paine area
Satellite Map of Tierra Del Fuego
Straits of Magellen above left
and the Beagle Channel below right
Cape Horn is in right bottom corner
The highest mountain in the area,
Mount Darwin, is highlighted near center
Patagonia
{pah-tah-gohn'-ee-ah}
Patagonia, the southern 30% of South America, lies poleward of 40 deg
south
latitude. Most of this arid region is in Argentina between the Andes
and
the Atlantic Ocean. Patagonia means "big feet," referring to the
TEHUELCHE Indians who, when first seen by Ferdinand Magellan in 1520,
were
wearing oversize boots.
The area is estimated at 673,400 sq km (260,000 sq mi) and consists of
plateaus
rising from about 90 m (300 ft) near the ocean to 1,525 m (5,000 ft) in
the Andean foothills. Patagonia has a cool to cold temperature and is
swept
by strong winds called pamperos. The mean annual temperature is 12-20
deg
C (54-68 deg F) in the north and 6-13 deg C (43-55 deg F) in the south.
Rainfall amounts to less than 255 mm (10 in) a year, and only a few
rivers,
such as the Chubut, Deseado, and Chico, reach the Atlantic. The
dominant
vegetation is scrub grass and tuftlike bushes. In higher elevations
steppe
grass and desert shrubs grow. Wildlife includes foxes, rheas, and
plovers.
Patagonia is primarily a sheep-raising area. Fruits, cereals, and
potatoes
are grown in irrigated areas, especially along the Chubut River. In
1907
petroleum was discovered near Comodoro Rivadavia, the principal city of
Patagonia. Some iron and coal is mined.
After Magellan's coastal explorations, the Spanish dominated the area
until
British sheep ranchers settled there in the 1880s. In 1833, Charles
Darwin
discovered and explored the Chubut River while on his travels aboard
the
H.M.S. Beagle.
Tierra del Fuego
{tee-air'-uh del fway'-goh}
Tierra del Fuego is an archipelago with a land mass of about
73,740
sq km (28,470 sq mi), separated from the southern tip of the South
American
mainland by the Strait of Magellan. The islands are sparsely populated
by
three Indian tribes as well as by Chilean and Argentinian settlers.
The eastern third of the archipelago belongs to Argentina (1989 est.
pop.,
58,881); the western two-thirds is Chilean (pop. unavailable).
Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, the archipelago's largest island,
accounts
for about two-thirds of the land area. Mount Sarmiento, the islands'
highest
mountain at about 2,300 m (7,550 ft), is located to the west, where the
mountains are an extension of the Andes range. The archipelago's
eastern
portion is in part a continuation of the Patagonian plateau.
Some lumbering, livestock raising, fish canning, and mining takes
place.
Petroleum was discovered in the Chilean section in 1945. The climate is
moderately cold, with high winds and variation in rainfall.
The area was discovered in 1520 by Ferdinand Magellan, who named it
"land
of fire."
The Indian inhabitants remained largely undisturbed until the 1880s,
when
Chileans and Argentinians started sheep ranches and discovered gold in
the
archipelago. In 1881 a boundary dispute was resolved by assigning
roughly
the western two-thirds of the archipelago to Chile and the remainder to
Argentina.
(From The New Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia)
Trekking, climbing and sailing in Patagonia
(Torres Del Paine area)
See Dientes de Navarino for trekking in
Tierra
Del Fuego
Patagonia has been known as an area of perpetual winds and a land of
impenetrable
ice and rock above the final cape of Chile at the "ends of the earth"
since it's discovery by Magellan. It extends to both Argentina and
Chile
and reaches Tierra Del Fuego at the southernmost tip of South America.
It
consists principally of glaciers, mountains, fjords, and pampas. Each
is
unique in itself and even more awe inspiring in combination.
Along the west coast of this land runs a series of archipelagos
containing
hundreds of rugged islands which eventually give way to a mainland cut
deeply
by intricately twisting fjords. These may be reached by boat. East of
the
fjords is the massive Patagonia Ice Cap. This is over 200 miles long
and
50 miles wide in places and is the world's biggest ice cap outside of
the
polar regions. Low pressure systems come to the ice cap from the west
and
provide heavy snowfall for the glaciers that flowing spectacularly into
the fjords.
On the eastern side of the ice cap, the ice runs up to the crest of the
Patagonian Andes, where it covers huge knifed-edged ridges, high
passes,
and scores of towering summits. Beyond the crest, glaciers fall
abruptly
towards the pampas in dramatic ice flows and ice falls that sometimes
end
in the midst of alpine lakes. To the east stretch the wind-swept pampas
and the smaller Patagonia peaks with their steep walls and severely
broken
glaciers. The larger peaks are awe inspiring, reaching skyward
thousands
of feet, with great sheer-walled towers often capped with ice.
Near the fjord area of Tierra Del Fuego and the Beagle Channel one may
visit
the famous Torres Del Paine National Park on the southern edge of the
Patagonia
Ice Cap. Here you may go backpacking and trekking, or you can join
programs
to do the mountain climbing as well. Backpackers should have experience
with overnight trips in rough country; those who desire to make ascents
should have mountaineering ice and snow climbing experience.
Torres Del Paine National Park in Patagonia is like entering into
another
dimension. It's a country of rosy towers, immense glaciers, yellowing
peaks
capped with snowy black horns, and poetic valleys which welcome
visitors
to view grasslands and many lakes. There is a lake giving a great view
of
the three marvelous Towers of Paine with beautiful colors at sunset.
You may hike into the western side of the park, over open meadows and
may
have an opportunity to see condors soaring while enjoying the view of
the
horned peaks. Here you may see guanacos, a kind of camel, hundreds of
Andean
geese as well as great grebes, buff-necked ibis, southern lapwings,
plumbed
rails, black-chested buzzard eagles, the rhea, a large ostrich like
bird
and black necked swans. To the northwest are hundreds of square miles
of
unexplored ice cap and mountains.
*Note:
Victory Adventure Travel can obtain reservations for you in Torres del
Paine
and information on trekking in Tierra Del Fuego.
mailto:sales@victory-cruises.com
The "Towers of Paine"
For booking & info on expeditions or flights to
Antarctica, South Georgia, Cape Horn, and Tierra Del Fuego"
& Free Newsletter on these, please contact:
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