Oceanwide Day 18; Ushuaia

   For the final time we left the Plancius and headed into Ushuaia. It was not a particularly exciting morning, grey and drizzly. We had a flight early afternoon, so first went for a drink at a coffee shop in Ushuaia with a few of the guys from the ship, before they headed off for their respective flights.

  Before we headed to the airport I returned to the lagoon near Ushuaia, hoping that the Red Shovelers that according to eBird data were supposed to be common there might have finally turned up. It took a bit of time, but we eventually walk round far enough and managed to pick out a smart pair of these ducks among the rafts of Yellow-billed Teals and Crested Ducks. It was a relief, and the final tick of our Tierra del Fuego adventure.

  The flight to Buenos Aires from Ushuaia was fairly uneventful, as was the evening we spent in the city. Obviously a disappointing end to our Oceanwide adventure, but it was still a relief to have the option to come to the warm sunny capital rather than Ushuaia! 

-Red Shoveler

Oceanwide Day 17; South Atlantic - South Georgia to Ushuaia

   The morning brought poor weather and more back-and-forth movement up and down the entrance of the Beagle Channel. With the required pilot not reaching us until midday, we had to kill the morning and consequently there was not much to report in terms of sightings. The poor weather did not help on this front, with strong winds and rain keeping us mostly indoors. Just before lunch there were several whale blows not far away from the boat, but we could not manage to see the animals making it very frustrating. 

  Fortunately, the afternoon was much better, with a stunning show from a pod of Peale’s Dolphin just after lunch. They were right in front of the boat and readily going under the prow. On two occasions we got to see an animal completely breach, it was probably the best dolphin encounter of the whole trip. Not long after the dolphins departed, we had a sudden appearance of a Sei Whale about 100 metres off the boat, giving us a clear view of the whole animal. However, the encounter was so quick that I failed to get a photo. 

  The main journey up the Beagle Channel was badly hampered by bad weather and we saw very little. A small group of Magellanic Penguins sat in the water and some Snowy Sheathbills distantly on a rock in the middle of the channel. 

  We finally docked in Ushuaia at 21:30, bringing to an end our enjoyable but also undeniably disappointing cruise around the South Atlantic, minus Antarctica. A few of us headed to the Irish bar in Ushuaia for a few celebratory drinks, and enjoyed an excellent night out. I returned to our lodging on the ship for the final time at 02:30 in the morning, before disembarkation in the morning. 

-Sei Whale

-Peale's Dolphin

Argentina Day 8/Oceanwide Cruise Day 1; Ushuaia & Beagle Channel

   Today was mostly a logistical day as we prepared to embark on our voyage to Antarctica and the other subantarctic islands at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. We dropped our bags off mid-morning and then spent most of the rest of the day killing time around Ushuaia. That was until 15:30 when we headed to the dock to complete the procedure and get onboard the ship. Our ship to the Antarctic was called the Plancius, operated by OceanWide. Whilst a respected polar cruise company within its own right, this company also has a good friend of mine, Simon Davies, from Spurn, on its books and he had arranged to be one of the guides on our tour. 

  Once the various briefings were completed, we set off down the Beagle Channel at 18:00, although a good portion of the evening was taken up by more briefings and introductions. However, once they were complete we steaked out the deck in order to try and get our first seabird action. Simon informed us that this would be our best chance of catching up with the Magellanic Diving Petrel, and after an hour of feverish scanning before dusk we managed to pick up three different individuals. In addition we had our first Magellanic Penguins with several in the water, and a frustrating encounter with a single dolphin that surfaced twice below the boat but then never reappeared, and in the half light it was impossible to identify. 

  By 10:00, although still not completely dark, the light had faded enough to send us below deck where we settled in for our first night on the ship.

-South American Sea Lion

-Magellanic Penguin

-Magellanic Diving Petrel

Argentina Day 7; Martial Glacier & Estancia Tunel

   For our final day in the Ushuaia area we spent the morning on the Martial Glacier and the afternoon exploring for the Magellanic Woodpecker. The weather was not on our side for the first hours of the morning, with heavy rain taking us back down the mountain before the glacier hike had even opened. However after a couple of hours back in Ushuaia the weather cleared and we reascended the mountain ready to hike the trails. 

