Patagonia: Ushuaia to Cape Horn, 15 places to see

Explore Patagonia's remote southern territories spanning Argentina and Chile, from Ushuaia - Earth's southernmost city - through the Beagle Channel to Cape Horn where two oceans meet. This vast frontier covers over 2,000 square kilometers of glaciers, granite peaks, turquoise lakes, and windswept islands hosting extraordinary wildlife colonies.

Mode
Places
Start
Tierra del Fuego
End
Chilean Highway
Stops
15
Video author
travmap
Updated

Stops on this route

  1. Tierra del Fuego — An archipelago marking the final boundary of the American continent, named by Portuguese explorer Magellan for indigenous Yamana campfires visible on its dark shores.
  2. Beagle Channel — A narrow corridor of dark water charted by HMS Beagle in 1830-1833, where Charles Darwin made observations that led to his theory of evolution.
  3. Les Éclaireurs Lighthouse — A small red and white tower built in 1920 on bare rocks, often mistaken for the famous end-of-world lighthouse, surrounded by thousands of seabirds and sea lions.
  4. Isla Martillo — A small green island where Magellanic and Gentoo penguin colonies return each spring to nest, their chatter rising above the wind like a forgotten language.
  5. Strait of Magellan — A treacherous sea passage first navigated by Ferdinand Magellan in 1520, connecting Atlantic and Pacific without crossing Drake Passage, once one of world's busiest shipping…
  6. Magdalena Island — A windswept island hosting one of South America's greatest life gatherings, where over 60,000 pairs of Magellanic penguins return each spring to ancestral burrows.
  7. Torres del Paine — A UNESCO biosphere reserve featuring three colossal granite pillars rising nearly 2,800 meters, carved by glaciers and surrounded by turquoise lakes and dramatic peaks.
  8. Torres del Paine National Park — Dramatic granite peaks rising above turquoise lakes and windswept valleys, showcasing Patagonia's most iconic alpine landscape.
  9. Perito Moreno Glacier — A rare advancing glacier born from the southern Patagonian ice field, rising 70 meters above Lago Argentino with a front stretching 5 kilometers, regularly calving massive…
  10. Lago Argentino — South America's largest glacier-fed lake, spanning across Argentine Patagonia and bordered by multiple calving glaciers.
  11. Upsala and Spegazzini Glaciers — Colossal tidewater glaciers descending from the Southern Patagonian Ice Field, among the region's most visited and photographed ice masses.
  12. El Chaltén Region — Trekking hub nestled among soaring granite spires, offering access to world-class hiking trails and alpine wilderness experiences.
  13. Mount Fitz Roy — Iconic 3,405-meter peak with striking vertical granite walls, a legendary challenge for mountaineers and photographers worldwide.
  14. Cerro Torre — A 3,128-meter nearly vertical granite peak capped by shifting ice and frost, long considered impossible to climb and attempted only by the most experienced alpinists.
  15. Chilean Highway — Scenic route through Patagonian wilderness connecting remote communities and revealing vast steppe landscapes, glaciers, and mountain vistas.

Useful for your trip

Timing
Visit Magdalena Island in spring when more than 60,000 pairs of Magellanic penguins return to nest in shallow burrows.
Timing
Visit El Chaltén at sunrise to witness the 'burning of Fitz Roy' when first light strikes the granite summit in deep glowing red, lasting only minutes.
Timing
Visit Isla Martillo in spring when colonies of Magellanic and Gentoo penguins return to nest.
Transport
The Carretera Austral (Route 7) stretches over 1,200 km from Puerto Montt to Villa O'Higgins; much remains unpaved with gravel sections that can close for days due to landslides.
Tip
More than 90% of all Antarctic expeditions depart from Ushuaia's harbor; cruise ships, research vessels, and sailing yachts gather here before heading south.
Tip
The W Trek in Torres del Paine National Park takes 5 days of hiking through valleys and beside lakes to reach the foot of the Torres.
Where to stay
El Chaltén is a small mountain village of fewer than 2,000 permanent residents built almost entirely for trekkers visiting Mount Fitz Roy and Cerro Torre.
Tip
Perito Moreno Glacier advances nearly 2 meters daily and calves massive ice blocks into Lago Argentino; every few years it dams the lake until water pressure causes a spectacular rupture.
Avoid
In Ushuaia, mountains hold snow for 10 months yearly and the sea remains so cold that even in midsummer it can numb your hands within minutes.
Tip
Queulat National Park features the Ventisquero Colgante (hanging glacier) with twin waterfalls plunging hundreds of meters into a rainforest over 10,000 years old.
Tip
Marble Caves on General Carrera Lake were sculpted over 6,000 years by wave action; interior walls feature patterns lit by glacial water reflection.

Video on this route

UNSEEN PATAGONIA - The End of the World 4K | Travel Documentary

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