Puerto Madryn
Trip Start
Aug 19, 2008
1
11
15
Trip End
Oct 04, 2008
Puerto Madryn, Patagonia, Argentina
Thursday, September 18, 2008
We arrived on Tuesday morning, after an overnight bus ride from Esquel. We walked to our hostel, which was not really a hostel but a family run guesthouse, where we were given our own apartment with fitted kitchen, dining room and bathroom for the same price as a double room. Maybe because Paul made such a good impression on the family dog, a doberman called Tango.
Anyway this was great as we could cook our own meals. Last time we were here we were not impressed with the restaurants in Puerto Madryn, and this time everything is much more expensive, so it is nice to be able to cook for ourselves.
When we arrived we went to sort out our laundry, buy in supplies, and of course walk along the beach to see the whales. There were quite a few there. They donīt seem to be very far off shore, just a few metres, as if you could swim out to them. That probably wouldnīt be a very good idea, especially as itīs now orca season and there are sharks around, but still it is nice in theory.
We booked a whale watching tour, after a period of hesitation and a visit to a cafe to mull over the shock of the increase in prices. We decided to bite the bullet and go, and booked one for the next day.
In the evening we went to a butcher and bought ourselves a nice steak each for about 1.50 pounds, and then to the supermarket for some prepared salads. We also got food for breakfast and a packed lunch. Itīs nice to be able to eat a healthy breakfast, yoghurt, porridge and bananas, rather then the usual toasted bread and jam.
We got up early yesterday and got picked up by the minibus. There were 12 in total on our trip, as compared to just the two of us last time. But then that was winter and extremely windy and bleak, so it was nice to visit when it was slightly warmer.
We drove out to the Puerto Piramides to catch our boat at 9am. It was quite a small boat, and the sea was pretty choppy, so there were quite a few green faces and plastic bags handed out. We were fine though and took lots of film and photos of the whales. We saw quite a few. In fact there were hundreds, all around, and some quite close.
After the boat trip we drove over to an elephant seal colony. On the way we saw several animals from the minibus and stopped to take photos. We saw a pair of burrowing owls, little owls that burrow in the ground. We saw several troops of guanacos, the llamas of Patagonia, and several maras, or Patagonian hares. We also saw a male rhea running along the road with about 15 chicks running behind him. It was very funny, as it looked as though he was running away from them. His legs were going like the clappers, but these tiny little chicks were keeping up with him no problem. The biggest disappointment was the lack of armadillos, which it seems we are doomed never to see.
At the seal colony there were several harems, a male with females and pups. Unlike last time, we couldnīt get down on to the beach and walk among them, so it was difficult to get an idea of how big they were, but some of them were pretty big. We also saw a dead penguin on the beach.
Next we visited the penguins. Apparently they live in a rookery, although they donīt make as much noise as rooks. The penguins are just starting to arrive from wherever they spend the winter, and there were about 30 or so in the group. They werenīt doing much, just perching on the cliff side, looking quite cold and as though they wished they were somewhere else.
We drove back to the town in the evening. It was quite a tiring day, but it seemed to pass very quickly. I think next time we come it will be in November, as that is the time you can see orcas beaching to catch sealions, and I think we will hire a car so that we can spend more time watching the animals and less time waiting for other people to stuff their faces.
In the evening we went back to the butcher for more steak and then to the supermarket for more salad, and we had the same dinner as the day before, only more of it.
Then we went out to the cinema to watch the X Files, and got to bed late, but happy and tired. We had a lie in this morning, and then packed and dropped our bags off at the bus station. We have a few more hours here, so will probably go and look at the whales from the pier, as it is our last chance to see them for a while.
We take a bus to Rio Gallegos this afternoon at 4pm, and then will try to push on to Chile tomorrow. Rio Gallegos has some fun stuff, like the British Club, and the dinosaur museum, but we have seen them and would rather get to spend more time in Chile if possible.
Hope all is well at home.
