With our boat trip done, we decided to explore more of the land beyond Ushuaia, and headed to Tierra del Fuego National Park, to test out our camping gear and hiking legs.  The shuttle dropped us off at Lago de Roca, where we stored our overnight bags for 15 pesos each ($1.50 CAD) and walked for 7km roundtrip along a lake with stunning mountains in the background.  At the end of the hike, we were forced to turn back, as we had hit the Chilean border!  We decided we should probably just cross legally in a couple of days and get an extra stamp in our passports.

Across the border!

We grabbed our bags and headed off down the road towards where we heard there was free camping available.  Taking a side route, we had the path to ourselves, affording ample time to take stunning photos of the landscape in front of us.  An hour later we found the camping, set up our tent in the most sheltered spot we could find, and got down to our next priority: jumping shots.  Thirty attempts later, we nailed it.

We figured out the brand new stove, and settled in for a very cold night.  Luckily, it didn’t get dark until about 11:30pm, and the sun started coming up around 3am, as the few hours between here were unbelievably chilly.  It hurt to breathe outside the sleeping bag.  It was still worth it, but it left me hoping our next planned four day hike in Torres del Paine would be a bit warmer.  

Our free camping spot

We packed up and headed for some more hiking, exploring beaver dams and swamplands, and country roads.  We then headed for our last path, a four hour jaunt along another stunning lake affording excellent views.  With the shuttle bus leaving at 5:30pm, by the end of the trail we were managing a pretty good pace, and tiring ourselves out.  But we really felt like we had explored the end of the world.  Our only regret was missing the iconic “la fin du monde” passport stamp, which we heard we could get at the post office or tourist information centre, both sure to be closed by the time we got back to town.

Rounding the last corner, a mirage appeared, in what would seem to be the image of a building at the end of the pier.  The sign in front had a few words: “postal”, “estampillos” and “passaportes”.  Marieke and I looked at each other, pointed, and ran.  It was even open.  Mission accomplished.  It was time to move on to Punta Arenas.

Time for passport stamps!