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Round Tierra del Fuego in a folding kayak |
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Author: Markus
Ziebell, Photos: Markus Ziebell
Translated by: Carmen Chaplin
This trip was made in January-March 1998
Dieser Reisebericht ist auch in deutscher Sprache verfügbar. Bitte folgen Sie diesem Link |
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Round Tierra del Fuego in a folding kayak An account of a 9-week folding kayak tour through the Beagle Channel andthe Magellan Strait, round South America's stormy southern tip |
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| Up to three areas of low pressure pass through this region every day, and
after storms on a scale of nine, you also get periods of calm, when you can
dream and rest |
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It is drizzling lightly as our machine lands in the world's most southern town in the early evening. Frank and I are planning to start our folding kayak tour, which is to take us all the way round Tierra del Fuego, in Ushuaia. But before we can get into our boats, we discover that South America's bureaucracy is just as bad as that of our own country, and we end up spending almost 2 days in customs. Finally, as soon as our paddles, which had also been delayed for 2 days, have made their way to us from Buenos Aires, we set off with enough provisions to last us about 3 weeks. The Beagle Channel welcomes us with rather uncharacteristically sunny and calm weather, so to start with, we are stewing in our own juices in our drysuits. But just a few days later, on our way east, the sea demonstrates that there is a good reason why so many ships have been shipwrecked on the rocks, or ended up at the bottom of the sea while trying to round Cape Horn. |
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This old two-master has seen better days. At high tide, it is flooded by
waves and at the mercy of decay. Only a few birds are nesting in the former
hold.
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Cape Horn is only about 100 kilometers further south, on an offshore island. When we first left Ushuaia, we were still in the shelter of one of the last Andean foothills and the offshore islands in the south. After a few days, however, we leave this region, and the Atlantic soon prevails. The wind mostly blows north from the west, so at least we don't have to battle with strong breakers. But even offshore winds on a scale of nine shouldn't be underestimated. The rocks only offer shelter up to 100 meters into the sea. If you're carried off course here, you go on an 800-kilometer journey towards Antarctica. |
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The trees have adapted to the prevailing wind direction. They only grow in
fairly sheltered areas. Otherwise, the vegetation consists of knee-deep
grasses and shrubs. |
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In the Bahia Thetis, directly before Cape San Vincente, we find Pater
Fagnano's old missionary station Salesiano. A few dilapidated huts and
hundreds of slowly decomposing cowhides speak of better days.
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As there has been a strong wind for several days, a high swell has developed at Cape San Vincente. Directly at the Cape, a long tongue of shallow water juts out into the sea and breaks the waves. In addition to that, the current is flowing against the waves, thus increasing their effect. During our rounding of the Cape, the waves, which are two-and-a-half metres high to begin with, grow to six metres. Our tiny boats are at their mercy. What makes it harder is that the waves are coming
from two different directions. Paddling forward is almost impossible in this situation. Both of us are now simply trying to brace our boats against the paddle blades in the lightly breaking waves. We can only see each other during the short moments that we are both on top of the crest of a wave. One of these waves gets Frank, and capsizes his heavily laden boat. He has to get out. Together, we manage to get him back into the boat. Our attempts to pump out his boat, which is filled with water, are ruined several times by the breakers, as the spraydeck is no match for this violent onslaught.
Over half an hour passes before we are able to paddle on. In the meantime, fog has settled over everything, and we discover that the current has carried us back. We're exhausted when we head for the same bay we left from in the morning, after 4 hours in the boat. |
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The next morning, we make a second attempt, this time under much better
conditions. This time, the weather is on our side. We round the Cape
without problems, and a few hours later, we come upon a pod of killer
whales, which are moving south only 50 meters away from us. Two of the
younger animals make a short detour, to have a look at two strange-looking
objects in the water, from which two tourists are peering fearfully into
the depths. But their curiosity is quickly satisfied. They return to the
other whales, and soon our pulse rates drop below 200 per minute again. |
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Due to lack of time, and because we're not that excited by the north of Tierra del Fuego, we take the bus from Rio Grande to Punta Arenas. We end up spending 5 days in Punta Arenas, that's how long it takes to get the necessary permits from the Chilean Armada. Punta Arenas is one of the windiest regions ever. We're camping in the garden of a guest-house, on the lee side. Yet we still lose a tent pole in a squall, and the outer tent gets badly damaged, so that serious repairs are necessary. This same squall has even uprooted big trees in the town's park. We realize that we have to wait for the right conditions to cross the Magellan Strait. |
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During our wait in Punta Arenas, we visit a colony of Magellan Penguins,
which breed in caves. This station has been created in collaboration with
Frankfurt Zoo. We had often observed these birds in the water while
paddling, but never before on land.
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Right now, the 2.400-meter high Monte Sarmiento is visible from Punta Arenas, even though it is about 100 kilometers away. According to the locals, the weather will now stay calm for 3 days. We use this time to cross the Magellan Strait and to get to the southern channels. As the wind has started up again, we decide against taking the south-westerly route and tackle a pass between two channels on foot instead. |
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The pass is only 5 kilometers wide and 500 meters high at the most.
However, due to the at times dense jungle, the swamp, and our unwieldy
folding kayak and bags, these 2-and-a-half days turn out to be the most
exhausting days of our entire trip. |
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When we finally reach the Beagle Channel, we are greeted with unusual
weather - sun and calm.
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