For any wildlife lover, a trip to Patagonia would not be complete without a penguin visit. We booked a couple seats on a catamaran leaving the Ushuaia harbour in the afternoon, jetting off through the channel between Chile and Argentina. At the tourist information building, you can find numerous companies running various iterations of penguin and wildlife tours – suited to various tastes, time schedules and budgets.

After a gentle reminder in the Marina about the Falkland islands, we boarded the boat bound south. 

The first scrap of rock we reached was packed full of swarthy sea lions, basking in the chilly air and lazing about, with the occasional bird hopping between them.

Next up was the famous Les Eclaireurs lighthouse, in service since December 23, 1920.

We continued down the channel, separating Chile from Argentina, eventually reaching a little penguin haven. As it was still early in the season, the island was not crowded full, as it apparently is in high season, but we still got our fair share of watching the adorable little animals waddling about on the beach. Passengers on the boat all crowded to one side, huddled in the frigid wind trying to get a perfect shot. Our boat stayed anchored beside the island for about half an hour, giving us lots of time to observe and snap shots of the penguins.

Eventually, the boat crashed back, dropping off all the chilly passengers in the Harbour, where we walked up to town and warmed up with drinks and food in the quintessential staple of all places, the Irish Pub. A good end to a lovely day 🙂