Argentinian Patagonia is the large expanse of land that lies between Bahia Blanca in Argentina and Tierra del Fuego, and is bordered on the west by the awe inspiring Andes and on the east by the Atlantic Ocean. It is wild, remote, and challenging. Travellers say you either love it or hate it but are never neutral towards it. I loved it, but 7 of our group chose to miss the 5 day 3000 km plus drive from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia and instead to take the 4 hour flight.As you drive south in Patagonia, the landscape changes from flat savannah-like, wheaten-coloured grass and low scrub trees in the northern part to steppe-like, wheaten-colourd grass dotted with dirty olive and yellow coloured gorse bushes in the south - and it stretches for miles and miles, as far as the eye can see in all directions. At first cattle graze on huge estancias, then you drive into country with a mixture of sheep and cattle, then just sheep and indigenous guanacos. The road is long and straight and lined with wire fences on both sides, and telegraph poles on one side. In the very southern part we saw the same telegraph poles but without any wires strung from them. Maybe one day they will string them. The immensity of the wilderness pulls you, slowly, and mesmerizingly into its depths, so that you sit in the Truck gazing out the window on idle, or darting in and out of the stalks of grass imagining yourself to be one of the indegenous small animals that make this vast steppeland their habitat. Argentina has a habit of outdoing Canada in its vastness - for example, the Pampa versus the Prairies, the Iguazu Falls versus Niagara Falls, and the Andes versus the Rockies.
There is a short relief from the steppeland when the land becomes more undulating and hillocks formed from the sediment left by the glacial waters many thousands of years ago make strange shapes on the horizon. This is oil country in Chubut and Neuquen provinces. Along with tourism, oil is one of the growing industries in Patagonia.
Towns in this part of the country are few, with long distances between them. We had many Truck discussions on how children are educated, how people socialize, and what happens in a medical emergency - but did not come up with any satisfactory answers.
The land in Patagonia is bleak and barren, ferociously windy and inhospitable, but it grips your soul.
In order to break the journey we spent a day in Puerto Madryn. This town of approximately 74,000 people, was founded by a group of Welsh settlors in 1886. The town itself has a fairly lively tourist scene with a boardwalk, beach, souvenir shops, and restaurants, but its importance is that it is the hub from which to visit the Peninsula Valdes.
A visit to the Peninsula Valdes is like watching a National Geographic documentary. We took a full day trip from Puerto Madryn in a small tour bus. Our first stop on this barren, wind-swept chunk of land was Punta Norte where we walked along a fenced beach to see sea lions on the shore teaching their pups to swim. We were also incredibly lucky to see the Orcas patrolling the beach just waiting for a naive pup to stray too far into the Ocean. That day, the pups were also incredibly lucky because the Orcas had taken their fill the previous day. It was an amazing sight to see. Our next stop was Caleta Valdes where we saw Elephant Seals basking in the sun on the rocks or facing off by slapping their bodies against each other in an effort to impress the disinterested females. We also saw Magallanes Penguins standing forlornly on the cliffs waiting to shed their down before waddling slowly down the rock face into the ocean. The next stop was the hauntingly beautiful Punta Delgada at the tip of the peninsula - and lunch in a modern eco-restaurant nestled in the sand dunes. Walks along the remote boardwalks showed us more sea lions and a colony of elephant seals. Our final stop was a small sleepy beach resort called Puerto Piramides which has a huge beach over which tractors push boat trailers loaded with boats filled with tourists into the Oceanto go whale spotting. I guess this is so as not to waste time waiting for the tide to come in - or maybe because there is no boat launch, or port. The Peninsula Valdes is one of these very special places in the world that recharge you. We enjoyed being there in the off season, but there were perhaps not as many animals and birds as in mating season or birthing season - the best time to visit really depends on your specific purpose of going there. I could easily see spending 5 - 10 days on the Peninsula watching for the Orca whales.
There is a short relief from the steppeland when the land becomes more undulating and hillocks formed from the sediment left by the glacial waters many thousands of years ago make strange shapes on the horizon. This is oil country in Chubut and Neuquen provinces. Along with tourism, oil is one of the growing industries in Patagonia.
Towns in this part of the country are few, with long distances between them. We had many Truck discussions on how children are educated, how people socialize, and what happens in a medical emergency - but did not come up with any satisfactory answers.
The land in Patagonia is bleak and barren, ferociously windy and inhospitable, but it grips your soul.
In order to break the journey we spent a day in Puerto Madryn. This town of approximately 74,000 people, was founded by a group of Welsh settlors in 1886. The town itself has a fairly lively tourist scene with a boardwalk, beach, souvenir shops, and restaurants, but its importance is that it is the hub from which to visit the Peninsula Valdes.
A visit to the Peninsula Valdes is like watching a National Geographic documentary. We took a full day trip from Puerto Madryn in a small tour bus. Our first stop on this barren, wind-swept chunk of land was Punta Norte where we walked along a fenced beach to see sea lions on the shore teaching their pups to swim. We were also incredibly lucky to see the Orcas patrolling the beach just waiting for a naive pup to stray too far into the Ocean. That day, the pups were also incredibly lucky because the Orcas had taken their fill the previous day. It was an amazing sight to see. Our next stop was Caleta Valdes where we saw Elephant Seals basking in the sun on the rocks or facing off by slapping their bodies against each other in an effort to impress the disinterested females. We also saw Magallanes Penguins standing forlornly on the cliffs waiting to shed their down before waddling slowly down the rock face into the ocean. The next stop was the hauntingly beautiful Punta Delgada at the tip of the peninsula - and lunch in a modern eco-restaurant nestled in the sand dunes. Walks along the remote boardwalks showed us more sea lions and a colony of elephant seals. Our final stop was a small sleepy beach resort called Puerto Piramides which has a huge beach over which tractors push boat trailers loaded with boats filled with tourists into the Oceanto go whale spotting. I guess this is so as not to waste time waiting for the tide to come in - or maybe because there is no boat launch, or port. The Peninsula Valdes is one of these very special places in the world that recharge you. We enjoyed being there in the off season, but there were perhaps not as many animals and birds as in mating season or birthing season - the best time to visit really depends on your specific purpose of going there. I could easily see spending 5 - 10 days on the Peninsula watching for the Orca whales.
Note:
Pictures added Apr 9
Armidilla
Malgannes Penguin
Spider
Shore inValdes with Orca and sea lions
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