Argentina
06.02.2014
A 3 hour
journey from El Calafate, we have to go south east to pick up the highway to
head north. Rio Gallegos is a most unremarkable and forgettable town, and the
late booked hotel was even worse, we were forced into picking this hotel, as
somebody had booked the original hotel for the wrong night!
Took the
overnight bus the following day for a 17 hour trip to Puerto Madryn. Managed to get Premier class, fully reclining
‘bed’type seats, served with an aircraft type meal complete with wine – the
Midland Red was never like this.
It seems
like a awful way to travel but these coaches are really comfortable, and with
no railway system, we found it an ideal way of moving around a very large
country.
07.02.2014
From Wild Terrain to Wild Life
Puerto Madryn
A lovely
seaside town that is the main hub for visiting the Valdes Peninsular, famous
throughout Argentina
We were
able to see Guanacos, a member of the Llama family, Armadillos, Sea Lions, Elephant
seals, a small colony of Magellanic Penguins, Rheas – a small member of the
ostrich family and many more including a wide range of different birds.
09.02.2013
A further
excursion took us first to Punta Delfin to take a boat and try and spot pods of
Commerson’s Dolphins. We were in luck,
dozens of these small dolphins swam around and under our boat, giving us a
spectacular display.
We then set
off for Punta Tomba, where a huge penguin colony has made their summer
home. It’s calculated that more than
400,000 of these Magellanic Penguins have built their nests, mate and bring up
their young in this vast area. With the addition of the juveniles, this brings
the total to more than a million.
There are
nests every where you look, the colony is so large, some ‘families’ have to
walk nearly a kilometre to reach the sea.
The penguins and their offspring go about their daily business totally
impervious to the human spectators – a remarkable sight.
Two long
excursions, but two very rewarding and entertaining days.
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