Our guide from yesterday took us from the hotel to the airport for our flight to Ushuaia. On arrival at the domestic airport we learned our flight was rescheduled to leave from the international airport on the other side of town. Fortunately the flight was changed to a later departure time so we were able to make the flight in plenty of time and the guide took us there.
We were met at the Ushuaia airport by a woman from the local guide company. She took us to the Linares Manor, our hotel for our stay in Ushuaia. From there we took a taxi to the ski lift at the base of the hill leading up to the Marital Glacier, a hanging glacier. We took the ski lift up as far as it went and then hiked up to the glacier. We had a wonderful view of Ushuaia, the Beagle Channel and the Chilean islands on the other side of the channel. I would have loved to hike to the peak so we could see the views from the top, but it was 5 p.m., I had no water with me, and we had not eaten since breakfast. We turned back at the base of the glacier, stopped for a beer at the bottom of the lift, and called a cab to return to our hotel. The glacier, we were told, has shrunk drastically over the past few years, an example of the effects of global warming.
Ushuaia is built on a hillside and our hotel was several streets up with a perfect view of the harbor and town below. I took several pictures from the balcony off the lobby. John, Kathy and I walked down towards the harbor, window shopping as we went to the restaurant where we had a great meal. Argentina has great wine.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.