Tierra del Fuego National Park () is a

national park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

on the

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

part of the island of Tierra del Fuego, within Tierra del Fuego Province in the

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

of Patagonic Forest and Altos Andes, a part of the

subantarctic The sub-Antarctic zone is a physiographic region in the Southern Hemisphere, located immediately north of the Antarctic region. This translates roughly to a latitude of between 46th parallel south, 46° and 60th parallel south, 60° south of t ...

forest. Established on 15 October 1960 under the Law 15.554 and expanded in 1966, it was the first shoreline national park to be established in Argentina. The park has dramatic scenery, with waterfalls, forests, mountains, and

glacier A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires ...

s. Its include parts of the Fagnano and Roca lakes. The Senda Costera (Coastal Path), connecting Ensenada Bay to Lapataia Bay on Lago Roca, is a popular hiking trail within the park. Forests of Antarctic beech, lenga beech, and coihue in the lower elevations of the park are home to many animal species. There are 20 species of terrestrial

mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...

s, including the

guanaco The guanaco ( ; ''Lama guanicoe'') is a camelid native to South America, closely related to the llama. Guanacos are one of two wild South American camelids; the other species is the vicuña, which lives at higher elevations. Etymology The gua ...

, Andean fox,

North American beaver The North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') is one of two Extant taxon, extant beaver species, along with the Eurasian beaver (''Castor fiber''). It is native to North America and has been introduced in South America (Patagonia) and Europe ...

European rabbit The European rabbit (''Oryctolagus cuniculus'') or coney is a species of rabbit native to the Iberian Peninsula (Spain, Portugal and Andorra) and southwestern France. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Oryctolagus''. The European rab ...

and

muskrat The muskrat or common muskrat (''Ondatra zibethicus'') is a medium-sized semiaquatic rodent native to North America and an introduced species in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands over various climates ...

. Among the 90 species of birds are the kelp goose, torrent duck, austral parakeet,

Andean condor The Andean condor (''Vultur gryphus'') is a South American New World vulture and is the only member of the genus ''Vultur''. It is found in the Andes mountains and adjacent Pacific coasts of western South America. With a maximum wingspan of and ...

, blackish oystercatcher, and Magellanic oystercatcher. The southernmost national park in Argentina, it is listed as an

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

category II park. The park stretches north from the

Beagle Channel Beagle Channel (; Yahgan language, Yahgan: ''Onašaga'') is a strait in the Tierra del Fuego, Tierra del Fuego Archipelago, on the extreme southern tip of South America between Chile and Argentina. The channel separates the larger main island of I ...

along the

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

an border.

Ushuaia Ushuaia ( , ) is the capital city, capital of Tierra del Fuego Province, Argentina, Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur Province, Argentina. With a population of 82,615 and a location below the 54th parallel south latitude, U ...

, the capital of Tierra del Fuego Province, is from the park. The park can be reached by car or by train. The southern terminus of the

Pan-American Highway The Pan-American Highway is a vast network of roads that stretches about 30,000 kilometers (about 19,000 miles) from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, in the northernmost part of North America to Ushuaia, Argentina, at the southern tip of South America. I ...

is located within the park, as is the ''El Parque'' station of the End of the World Train.

Geography

The park forms the southern portion of the subantarctic forest and is known for its biological richness.

Flora

The subantarctic forest vegetation is dominated by tree species of coihue, nires, and lenga (a tree or shrub native to the

Andes The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...

and also known as lenga beech) apart from a profusion of massbed. The flora that characterizes the "Andino-Patagonico" forests, the lenga, is well distributed over the mountain slopes above sea level to a height of . Above elevation, the flora consists of altoandina with small little bushes, plants and

grass Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family (biology), family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and spe ...

es.

has reported forests of southern beech species of ''

Nothofagus pumilio ''Nothofagus pumilio'', the lenga beech (from the Mapuche language), is a deciduous tree or shrub in the Nothofagaceae family that is native to the southern Andes range, in the temperate forests of Chile and Argentina to Tierra del Fuego, from 35 ...

'', '' N. antarctica'' and '' N. betuloides''. Other species include '' Berberis buxifolia'', ''

Embothrium coccineum ''Embothrium coccineum'', Chilean firetree or Chilean firebush, commonly known in Chile and Argentina as ''notro'', ''ciruelillo'' and ''fósforo'' is a small evergreen tree in the flowering plant family Proteaceae. It grows in the temperate for ...

'', winter's bark '' Drimys winteri'', and Crowberry, '' Empetrum rubrum'' and

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular plant, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic phylum, division Bryophyta (, ) ''sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Wilhelm Philippe Schimper, Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryo ...

es. Magellan coihue (''coihue de Magallanes'') is found in the wettest parts of the Beagle channel coast of the park. Lenga is found in the Pipo River Valley and some parts of southern mountain slopes and may be thickly set and reach great heights. Chinese lantern, hemiparasite and ''Pande Indian'' or ''Llao Llao'', which are fungus parasites, are found over the branches of the trees.

Cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, biscuits, b ...

is also reported in many small forest areas of the park. Peat bogs are extensively found in the park. These are made up of

sphagnum moss ''Sphagnum'' is a genus of approximately 380 accepted species of mosses, commonly known as sphagnum moss, also bog moss and quacker moss (although that term is also sometimes used for peat). Accumulations of ''Sphagnum'' can store water, since ...

and aquatic grasses in damp valleys where low temperatures and slow-moving acidic waters prevent decomposition. The flower varieties found are calafate, chaura and michay, which are orange coloured.

Flag tree ''Krummholz'' (, "crooked, bent, twisted" and ''Holz'', "wood") — also called ''knieholz'' ("knee timber") — is a type of stunted, deformed vegetation encountered in the subarctic and subalpine tree line landscapes, shaped by continual e ...

, strawberry devil and little

fern The ferns (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta) are a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. They differ from mosses by being vascular, i.e., having specialized tissue ...

s, yellow orchids and luzuriagas are seen in the understory of forest cover. Black bush, caulking, grill, and ''

Embothrium ''Embothrium'' is a genus of two to eight species (depending on taxonomic interpretation) in the plant family Proteaceae, native to southern South America, in Chile and adjacent western Argentina; the genus occurs as far south as Tierra del Fue ...

cocci'' with red tubular flowers are typically seen in the Beagle Channel coast and the western part of Lapataia Bay. Also found is the chocolate scented ''

Nassauvia ''Nassauvia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the tribe Nassauvieae within the family Asteraceae. It is native to Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and the Falkland Islands. ''Nassauvia'' is said to be chocolate scented. Species Formerly included ...

''. File:Drimys winteri.jpg, '' Drimys winteri'' flowers File:Nothofagus antarctica D.jpg, ''

Nothofagus antarctica ''Nothofagus antarctica'' (''Antarctic beech''; in Spanish ''Ñire'' or ''Ñirre'') is a deciduous tree or shrub native to southern Chile and Argentina from about 36°S to Tierra del Fuego (56° S), where it grows mainly in the diminishing tempe ...

'' File:Nothofagus pumilio.jpg, ''

'' File:Nothofagus betuloides.jpg, ''

Nothofagus betuloides ''Nothofagus betuloides'', Magellan's beech or ''guindo'', is a tree native to southern Patagonia. In 1769, Joseph Banks, Sir Joseph Banks collected a botanical specimen, specimen of the tree in Tierra del Fuego during James Cook, Captain Cook's ...

'' File:Calafate-Berberis buxifolia.jpg, Calafate (''Berberis buxifolia'') plant west of Ushuaia

Fauna

Settlers from Europe and North America introduced many species of animals into the area, such as the

, and

, which rapidly proliferated and caused significant damage to the environment. Avifauna includes three types of cauquenes ( sheldgeese) namely, ''cauquen comun'' ( upland goose or Magellan goose), ''cauquen real'' ( ashy-headed goose) and caranca ( kelp goose ), found in open places and beaches. Other birds include Patagonian

woodpeckers Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar and the extreme polar regions. ...

, notably the spectacular

Magellanic woodpecker The Magellanic woodpecker (''Campephilus magellanicus'') is a species of large woodpecker found in southern Chile and southwestern Argentina; it is resident within its range. This species is the southernmost example of the genus ''Campephilus'', ...

(''maca común'', ''common maca)'',

heron Herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 75 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genus ''Botaurus'' are referred to as bi ...

, ''pato creston'' (

crested duck The crested duck or South American crested duck (''Lophonetta specularioides'') is a species of duck native to South America, belonging to the monotypic genus ''Lophonetta''. It is sometimes included in ''Anas'', but it belongs to a South Americ ...

). Andean condors are seen flying on the peaks and valleys of Tierra del Fuego. It is also home to the austral parakeet (''Enicognathus ferrugineus''), the southernmostly distributed species of

parrot Parrots (Psittaciformes), also known as psittacines (), are birds with a strong curved beak, upright stance, and clawed feet. They are classified in four families that contain roughly 410 species in 101 genus (biology), genera, found mostly in ...

. Aquafauna consists of

scallop Scallop () is a common name that encompasses various species of marine bivalve molluscs in the taxonomic family Pectinidae, the scallops. However, the common name "scallop" is also sometimes applied to species in other closely related famili ...

, moon snail, spiral tooth, few

crustacean Crustaceans (from Latin meaning: "those with shells" or "crusted ones") are invertebrate animals that constitute one group of arthropods that are traditionally a part of the subphylum Crustacea (), a large, diverse group of mainly aquatic arthrop ...

s like

crab Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura (meaning "short tailed" in Greek language, Greek), which typically have a very short projecting tail-like abdomen#Arthropoda, abdomen, usually hidden entirely under the Thorax (arthropo ...

s and fishes such as

sardine Sardine and pilchard are common names for various species of small, oily forage fish in the herring suborder Clupeoidei. The term "sardine" was first used in English during the early 15th century; a somewhat dubious etymology says it com ...

s, Falkland sprat, Fueguina, merluza and ''Robalo de cola'',

jellyfish Jellyfish, also known as sea jellies or simply jellies, are the #Life cycle, medusa-phase of certain gelatinous members of the subphylum Medusozoa, which is a major part of the phylum Cnidaria. Jellyfish are mainly free-swimming marine animal ...

concentrations, steamer ducks and

cormorant Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the International Ornithologists' Union (IOU) ado ...

