 |
| Carretera Austral views |
Crossing into Chile (chile chicho) proved rather tricky with our dog. We had all the necessary documents but failed to get a document from SENASA the Argentinian sanitation department (the website we had consulted had not mentioned this document). When we arrived at the border, we were refused entry with Barney. Unfortunately, it was a bank holiday so we couldn't get the document anywhere and traveled back to Perito Moreno where we had stayed the night before to spend another night before getting the document. The next day we went to the SENASA office but it was closed for a week due to staff shortages! We drove to the next city (Rio Mayo) some 125 km away only to find it closed until the next day due to staff shortages! We returned the following day and managed to get the document but we had used three extra days and the pressure was on because we had a boat to catch. Crossing the border took 2 hours and was the most invasive crossing we have experienced on this trip. They removed everything from our car and trailer to scan it all and search through. But, we were finally in Chile and set off towards Puerto Guadal for the night. The roads to get there were hair raising, steep and cliffy! We arrived at night and luckily found a cabana to stay at for the night.
The next morning we headed to Peurto Yangay. The roads were really difficult to drive and it was first and second gear almost all the way. The roads are narrow, stony/dirt tracks with little space to pass oncoming vehicles and a sheer drop on one side if you were to steer off path. Definitely a road I would be reluctant to drive again, but the views were spectacular and even the boys enjoyed the scenery. We arrived in Puerto Yungay at dusk and were shocked to find nothing there! It is not a big port and luckily one little cafe was there to serve food!
The next day we hung around the port until the boat departed at 8pm. The boat is simple with reclining seats and onboard movies. We got ourselves settled and watch a film before sleeping. The next day we explored a bit more. There was a little playroom for the boys to wear off some energy and the food was good. We spend some time on deck and were fortunate to see huge ice chunks in the water. The snowy mountains and sea lions along the route made it a lovely journey and the boat is fully heated so we enjoyed our ride. Barney had to stay in his kennel by the car which he didn't like very much but we managed to go down and get him out several times each day but he was very happy to get back in the car as we left the boat!We spend the night after in Puerto Natales which is a good-sized city with plenty of campsites and hotels. The next day we headed to Rio Grande back in Argentina which involved another short boat trip (20 mins) and a full day driving.
 |
Glaciar Martial |
After we drove to Ushuaia. We stayed in an Airbnb with a lovely host and enjoyed 5 days exploring the city. The highlights were visiting a Siberian Husky centre and stroking 142 huskies and drinking hot chocolate, and climbing Glaciar Martial. The boys found icicles to suck like ice lollies and snow to slide down on their tummies - just like penguins! We had a fabulous time at the end of the world and enjoyed the natural park which has some good trails and lots of birds to see.
