The day begins with a mandatory Covid screening at the hotel. A negative result is required to board the boat tomorrow. After an early breakfast we headed for our tests. It takes thirty minutes to get the results. Both of us feel fine but have been around lots of folks getting here and are more anxious than we thought. Two years of waiting and planning, packing carefully to ensure that we would have appropriate clothing to get by in case the luggage gets lost, spending extra time in Buenos Aires to make sure we have all our luggage; and it all comes down to a PCR test. With trepidation we returned for our results – NEGATIVE! Mary actually started to cry.
We had arranged a private, half-day tour of Tierra del Fuego National Park. Our guide, Sergio, picked us up at 10 for the 20 km ride from our hotel. On the way we paused at the world’s ‘Most Southern Course’ – the cleverly named ‘Ushuaia Golf Course’. There are lots of people playing and the foursome tradition is ignored. On one green there were at least 7 people putting.
The park is spectacular. We’re on the Argentina side. There is also a Chilean N.P. just across the Beagle Channel. Once inside the park there is the world’s ‘Most Southern Post Office’ – are you sensing a theme here? You can buy and mail postcards from here. It’s very popular. The line is long so we elected to pass on the opportunity.
We took a several mile hike along the Beagle Channel coastal trail, dodging the numerous tree roots lurking to trip one up. Wild horses grazed in some of the fields. We also enjoyed short walks along Lapataia and Ensenada bays. The park is also the terminus of the Pan American Highway. It’s a long drive of some 19,000 miles to Prudhoe Bay Alaska!
After several hours exploring we stopped for lunch. Described in our itinerary as a ‘boxed lunch’, we were instead led to a private yurt owned by the tour company where we enjoyed a multi-course meal. Things started with an antipasto assortment, followed by a roasted stuffed chicken breast and assorted veggies. Of course, no lunch is complete with the requisite bottle of Argentinian Malbec. A Dulce de Leche ice cream finished things off. Heading back to the car, we spotted a family of upland geese (Dad, Mom and several chicks).
Back at the hotel we attended a pre-cruise briefing and Q&A session. We were able to watch our ship, the MS Seaventure, dock at the marina in Ushuaia. She looks pretty small compared to the big cruise ship parked in the same area. After dinner in the main lounge we retired to our room and spent some time (and a fine Malbec from Mendoza) getting our blog thoughts together and did final packing for the boat. Late to bed!