December 29: It Really Is “The End of The World”

Wanting to make the most of my stay in Ushuaia, I headed out on a tour of the nearby Tierra Del Fuego National Park. With breathtaking mountain, river, and lake views, the sign at the southern terminus of Ruta 3, and the “End of The World” train ride back towards town this national treasure had much to offer.

Often referred to as “El Fin Del Mundo,” (the end of the world), Ushuaia derives its name from its extreme southern location, the fact for many years it was isolated and hard to reach, and because the stark mountains, cold seas, and wild weather reinforce the feeling of being at the end of the planet.

Bumping and jostling along the wet muddy dirt roads west from town, I was sandwiched between the stunning sea views of the bright blue Beagle Channel on my left and the magnificent mountain tops of the Fuegian Andes on my right, their rocky, snow-topped peaks glistening in the sporadic sun.

Following Ruta 3 to its southern terminus at Bahia Lapataia, I hopped out to get a picture at the iconic sign indicating we had literally reached the end of the road. Dark clouds loomed overhead and the brisk wind coming off the frigid sea waters nearby made the 44-degree early afternoon summer temperature feel like 29.

Heading to nearby Lake Roca, I was smitten by the rippling green blue waters, the lush band of emerald vegetation at the foothills of the mountains, and the vast stretch of dark, white-capped mountains disappearing into the horizon.

Arriving at the train station for our ride along the park’s historic railway, our group boarded the steam locomotive to embark on a one-hour journey east, listening to a commentary about prisoners who cleared many of the forests in the area in the early 1900s as part of their sentences. The tracks followed the shoreline of the Pipo River, named for a member of the penal colony who drowned while working there.

Between the frigid summer temperatures, the breathtaking views, the charming train ride, and the unusual history, the area really did live up to its name. What an adventure!