  Despite the weather clearing we still had to endure some windy conditions and even a short burst of heavy snowfall. It was still worth the hike, however, with some stunning scenery both looking at the mountain in front of us and down the valley to Ushuaia behind us. The area we could explore had been wrapped up by 13:00 so we decended back to the city for lunch, before continuing with the day. Birding was slow up on the trails, but it was nice to see a few Yellow-bridled Finch again, as well as a flyby Andean Condor. 

  For the afternoon, and the last hours with the car, we headed north of Ushuaia to an area of forest where I hoped to finally settle the score with the Magellanic Woodpecker. The wind had not subsided but once we were away from the coast and more in the forest it was much improved. Despite this, it still took over an hour before we managed to finally find a Woodpecker, when a female flew onto a nearby tree. Shortly after she was joined by the male, and we had phenomenal walk-away views of the birds, my last major target in the area.

  After this we returned the car to the airport and settled in to our hostal, getting ready for the big day tomorrow, when we would embark on our ship down to Antarctia. 

-Andean Condor

-Magellanic Woodpecker

Argentina & Chile Day 6; Porvenir, Reserva Natural Pinguino Rei & Rio Grande

   Our second day in Chile started with a return to the Porvenir headland to try find the dolphins again, but once again we struck out with nothing being observed. There was a nice and confiding Short-billed Miner on the clifftop, so I got some photos taken, but otherwise it was a short stop and then onwards.

  It was a two-hour drive to the King Penguin colony, the only one on the mainland and in Chile. We anticipated that the birds would be distant and have to view only with optics, but in the end they were only about 20 metres away on the other side of a small channel. We got some great looks at the birds including an attempted copulation. In the end we could only stay an hour due to the way the site is managed, but it was a worthwhile visit.

   In addition to the penguins, there were a few other birds to enjoy. Three Chiloe Wigeon landed on the side of the path and I had the first Correndera Pipits of this trip. Otherwise it was the usual species from this southern region of the Patagonian desert. When we returned to the park office there was also a young mouse hopping about, which we were told was an Olivaceous Field Mouse. It did not look well, so it wasn’t a happy sight. 

  The drive back to Ushuaia then consumed the rest of the day, taking the best part of five hours with the various stops for fuel. Fortunately the return border crossing was very smooth, taking very little time at all. We arrived in Ushuaia at 18:00 and relaxed for the rest of the evening.

-Short-billed Miner

-King Penguin

-Chilean Wigeon

Argentina & Chile Day 5; Porvenir

   It was simultaneously a very eventful and very uneventful day out in Chile today. We set off early, at 06:00, in order to be at the border nice and early, only to discover that it would not open until 08:00. Since we arrived at 07:00 this left us at a loose end for an hour, either waiting in the queue or maybe driving down the beach road to see if anything was around. We opted for the latter and were rewarded with finding Double-banded Plover and Small-billed Miner. 

  It took an hour to cross the border due to the cars building up during the early hours, and the various stations required to get the vehicle through. That said, it passed by without too much incident, and we were soon on our way. This is when we discovered the King Penguin colony we wanted to visit was in fact closed on Mondays (we had originally planned on visiting on a Sunday in the original itinerary) and this meant that our rushed day trying to complete everything we wanted in Chile and returning before the border closed, suddenly became much more relaxed. We decided to stay in Chile for the night and then see the Penguins in the morning. 

  As such we continued driving on the road to Porvenir where there were a few things to see. We started by checking out a spot I had marked for Peales Dolphin being regularly seen on the coast, but nothing was doing despite an hour moving up and down the coast. But it was a relief to find my first Patagonian Yellow Finches here, as well as having excellent views of Double-banded Plover and Baird's Sandpiper.

  With no sign of the dolphins, we continued to the next destination, the Laguna Verde which I had marked for Magellanic Plover. We spent about an hour searching along the beach, seeing many Guanacos and a Culpeo, as well as a few birds, but no sign of the plover. In the end we were exploring the wrong area of the beach, and not long after we started searching the right area Jonah spotted once nestled among a flock of Baird's Sandpipers. With some crawling I was able to get some very nice views of one of my most wanted birds for the trip. Smaller than I was expecting, but all the sweeter for it.

