Cape Horn and Puerto Williams, Beagle Channel, 3/25/2024, National Geographic Endurance
Aboard the
National Geographic Endurance
Patagonia
Cape Horn, Isla Navarino, Beagle Channel, Puerto Williams… all mythical places of the southern cone of South America. We got to experience all of them today, albeit under totally different conditions. Winds, swells, and rain made it preferable not to land at Horn, so Captain Oliver skillfully took us around it for magnificent views. The sun started shining over the Beagle and by the time we landed at Puerto Williams the day had become warm, sunny, and so calm that the albatrosses were sitting in the water simply waiting for things to be ‘normal’ again.
An ornithologist, photographer, fisherman, climber, and writer, Santiago Imberti was born and raised in southern Patagonia, Argentina. He obtained a degree in tourism and later in ornithology, which allowed him to combine his love for nature and the ...
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We entered Bahia Capitan Canepa where the mountains were rounded over by ancient glacial grinding and the valleys had begun to fill in with nothofagus trees and many of the ferns, mosses, and lichens familiar to the rest of this region. Waterfalls were found around every corner, and both sea lions and fur seals were scattered about, playing in the cool water. Some places felt like scenes from Jurassic Park with waterfalls turning to showers before they hit the seawater below, while the wind fiercely blew the scattering droplets about. The rain was steady, but moods were bright as we encountered shags and oystercatchers along the shores of this magical place. Showers cleared by the afternoon while we made our way west to Ushuaia on the final leg of this voyage. The Beagle Channel always feels different depending on what direction we are traveling. At the beginning it is wonderous and full of mystery, but the return trip always feels sad as we prepare to disembark and bid farewell to our newly made friends. This part of the voyage is fun for spotting whales and Magellanic penguins, but we all know it is short for time. By 2130 dinner ended and National Geographic Endurance’s bow thrusters and Azipods were driving us to the pier for our final berthing of this incredible voyage.
Continuing with mythical and epic places, we made it to the end of our trip with a few days to explore glorious Staten Island. Made famous by its treacherous waters, furious winds, hundreds of wrecks during the 1800’s, and the famous Jules Verne novel, ‘The Lighthouse at the End of the World’, it is by nature one of the wildest places in the world. We experienced that with changes in weather that went from 50 knot winds with heavy sleet, to a sunny calm day minutes afterwards.
Today, aboard National Geographic Endurance, we explored Franklin Bay on Isla de los Estados, Argentina. The jagged coastline mesmerized us with its rugged layers of sedimentary beauty. We encountered diverse wildlife, from rockhopper penguins to majestic seabirds like black-browed albatross and giant petrels. Today’s expedition unveiled the untamed allure of this remote corner of the world where no other expedition company takes people, meanwhile etching memories to last a lifetime.
