Ushuaia, Argentina: The City at the End of the World

Tierra del Fuego National Park begins at the western edge of town and runs to the Chilean border. The road through it passes Lapataia Bay, where the Pan-American Highway technically ends — a sign marks the spot for the record — and the estancias and beaver-gnawed forests that characterize Fuegian Patagonia. The entrance fee is modest, the trails are well-marked, and the light in the late afternoon, especially in autumn, is extraordinary.

The Beagle Channel runs between the Argentine side of Tierra del Fuego and the Chilean islands to the south, and catamaran tours from the harbor spend two to three hours on the water visiting Penguin Island (Magellanic penguins nest here in season, roughly October through March), the sea lion colony at Los Lobos, and the lighthouse at Les Eclaireurs — often mistakenly called the 'lighthouse at the end of the world,' though the real one is on Staten Island to the east. The channel light is still handsome and the views back to the city against the Martial Range are the best available.

The Martial Glacier chairlift, operating from spring through autumn, rises to the snowline above the city and gives sweeping views over the Beagle Channel toward Chile. The glacier itself has retreated significantly in recent decades and is now more of a permanent snowfield, but the walk from the chairlift terminus to the viewpoint takes about thirty minutes and is worth every step. The forest of lenga beech on the lower slopes turns copper and gold in March.

The End of the World Museum, on Maipu Street in the center of town, covers the indigenous Yamana people, the early penal colony, and the era of Tierra del Fuego sheep farming with clear and unromantic prose. The penal colony opened in 1902, and the museum is housed in what was once the prison's bank building. The adjacent train to the End of the World runs a short tourist route through the national park on narrow-gauge track originally used by prisoners to haul wood.

Ushuaia's main street, San Martín, is lined with outdoor gear shops, lamb restaurants, and king crab houses. The centolla — southern king crab — is caught locally and served at most restaurants; the half-centolla (half a crab split and grilled) is the standard order. Prices are moderate by Argentine standards and reasonable by any comparison to Antarctic expedition prices.