Outings and excursions · Ushuaia
Kayaking the Beagle Channel: paddling among islets, sea lions and cormorants
Photos: Ayi.funes · CC BY-SA 4.0 / Aakerueh · CC BY-SA 4.0 / Liam Quinn · CC BY-SA 2.0 / Dimitry B. · CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Guided paddles in Ushuaia, Ensenada and Lapataia bays, right at water level with the Beagle's wildlife at eye height.
Most people see the Beagle Channel from the deck of a catamaran, but at water level it feels like a different place. From a kayak you look up at the Ushuaia shoreline: dark, still water on good days, the Fuegian forest running down to the rocks and, across the channel, the mountains of Navarino Island on the Chilean side. The channel stretches for about 240 kilometers along the southern edge of Isla Grande and is named after HMS Beagle, the ship that surveyed it between 1826 and 1830.
One of the most accessible paddles starts right in Ushuaia Bay, around Caleta Aspirante, and follows the shore toward Casco Island. Along the way you pass the stranded hull of the Saint Christopher, an old rescue tug that served with the Royal Navy in the Second World War, and the Isla de los Pájaros (Bird Island). According to the Tierra del Fuego Tourism Institute, this route also runs in winter. Another coastal option heads west from Golondrina Bay, past Cucharita Bay, to Cauquenes Bay.
Further west, around Tierra del Fuego National Park, the landscape closes in. Ensenada Zaratiegui Bay is about 2.6 kilometers long, framed by Cerro Bellavista and Monte Susana, with Estorbo and Redonda islands sitting across its mouth. A little beyond, Lapataia Bay is really a fjord carved by glaciers: some 6 kilometers long, with small islands at its head. This is where the canoe trip ends after paddling down the Lapataia and Ovando rivers, following a hike along the coastal trail to Lake Acigami (Roca).
The wildlife is what stays with you. Several Beagle islets are haul-outs for South American sea lions and fur seals, and host colonies of imperial cormorants and kelp gulls. From a kayak you meet them at eye level; approach slowly and keep the distance your guide sets.
The Beagle is open sea and the weather turns quickly: the climate is subpolar oceanic, with a mean annual temperature of around 6 °C, and every outing depends on the day's conditions. Guided paddles are designed both for first-timers and for experienced kayakers.
- Tour type: Recreational, on the water, wildlife watching
- Difficulty level: Easy to moderate, depending on the route and the wind
- Tip: Dress in thermal layers (no cotton), bring gloves, a hat and a dry change of clothes, and confirm the trip on the day, since it depends on the weather.
