ARRIVAL
2ND STOP - ORCAS
Fourth stop - Puerto Pyramides
Puerto Madryn – Patagonia – Argentine
We have seen documentaries on TV about Patagonia but never thought we world ever visit this far off destination on the other side of the world.
Our world offers so many interesting stories about pioneers and brave people that we find it a never ending wonder to learn about these early adventurers.
The history of Puerto Madryn on the south Atlantic coast of Argentine is built up on the adventures of 150 Welsh people! In the middle of the 19th century Argentine had so much land to offer but not enough inhabitants to utilise such, so they advertised for people on the old continent. One hundred and fifty people from Wales left Liverpool in 1865 to find a new home in Argentine. They lived in harmony with their own people, their new surroundings and the people in their new homeland. They became a legend, known for their kindness and respect of and for each other and their new surroundings in Puerto Madryn.
Tourists were far and few between until in 1999 the peninsula of Valdes became a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Puerto Madryn has 80.000 inhabitants, making it the 3rd largest city in the province of Chubat. The peninsula Valdes that we intended visiting, and our destination of Caleta Valdes lies 179 km from the port of Puerto Madryn.
We had fortunately booked a car online in advance through booking.com at the Alamo station for €95. On arrival at the port we let the tour groups get off first, as our car hire office was to open at 9.00 am. It was very fortunate that we had booked in advance because we later found out that there were no more cars available after we had received ours.
A few days before we had chatted to Chris and his family who had also booked a car at the same depot and decided to drive together to our destination. On arrival they also had another couple that joined in the line of cars and we took a couple from Hanover with us in our car. Total – 9 of us in 3 cars.
After driving out of the town and harbour area we headed for the national park that was an approx. 1¼ hour drive on tarmac roads. Good wide roads. On passing through the entrance gates of the park (entrance fee €22) we continued for another 20 km on tarmac roads but then had to continue our journey for approx. 2 hours on gravel roads. The speed limit was between 40 – 60 km and it was advised not to exceed this limit as the car could turn over! On the way to our destination we saw quite a few lamas. Not much else except clouds of dust from the other cars and long never ending straight gravel roads.
Our first stop was at Punta Cantor on the peninsula Valdes where we saw Magellan penguins. These were on the cliffs and the beach below. The Magellan penguin inhabits the coast of Argentina and Chile. As mentioned, Caleta Valdes is a World Heritage Site on which approx. 46.500 penguin pairs can be found in the breeding season.
Magellan penguins swim as far as 600 km from their nest to feed and obtain food for their chicks. On average a penguin dives 12 metres and the dive lasts around one minute. Males and females share the preparation and protection of their nest, the incubation of the two eggs and the raising of chicks.
The couple incubates between one and three eggs, usually two for 40 days. Most of the chicks are born in late November. Everyone was thrilled by this experience of watching the penguins in their natural environment.
We travelled southbound further along the coast hoping to see elephant seals. I was really hoping to get a few in front of my 400 mm lens!
Male elephant seals can weight up to 4000 kilos and cover a length of 5 metres. They are called elephant seals due to the large trunk on their head. During the mating season (middle August), which lasts up to 90 days, male elephant seals don´t eat and can loose up to 12 kg daily. This species breeds in harems made up of a group of females that varies in numbers up to 130 and a single dominant male. Fights among the male species are very often seen in this season. The female is approx. 3,5 metres and weighs around 800 kg. Puppies weigh 30 – 40 kg when they are born.
At our next stop we saw lots of seals lying on the beaches below and signs explaining that orca whales often can be seen in this area as they catch the seals near and on the beaches here. The expectancy of seeing an orca whale grew. The view along the coastline was wonderful especially the contrast in colours. We saw lots of seals but no whales.
We drove on to the next stop, which was to feature the elephant seals. Unfortunately I only spotted one in the waters below our viewing point but whilst looking I spoke to some young women who had been watching out for orca whales since 9 am. It was now around 1.30 pm. They had seen some far out at sea and had been hoping to get a better view. Linda set up her tripod, attached my camera and 400 mm lens and as if someone pressed a button suddenly 4 orca whales swam in, only 10 meters from the beach below. Everyone was so excited and thrilled by this experience. Peter and I were totally busy taking photos and filming. My camera was set at high speed for photos not wanting to miss the shots when the whales surfaced the waves. The girls next to me split their interest between the whales and the clicking of my camera! In the meanwhile Peter was busy filming. Together we got some great shots of this exciting few minutes. We could not believe how lucky we had been to see these orca whales so near and without having to pay a high price for a “whale watching tour!”
Time to head back to Puerto Madryn.
Driving back we were at the rear of the group. We suddenly saw a large group of lamas to our left and thank goodness Peter, who is an excellent driver, reacted so fast as 3 lamas jumped over the road in front of our car. Driving on gravel is like driving on ice! Peter was able to steer the car in a slight turn missing the animals. It could have had catastrophic consequences for us if we had hit the animals. Not only would they have landed though the front screen in our car but we would also have turned the car over.
