The End of the World As We Know It

the end of the americas
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Unreal. I am sorry but I can't think of words to describe this place; photos aren't enough either. If this isn't the most beautiful place in the world I don't know what is. There's something about the amount of space that there is here- huge amounts of nothing yet so beautiful, that makes this a very unique place. I was on the bus for 15 hours to get here from El Calafate and I didn't mind one moment of it, in fact I am glad I was unable to catch a flight and had to take the bus- I think it helped me to appreciate how huge this place really is, and how little there is. For hours we rolled through grassy plains but I think the really amazing thing about here is the light. It is a really soft light, when the sun shines everything seems to have a golden glow; the dry grassy plains seem to showcase this best. It is just stunning.

on my way to tierra del fuego (an island at the very tip of south america)
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I arrived in Ushuaia, official fin del mundo (although there is one other town farther south than here in Chile) just after dusk so having seen no pictures of this place you can imagine my surprise when I walked out of my hostel this morning to a crystal clear day, surrounded by snowcapped mountains. I had no idea. That's one thing I try to do- not look at pictures of a place before I go, usually I am let down- it's never as beautiful as it is in the postcards but today was a picture perfect day.

the border. antarctic territory!
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I hiked the coastal trail in the Tierra del Fuego National Park- luckily there was another woman in the minibus on the way to the park that was keen to do the hike. Our driver told us that it was impossible, that the trail was covered in ice and snow and would be "muy peligroso", but when we asked the ranger if it was possible he said it would be a great day to do it. Indeed it was.

We definitely encountered a lot of ice- I mean pure ice the kind that you need crampons to walk on, which made for some pretty sketchy moments, a lot of time spend sliding on our backsides, but mostly the going was great. A lot of mud too, and small streams to cross that were icy cold. Thank god for wool socks!

view from my hostel this morning
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The weather was absolutely perfect- the trail went along the Beagle Channel, the ocean, and it was as calm as a lake. It was hard for me to believe that we were indeed on the ocean but when we came across mussels and kelp as we walked along the beach, very similar to home, I had to accept that it was indeed salt water.

The walk was only about 7 kilometers but it took a good 5 hours- ice and mud don't make for easy going but almost the whole walk followed the coast with unbelievable views. When we weren't on the coast we were in forest that felt like fairy land, with the sun streaming through the moss covered trees.

Tierra del Fuego National Park- this and what follows are all taken along our hike
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I am actually in Tierra del Fuego. Just the thought of that makes me extremely happy. For a long time, I mean years and years I have looked at maps of the world and this place has been one of the very most alluring. Just the thought of being at the very bottom of the world, so close to Antarctica, so far from everything else, is incredible.