Introduction: Walk with Penguins
In Ushuaia Penguins are living on Martillo island (hammer island). In order to access this island, you have to go through Harberton station (Estancia Harberton). The only way we found to do so was with to take a day tour to the island with on the company there.
The other option to see penguins would be with a tour of the Beagle channel but this option won’t allow us to walk near them.
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Getting a tour ticket to Walk with Penguins
Our host told us that the only company doing this tour was Piratour, so one day in advance we headed to their office located in the port of Ushuaia and asked for the tour.
They are different type of tour:
- Walk with penguins (Bus go and return)
- Walk with penguins and beagle channel (Bus go and boat return)
We opted for the 2nd options as we could do 2 of the most interesting of Ushuaia in one day. It cost 8500 pesos each for the tour plus 750 pesos for the entrance ticket. So, the complete tour would cost you around 130 euros.
Since more then month, we travelled, this was our first tour so far.
Ushuaia to Harberton station
The tour starts at 7:35am, so we woke up at 6am and have breakfast before going to meet Penguins. We went to Piratour office that was 5min walking from our accommodation and checked in. At this time, we got a badge and went on the bus.
It was a new bus, comfortable with AC but no WC nor USB. We left at 7:35am and right away one of the 2 guides started talking in Spanish then English.
There are WC on the bus, but you cannot used them. Nevertheless, if you cannot hold during their introduction, they told us that they would be glad to make a stop along the way for you to use natural WC.
The ride is 1h30 to Harberton station. So, for a good 30min, we got some great information before and later could rest a bit.
- Ushuaia is part of a new Argentinian province called Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica, and Sur. It is located on the island of Tierra del Fuego which is share by 2 country and separated from the mainland by seas.
- Here the Andes go west to east so if you cross them you are not in Chile but still in Argentina
- We are on the main road that connect Ushuaia to Buenos Aires but also keep on until Alaska.
- Beavers were introduced by the government in 1946 to attract people to live here but the temperature were not as cold as in Canada and the beaver’s fur was shorter. The leather industry did not develop, and they release them in the forest. But it became a plague as the beavers do not have any predators and is reproducing quickly, destroying the forest.
Road to Harberton station
Back on the bus, it is time to get ready for the penguins and the rules that go along:
- Magellanic penguins are only here for 6 months to breed. From spring to end of March. After that they returned north of Argentina.
- Gent penguins are here all year long
We will be separated in 2 groups, pink and yellow based on our badges.
Behaviour rule as we are in a protected area and not a zoo.
- We move together, we cannot go alone where we want. Follow the guide and adapt to the place. It changes every day and always check where you step. They might be a nest. If one people stand behind, the group must wait, and everybody lost time. Do not run and do not do any quick move, it might scare the penguins.
- Do not feed nor touch the penguins. Stay at minimum 4 steps them. If a penguin comes too close, step back.
- Whatever we see in the island stay on the island. The only thing that can be taken back is trash.
- It is forbidden to smoke or eat on the island. There are no WC on the island, only in Harberton
- If you don’t follow the rule, back to the boat.
Groups are made based on the color of the boarding pass. Pink goes out to the museum, yellow (us) go first to the island
Walking with penguins
We arrived at 9:12am in the Harberton station which is also called a farm. Our group was going first to Martillo island, so we stayed on the bus till the peer (5min more).
There WC are available. We were altogether 18 in our group.
We went on a boat that left around 9:28am and arrived some 10min later in the famous island. We all went off the boat and as soon as we were on the beach we were already surrounded by Penguins. There were tonnes of them. Mostly Magellanic penguins with only a few Gent one.
We stayed a beach for a while before going more in land. You don’t go too far, it was some 200m walking at most.
Wherever you are looking there are penguins and you must be careful cuz you can easily step on a nest.
It was amazing, and penguins don’t really mind us. They don’t even care human as long as we keep our distance. You will hear the penguins talking, see them walking, hanging around.
The best are the gent penguins walking with their fin in the rear, super funny and cool.
We stayed until 10:40am time at which we took the boat back.
Museum
Once back, we stop at a cosy teahouse located near the peer for a nice 30min break before walking 500m back to the museum. It has only one room and people working there are students.
There, the student in charge is our guide for the next 30min. We will discover which animal are in the Beagle channel and learn a bit about their habits before going back to the pear to take the boat on the beagle channel.
Beagle channel boat ride
By noon we were on the boat, it was a nice and quite new boat with great heating, WCs, he windows, an open upper deck… super comfortable.
We sat a table of 6 and ended up with 2 Israelian traveller and 2 locals. We talked a lots with the Israelian couple all along the cruise back to Usuhuaia.
We also got one free pizza per table which was quite the surprise.
On the beagle channel, one side in Argentina, the other Chile. Along the cruise, we also got the chance to see twice dolphins jumping around.
By 1:40pm we circled around “Les éclaireurs” lighthouse. Where lots of cormorant birds are living. They look exactly like penguin but are not. Also, some sea lions are living amongst them.
We cruised around for 25min or so before heading for Ushuaia. The guides from the bus that were all along with us, kept on telling us information and story about the animal and the place.
We were back in Ushuaia for 2:40pm after an amazing and definitely worth tour.
Video
“I travel because it makes me realize how much I haven’t seen, how much I’m not going to see, and how much I still need to see.” – Carew Papritz
Where to stay in Ushuaia
There are some unique places to stay in Ushuaia:
- Cozy Apartment: Amaneceres del Beagle
- Cute houses: Aves del Sur
- B&B: Mysten Kepen B&B