  After another unsuccessful trip to try for the dolphins, we found a hostel in town and crashed to relax, after a pleasant, if not rather logistically challenged, day.

-Magellanic Plover

-Baird's Sandpiper

-Patagonian Yellow Finch

-Culpeo

Argentina Day 4; Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego, Garribaldi Pass & Rio Grande

   We started the morning at the Tierra del Fuego National Park, where we had hoped to have another chance at the Magellanic Woodpecker. However, after a bollocking from the park staff for being off the trail and for having a speaker on display, not even in use, I opted not to try any playback. We birded the area at the end of the road and here we had a few nice Flying Steamer Ducks and a distant Kelp Goose, as well as a few seabirds and a flyover Andean Condor. Not a bad morning in the end given the circumstances, and it got better again as we were leaving, when Jonah spotted a sleeping Bronze-winged Duck in a roadside pond. Sadly it was distant and never awoke despite our best efforts, but still great to see this potentially tricky species. 

  At 11:00, we changed the car to one that could cross the border into Chile, which we wanted to do for a day. With this we set off up the road through the Andes towards the border and the towns beyond. Originally our plan was to make it to Chile tonight, but since the weather through our drive was very pleasant, we instead opted to attempt the hike at Garribaldi Pass to find the tricky White-bellied Seedsnipe. 

  There is no trail up the mountain, but it was not bad walking. There were some scree slopes at the top, but with care, we managed to navigate them. The problem was finding the Seedsnipe, and after two hours we had no sign. That said, it was not a disappointing walk, with incredible views of Yellow-bridled Finch that almost landed on my foot, and flyovers of both Andean Condor and White-bellied Caracara.

  As we were walking back, however, anticipating another hike to try the Seedsnipe again, one of the birds moved on the rocks in front of me as I walked. It was quite the relief. The bird showed very, very well, allowing us to maneuver around and get great photos and views of the surprisingly nice plumage. A victory from the jaws of defeat.

  After that there was only enough time to reach the city of Rio Grande, so that was where we crashed at night, ready for a day out in Chile tomorrow. 

-Upland Goose

-Bronze-winged Duck

-Black-chinned Siskin

-Flying Steamer Duck

-Yellow-bridled Finch

-White-bellied Seedsnipe

-White-throated Caracara

-Andean Condor

Argentina Day 3; Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego & Ushuaia

     For the first day in Ushuaia we had something of a delayed start, as we had to collect the car from the airport at 08:00. It was only a half hour walk from our hotel, and along the beach, so we took that route there and along the way saw a few interesting birds, like Austral Negrito and a life tick with Buff-winged Cinclodes. 

  Once we had the car, we headed for the Tierra del Fuego National Park. Since it was already 09:00 and it was Saturday we anticipated the park to be busy. Still, fortunately, it was not, although it picked up by the time we left at 14:00. We decided to walk the eight-kilometre trail along the side of a lake to the Chilean border, which was through excellent forest.  

  There were a few nice birds that I had not seen for some time, such as incredible views of Thorny-tailed Rayadito and Patagonian Sierra Finch. But it was frustrating that on two occasions we heard a Magellanic Woodpecker but never got anything on the bird itself, never responding to the limited playback I had and only calling once on each occasion.

  Upon leaving the park we drove across town to the local dump, where I had information indicating that it was a good place to see the White-throated Caracara. And this paid off, with around five individuals knocking around the area, albeit looking rather scruffy. A bigger surprise perhaps was a Chilean Skua that was also bombing around the throngs of gulls, causing chaos. 

  In the afternoon we walked downtown in Ushuaia. The town was busy it being a Saturday, but there were still a few nice birds to see. There is a lake in the area and here we had lots of Dolphin Gulls, Crested Ducks and Flying Steamer Ducks. Out on the seaward side of the harbour there were several Giant Petrels feeding away on the edge of the harbour, which was great to see up close! 

-Buff-winged Cinclodes

-Dark-bellied Cinclodes

-Thorn-tailed Rayadito

-White-throated Caracara

-Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle

-Chilean Skua

-Black-crowned Night Heron