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Across the Andes at the End of the World Federico I. Isla1*, Marcelo

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Across the Andes at the End of the World Federico I. Isla1*, Marcelo Isla, Zárate, and Vilas Across the Andes at the End of the World Federico I. Isla1*, Marcelo Zárate2, and Federico E. Vilas3 1CONICET, University of Mar del Plata, Argentina 2CONICET, University of La Pampa, Argentina 3University of Vigo, Spain In 1985, six coastal geologists (Silvia Lendaro, Gustavo González Bonorino, Jorge Fasano - all from the National Research Council of Argentina, and the authors) crossed the Andes Cordillera at the Eastern extreme of the Isla Grande of Argentina’s Tierra del Fuego (Peninsula Mitre). Departing by truck from Ushuaia, Argentina, which lies along the Beagle Channel, we arrived at San Pablo Cape on the Atlantic coast of the island (Figure 1). A helicopter carried us in groups to Valentín Bay, an ancient fjord facing south and very close to the Le Maire Strait. We stayed at a research campsite where archaeologists were digging old human occupations sites (Figure 2), located very close to a Nothofagus forest (barren) that is impacted by strong southerly winds. The six geologists (with two more companions) then prepared to walk across the Andes over three days to reach a former seal factory on the northern Atlantic coastline. Previously the helicopter had transferred food to both the Atlantic seal factory and to an intermediate location in Buen Suceso Bay (originally named Bay of the Good Success), in front of Staten Island. The main purpose of the excursion was to make an inventory of the natural resources of the region, and to describe the dynamics of the different bays along the Le Maire Strait (Isla, 1994). Figure 1. Location image showing the trip and the sites mentioned. (Source: Google Earth.) After a couple of days spent exploring and trying to provide the environmental and geological context of the human occupations at Valentín Bay, we started the mountain crossing on foot by making our own trail on the way through the full and pristine wilderness of Tierra del Fuego. The quietness (except for the sound of the roaring winds) and the almost certainty that nobody else but the guanacos were there, fed the feeling of a once in a lifetime experience. Unnamed places and remoteDOI: 10.2112/JCR-SI101-036.1 spots of *Corresponding author: [email protected] ©Coastal Education and Research Foundation, Inc. 2020 194 Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 101, 2020 unique panoramic views of glacial mountain landscapes, along with the sense of the unknown waiting ahead, encouraged us to keep going no matter what. To put up the tents in the middle of nowhere became an unexpected challenge, even more so trying to fall asleep inside, not because of the wind, but a grunting sound like an old sawmill in operation, coming from a tent. It was an endless snoring of a geologist, loud enough to keep us awake most of the night. Figure 2. Archaeological camp at Valentín Bay. (Source: F.I. Isla.) The excursion was not easy. A trek describes more precisely the long and arduous journey on foot through the island (Figure 3a). It was hard to imagine beforehand the difficulties waiting ahead, such as getting through the shaky ground of the Sphagnum peat bogs, which was just like stepping on a water mattress, or traversing the mountain slopes densely covered by renewals of Nothofagus trees, bent by a machete to allow our passage through. At the top of the hills shrubs grow very close to the rocks (Figure 3b) and here the biggest danger is to slip into hidden holes. Some rivers were very difficult to cross, and we were unable to keep dry. The weather in Peninsula Mitre is very rainy; it is common to experience more than 10 rain showers per day. In the past, a beaver farm had been operating and when closed, the owner preferred to leave the Canadian beavers alive. Today, the worst environmental problems in Tierra del Fuego are the wetlands generated by the beaver dams that extend along the whole island (Figure 4a). The travel was more difficult than expected, particularly without satellite phones in those days. It is hard to forget our arrival at Buen Suceso Bay with food stored at a tent, after a long walk with just a bit to eat (Figure 4b). For those with courage a very cold bath awaited at a small river with brown coloured water from draining peat bogs. The next morning we continued and eventually reached the Atlantic coast several hours later. Walking along the beach from a the distance we observed some tiny conical elevation features. Once there, they turned out to be dozens and dozens of sea wolf furs piled up a long time ago, during the sealing period in the southern oceans. Not far was the shelter at Tethis Bay, a rattletrap wooden hut where we overnighted. The mesotidal channel of the bay was characterised by a strong current velocity and therefore we had to wait until noon to cross it. The next day, a medium-sized ship of the Argentine Navy picked us up, but we were not completely safe. We still had to cross the Le Maire Strait with opposing tidal currents, followed by the entrance of the Beagle Channel with strong westerly winds, which were responsible for our last sea sickness and many knocks. 195 Isla, Zárate, and Vilas This expedition helped conceive an agreement between the Spanish CSIC and the Argentinian CONICET to initiate geological research in a more accessible region: San Sebastián Bay, at the north of the Tierra del Fuego Island, that resulted in several research outputs (Arche and Vilas, 2001; Isla 1994; Isla et al. 1991; Vilas et al. 1999). a b Figure 3. (a) A stop at the top of the mountains. (b) Sphagnum peat covering a glacier sill at the top of the Negros Mountains. (Source: F.I. Isla.) a b Figure 4. (a) Beaver dam at Peninsula Mitre drowning the Nothofagus forests. (b) Arriving at Buen Suceso Bay. To the right is Staten Island (below the clouds). (Source: F.I. Isla.) LITERATURE CITED Arche, A. and Vilas, F.E., 2001. Fine-grained aeolian sediments in San Sebastian Bay, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Journal of Iberian Geology, 27, 159-173. Isla, F.I., 1994. Evolución comparada de bahías de la Península Mitre, Tierra del Fuego. Revista de la Asociación Geológica Argentina, 49(3-4), 197-205. Isla, F.I.; Vilas, F.E.; Bujalesky, G.G.; Ferrero, M.; Gonzalez Bonorino, G., and Arche, A., 1991. Gravel drift and wind effects on the macrotidal San Sebastian Bay, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Marine Geology, (97), 211-224 Vilas, F.E.; Arche, A.; Ferrero, M., and Isla, F.I., 1999. Subantarctic macrotidal flats, cheniers and beaches in San Sebastian Bay, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Marine Geology, 160, 301-326. 196.
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