The tour was a long one and tiring for the drivers who however actually seemed to enjoy this adventure. We had been driving through wilderness area for approx. 6 – 7 hours but all admitted having a great time in Patagonia!
Peter: Puerto Madryn (Patagonia) Argentinien Wieder hat es die Offiziers Crew geschafft pünktlich unser heutiges Ziel zu erreichen. Ein kostenloser Shuttlebus brachte uns an den Eingang zum Pier, von da war es nur noch ein Katzensprung bis zu unserer Autovermietung. Wir waren diesmal 4 Paare in 3 Autos. Die Formalitäten waren schnell erledigt.
Im Konvoi wollten wir nach Punta Cantor auf der seit 1999 zum Weltkulturerbe aufgenommenen Halbinsel VALDES, einer herrlichen Küstenlinie von wo aus wir wunderschöne Blicke auf die am Strand liegenden Robben und Pinguine hatten.
Unser erster Stopp war ein Strand-abschnitt der ausschließlich für MAGELLAN Pinguine reserviert war. Sie krochen aus ihren Nestern, putzten sich und stellten sich zur Schau, HERRLICH!
Die Seelöwen die faul am Strand unseres 3. Stopp lagen waren eher Beiwerk. Das Hauptinteresse befand sich im Wasser. Hier tauchten plötzlich 4 ORKAS auf und schwammen wie bestellt langsam und immer wieder auftauchend an uns vorbei. Das war weswegen wir den recht langen Weg, der im ersten Abschnitt 1.5 Stunden über eine gute Asphaltstraße und dann allerdings noch einmal über 1 Stunde auf einer Schotterstraße gefahren werden musste, auf uns genommen hatten.
Die empfohlene Höchstgeschwindigkeit von 60 km hielten wir allerdings nicht ein, wir wollten ja pünktlich zu den bestellten Termin mit den ORKAS sein. Ha Ha. Auf der Schotterstraße kam noch ein Phänomen dazu und das waren die Lamas. Wir sahen sie in Herden stehen oder gemütlich schreiten und waren so geeignete Fotomotive. Auf dem Rückweg wären uns fast 3 Lamas zum Verhängnis geworden. Zwei Autos waren vor uns als Martin im ersten Auto langsamer wurde da er wie auch wir einige Lamas an der linken Seite stehen sah. DANN, im letzten Augenblick sah ich, von einer großen Staubwolke beeinträchtigt 3 Lamas von rechts kommend wie sie vor unser Auto sprangen. Im allerletzten Moment konnte ich durch 2 mal kurzes Bremsen einen Zusammenstoß verhindern.
Einen weiteren Stopp legten wir noch in Puerto Plramides ein, ebenfalls im Nationalpark gelegen. Von einer Plattform aus sahen wir ca. 4 Familien von Seelöwen.
Jetzt, allerdings nur noch über Asphaltstraßen fuhren wir zurück nach Puerto Madryn, gaben den Mietwagen in guten Zustand wieder ab, sendeten noch ein paar E-Mails und waren 1 Minute nach " Alle an Bord" zurück am Schiff. Es war trotz der langen Fahrzeit ein schönes Erlebnis.
Zwei Seetage liegen jetzt wieder vor uns auf den Weg nach USHUAIA, dem südlichsten Ort Argentiens. Es wird jetzt kälter. Keine 30 Grad mehr sondern stattdessen lediglich nur noch 4 Grad in der Nacht und mit etwas Glück bis zu 12 Grad tagsüber.
Und hier noch ein paar Anmerkungen zur Geschichte Puerto Madryns: Als die junge Republik Argentinien Mitte des 1900 Jahrhunderts Land im Überfluss, allerdings zu wenig Bewohner hatten, warben sie im alten Kontinent um Zuwanderer. Eine Gruppe von rund 150 Walisern, Handwerker und Arbeiter machten sich daraufhin auf den Weg. Sie kamen nicht als Eroberer sondern von Beginn an als rücksichtsvolle Mitbewohner. Sie behandelten die als Nomaden lebenden Ur-Patagonier mit Respekt. Einen Schub machte die Siedlung 1899 als sie an das Eisenbahnnetz angeschlossen wurde und dadurch mit der Nachbarstadt Trelow verwunden war. Erzeugnisse der Landwirtschaft konnten jetzt über den Seeweg in entferntere Regionen transportiert werden. 1973 war ein weiteres entscheidendes Jahr für die gesamte Region, es siedelte sich die einzige Aluminiumfabrik Argentiniens an. Die beschauliche Gemeinde mit 6500 Einwohnern wuchs innerhalb 10 Jahren zu einer Kleinstadt mit doppelt so vielen Menschen an. Für einen Aufschwung der Region sorgt seit dem der immer wachsender Tourismus.
MAP OF THE AREA AND OUR TRAVELS
ON THE WAY TO OUR DESTINATION
FIRST STOP ON THE COAST AFTER 3 HOURS OF TRAVELING
