Park Days

Back in Ushuaia after a short break in the Tierra del Fuego National Park. Quiet days in some respect, less quiet in others. I guess the last morning was the best. After a little rain early in the morning it was dry. I was up early for a change, and got to see Magellanic Woodpeckers in a way I had not seen them before. And some other birds too. I saw two Condors fly over while waiting for my coffee in the cafeteria at the campsite. Weird. Lots of Chimangos and Southern Cara Caras, Black-chested Buzzard-eagles, Austral Parakeets, Thorn-tailed Rayaditos. And I got to see the Ringed Kingfisher again, for the first time since 2005. The Woodpeckers were the absolute highlight though.



Camping in the park is a different experience, You get to be there before and after the day visitors are around. The camp site itself seems to attract a lot of birds, so you get them round your tent, eating your bread even though you are not allowed to feed the animals, and there are rabbits all over the place. Like rabbits. This is not like a Dutch campsite though. You get your own picknick table, your own fireplace for a woodfire, and you get a lot of space. No neatly cordoned off little sites, but a lot of space. And no flat piece of grassland, but a nice variation in height... So you end up sleeping a little like you did on the ship, listing to one side...



And this time round I had my Calafate again. Or at least I think it was Calafate. They say that if you eat Calafate berries you get to come back to Tierra del Fuego. I had some on my first trip out here, handpicked by a very friendly minibus driver called Manuel, and I've been back every year since. I had another one this time, so who knows.



We are actually back at Cabo San Diego for the moment, moving from place to place because we didn't make any plans before staying here. Three nights in the tent in the National Park, one night here, one night unknown, and then three nights in the Cesar Hotel. That sounds a little Las Vegas, but doesn't feel like that. It is on the main street here in Ushuaia though. Cabo is more a home away from here, we know the owners, they allow us to keep our stuff here when we ourselves are not, and they are always friendly. Last year Juan took us to see a small beaver dam outside Ushuaia. And the rooms are pretty good, we can actually cook there. Earlier this week we had a guides night there, having a meal with the other three Europa guides, which was great fun. Always good to share experiences and frustrations.