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Monthly Archives: June 2017

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Ashy-headed Geese flying over A colony of King Penguins in Tierra del Fuego
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During #AdventureWeekTDF we were pretty lucky to see penguins not just once, but twice: first the Gentoos on our first day in Argentina, and then the Kings by the end of the trip in Chile.
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On our way to Porvenir to board our charter back to Punta Arenas, we stopped along the way in @parquepinguinorey to learn a little bit more about these fellas.
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The park began after 2010 when a group of close to 100 of these guys arrived to the place. People were very curious and pretty much harassed them, so a local family who owns the property took the initiative to protect the 8 penguins that did stay and educate visitors to further the conservation project.
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To avoid being intrusive, we watch them from afar behind a wooden wall built to limit the area according to the best conservation practices and using binoculars, but that’s more than enough to feel the connection with them. You can hear their cries, and they have a very particular one. At first I thought there was a drone in the area, but then I realized it was them. As they got close to the young ones that look up and make that funny sound.
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Praises to the family, team of scientists, and volunteers who take on the task of caring for this beautiful birds!

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The Solo de Zaldivar Family, Pioneers of Patagonia
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Estancia Río de los Ciervos (@riodelosciervos) was built almost a century ago and has been home for the Solo de Zaldivar Montes family ever since. It originally belonged to Arturo Solo de Zaldivar Montes, born and raised in Punta Arenas, who was a pioneer in the development of the region in many aspects.
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Three generations later, led by Alejandro, one of the coolest, kindest men you’ll meet, the family has opened the doors of this beautiful family property to visitors who wish to stay in their family home, learn about local history and pioneers, learn how to prepare and enjoy their home recipes, explore the beautiful property and so much more.
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When you have the chance to visit them, ask Alejandro for a tour of the house. He will gladly do so and will tell you the most amazing stories while showing you the family photos, the weapons hall, the framed newspapers and other amazing places in his property.

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Helicopter Ride to the top of Ushuaia
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One of the things many of us at #AdventureWeekTDF were looking forward to was the helicopter ride over Ushuaia, but due to the changing weather it almost got cancelled. Fortunately we were able to do it on our last day in the Argentinian side of Tierra del Fuego.
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We were split into three groups to fit us all into three 4 people (pilot included) helicopters. I was assigned to the last one.
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While I was excited to have my first helicopter ride, I’m normally not super stoked about riding motor vehicles as compared to being the one walking or climbing, but when the first group came back I noticed a very peculiar smile on their faces. Then the second group came back, same enigmatic smiles, and they started talking excitedly about the experience with the first group. That’s when I heard them mention landing on the top of a snowy mountain. -“Wow, I thought it was just a helicopter ride. Can it really be that impressive?” -I said softly to myself.
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Well, it definitely was! The feeling of riding a helicopter is way cooler than I thought all by itself, but the views you see of Ushuaia as you ride over its waterfront and city, and as you go around Mt. Olivia and see the 5 Brothers being revealed behind it, and then going between them to land on top of Cerro Le Cloché! Dude! That’s where that smile came from.
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As we got off the helicopter, I saw the smile appearing in my ride buddies, and when the other two choppers landed I saw that same inevitable smile on everyone else. Then to top it all, the pilots came to us with a glass of champagne to toast to an amazing ride.
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After overloading our senses with the views of Olivia, 5 Brothers and Ushuaia, we took a few photos to make sure we would not forget an unforgettable experience, hopped onto our seats and enjoyed a thrilling, roller-coaster like drop down the hill to reunite with the still excited group at ground level and celebrate the experience.
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Thanks so much for that ride, @heliushuaia. You definitely got a great experience there.

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Waking up to the Luis de Saboya Glacier
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Hey, everyone! I got lost for a couple of days, one being in transit back home, and one more in which I blacked out, sleeping for about 24 hours, haha, but I’m ready to continue sharing some more photos from Tierra del Fuego!
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After we kayaked with those humpbacks we sailed all night through the Trait of Magellan to get closer to the spot where we would meet the rest of group. We got up early morning while it was still dark to prepare all our stuff to jump off the Expedición Fitz Roy boat once we reached Caleta María.
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As we were finishing with breakfast, the light of day started creeping in, revealing the beautiful landscapes of the Darwin range we were sailing by. It didn’t take long for the massive Luis de Saboya glacier to appear behind a mountain, and all of us rushed out to enjoy the amazing view.
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Once energized with the chilly wind and awesome view of the glacier, we were ready to take on another day of #AdventureWeekTDF and made our way back to land in Tierra del Fuego. Not at all a bad way to wake up for adventure!

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Kayaking with humpback whales in the Strait of Magellan
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Having grown up in Los Cabos, I’m no stranger to whales. I saw them for the first time when I arrived there at the age of 9, driving with my mom and some friends to a lookout point where we could see them from afar while having a picnic. Then on a boat, where a calf put out such a great show, breaching over and over again right next to us, even splashing us. Then a couple of years ago I had a gray whale at petting distance in San Ignacio Lagoon in the North side of Baja California Sur.
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Sometime later I had the pleasure of watching them breach in Costa Rica and then in Alaska. It was like finding family by chance in another country.
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But enough of bragging rights. The point is, while I’d repeat any of those again, it’s going to be hard to top kayaking next to three humpbacks in the Strait of Magellan. That is such a personal connection with this gentle giants I love, and it was amazing to do it with a group of people that appreciated them as I do.
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Praise well deserved to @kayakaguafresca and Expedición Fitz Roy for such an amazing tour. This was definitely one of the highlights of #AdventureWeekTDF.

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