BEAGLE CHANNEL

Ushuaia Bay is bathed in the waters of the Beagle Channel, a 240 km long strait running from east to west. This inlet separates Isla Grande from Tierra del Fuego to the north and the multitude of other islands that make up the Tierra del Fuego archipelago (Dawson, Navarino, Lenox, Wollaston, Horn, etc.). Both banks of the western half of the canal belong to Chile, while in the eastern half, this canal forms the border between the two countries. This arm of the sea linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans is navigable along its entire length, but has never been the preferred route for ships, as the Drake Passage and the Strait of Magellan are considered safer.

The canal is named after the British ship HMS Beagle, which came to inspect these southern regions between 1826 and 1836, and whose captain, Robert Fitz Roy, in charge of hydrographic and cartographic missions, accompanied Charles Darwin on his naturalist and scientific studies. Numerous excursions on the canal are offered from Ushuaia. All departures are from the loading dock (Muelle Turístico). The most classic excursion takes you to the island of the sea lions, then to the island of the birds; the walk usually ends around the pretty lighthouse of the Scouts, which was put into service in 1920, with sometimes a walk on Isla Bridges. An extension to Isla Yecapasela and its countless penguins is sometimes possible, as is an incursion into Lapataia Bay, in Tierra del Fuego National Park.