5 must-see places in Ushuaia
We tell you 5 must-see places in Ushuaia! When someone visits Ushuaia, they probably imagine that it is a small town located at the end of the map. What many people do not know is that Ushuaia is a large city with a variety of accommodations of different categories. In addition, a diverse menu with local products such as lamb, trout, spider crab or black hake.
But the surroundings of the “southernmost city in the world” will leave you spellbound by the variety of landscapes. In this case we have chosen only 5 places that you must visit on your trip to Ushuaia and that are accessible to everyone.
Tierra del Fuego National Park
Tierra del Fuego National Park has almost 70,000 hectares that mainly preserve the only native forest in Argentina that reaches the sea coast. Here you will be able to see the centenary trees of lengas and sour cherry trees that reach the shore of the Beagle Channel and join the large kelp forests of cachiyuyos that border the beaches. You can also enjoy the views of Lake Acigami, the Ovando and Lapataia rivers where people usually go to fish for trout or salmon. You can also get to the end of National Route 3, an iconic place in the National Park to take a picture of the distance between Lapataia Bay and Buenos Aires, and for the more curious, a way to get to know the National Park in depth is by taking a trail.
Beagle Channel Navigation
Navigation on the Beagle Channel is one of the most requested excursions. Because it is the place par excellence to see local wildlife. There you will be able to meet sea lions, imperial cormorants and penguins that live in colonies on the islands, and around these populations you will also be able to see other birds such as seagulls, terns, scoters, ducks and others. On the other hand, you will learn about the amazing life of the canoe people who navigated the region and you will encounter the legendary Les Eclaireurs lighthouse.
To tour the Beagle Channel you can do it in large catamarans with cafeteria on board or with small boats such as yachts or sailboats. The shortest sailings last 3 hours, then there are 5 hour or full day sailings that include a visit to Estancia Harberton. The first ranch founded on the Argentine side of Tierra del Fuego and managed by the fourth generation of descendants.
Port Almanza
Another place that is growing is Puerto Almanza, a fishing village located approximately 70 km from Ushuaia. In their fishing grounds we can see the little yellow boats with which they go to catch the spider crabs. This giant crab is the main attraction of coming here, there are several rustic restaurants and bars decorated with crab traps, nets and buoys that invite you to eat this typical dish of Fuegian gastronomy.
From here you will be able to see the Chilean town of Puerto Williams which is located on the southern shore of the Beagle Channel just in front of Almanza. Also from the coast you can see the west gable of Gable Island, the largest island in the Beagle Channel. Its cliffs look like gable-roofed houses side by side. This particularity originated with the advance and retreat of the glaciers that covered the Beagle thousands of years ago.
La Estancia La Carmen
If we take National Route 3 to the north, we will cross the Andes Mountain Range to be able to observe the Lake District. From the highest point of the road we will be able to observe the Escondido Lake and behind it the Fagnano Lake (Khami). These lakes were formed when glaciers retreated in Tierra del Fuego. They are bodies of fresh water that are surrounded by mountains covered by the forest of lengas and sour cherry trees. Our family’s estancia La Carmen is located on the southern shore of the largest lake in Tierra del Fuego. From the dock you will be able to contemplate the swell of the lake. In the surroundings you can also walk through a forest of lengas decorated with lichens that hang from the trees like beards.
Also at the ranch you can visit an active beaver farm, a dam built by beavers, rodents introduced in the 1940s. There they will be able to learn about the dynamics of the reservoir and the impact they have on the forest.
Cape San Pablo
A place that you will not believe and that its landscape is completely different from what you are used to seeing in Ushuaia is Cabo San Pablo. It is located on the Atlantic coast, in the center of Tierra del Fuego in the transition zone between the forest and the steppe. Along the way you will come across several sheep and cattle ranches and you will surely encounter groups of curious guanacos trying to cross the road. The trip culminates in a tongue of land that penetrates the coast of the Argentinean sea. On its coast you will find the wreck of the Desdénoma, a cargo ship that ran aground in the 80s. But it reminds us of the number of sailing ships of the XVIII and XIX centuries that after crossing the world found their end running aground in the cold waters of Tierra del Fuego.
There are many places to visit, here we only show you 5 but Tierra del Fuego has a lot of places that will take your breath away. That’s why more and more travelers repeat this destination for its wide variety of excursions. If you are coming to Ushuaia and need advice about your trip do not hesitate to write us. We will make sure you take home the best memories of the End of the World.