Guanaco The guanaco ( ; ''Lama guanicoe'') is a camelid native to South America, closely related to the llama. Guanacos are one of two wild South American camelids; the other species is the vicuña, which lives at higher elevations. Etymology The gua ...

(''Lama guanicoe)'' and

South American sea lion The South American sea lion (''Otaria flavescens'', formerly ''Otaria byronia''), also called the southern sea lion and the Patagonian sea lion, is a sea lion found on the western and southeastern coasts of South America. It is the Monotypic ta ...

s are reported in the park. Sea birds reported include

petrel Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the phylogenetic order Procellariiformes. Description Petrels are a monophyletic group of marine seabirds, sharing a characteristic of a nostril arrangement that results in the name "tubenoses". Petrels enco ...

s and

albatross Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds related to the procellariids, storm petrels, and diving petrels in the order Procellariiformes (the tubenoses). They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Paci ...

es. Other notable fauna reported are several species of

penguins Penguins are a group of aquatic flightless birds from the family Spheniscidae () of the order Sphenisciformes (). They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. Only one species, the Galápagos penguin, is equatorial, with a sm ...

, the South Andean deer (''Hippocamelus bisulcus)'', and the southern river otter (''Lontra provocax).'' File:Black Necked Swan.jpg, A pair of black-necked swans in the park File:Podiceps major.jpg, ''Podiceps major'' – great grebe- Tierra del Fuego National Park File:Magellanic Woodpecker Male (Campephilus magellanicus).jpg, A Magellanic woodpecker (''Campephilus magellanicus'') near Ushuaia File:IslaLosLobos.jpg, Sea lions at the Beagle Channel near Ushuaia File:Canal de Beagle - Illa pingüins.jpg,

Cormorant Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the International Ornithologists' Union (IOU) ado ...

colony on the shores of the

Features

Tierra del Fuego National Park contains mountains, lakes, rivers, and valleys. It is bounded on the west by the Chilean border, on the north by Lago Fagnano, and on the south by the Beagle Channel, which forms the shoreline. It encompasses an area of and represents two ecoregions: the Altos Andes and the Patagonian Forest. While the former ecoregion is made up of hill ranges and slopes, the latter has high and jagged mountains, glacier valleys, and semi-deciduous forests. The landscape of the park is the result of glacial erosion, which has created bays and beaches against a backdrop of rugged mountains and valleys.GreenJani2006,p.494 Beagle Channel seen from Tierra del Fuego National Park

Beagle Channel seen from Tierra del Fuego National Park

The park is located to the west of the city of

, on National Road 3. Ushuaia provides the main approach to the park through the highway or through the Southern Fuegian Railway.

Beagle Channel

The

or strait in Tierra del Fuego National Park is named after the British ship HMS ''

Beagle The Beagle is a small breed of scent hound, similar in appearance to the much larger foxhound. The beagle was developed primarily for hunting rabbit or hare, known as beagling. Possessing a great sense of smell and superior tracking inst ...

'', which sailed with the naturalist

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

aboard in 1833–34. The channel separates islands of the Tierra del Fuego Archipelago, in extreme southern South America. It separates Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego from the islands of Nueva, Picton, Navarino, Hoste, Londonderry, Stewart, and other smaller islands to the south. It is oriented in an east-west direction, and runs for a length of . Its width varies from . The biggest settlement on the channel is Ushuaia in Argentina followed by

Puerto Williams Puerto Williams (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Port Williams") is a city, port and naval base on Navarino Island in Chile. It faces the Beagle Channel. It is the Capital city, capital of Antártica Chilena Province, the Chilean Antarctic Provin ...

in Chile, two of the southernmost settlements in the world. Ancient middens where Yaghan tribes lived are seen on the beaches around the Beagle Channel.

Lago Fagnano

Lago Fagnano (named after the

Salesian The Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB), formally known as the Society of Saint Francis de Sales (), is a religious congregation of men in the Catholic Church, founded in 1859 by the Italian priest John Bosco to help poor and migrant youth during the ...

monk José Fagnano), also known as Cami Lake, the southernmost lake of its size outside Antarctica, is the largest lake in Tierra del Fuego and flows southward along the eastern slope of the Andean Cordillera of

Patagonia Patagonia () is a geographical region that includes parts of Argentina and Chile at the southern end of South America. The region includes the southern section of the Andes mountain chain with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and glaciers ...

into the

Magellan Strait The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and the Tierra del Fuego archipelago to the south. Considered the most important natural ...

through the Azopardo River. It is hemmed in the active

tectonic plate Plate tectonics (, ) is the scientific theory that the Earth's lithosphere comprises a number of large tectonic plates, which have been slowly moving since 3–4 billion years ago. The model builds on the concept of , an idea developed durin ...

(linked to the Magallanes-Fagnano fault) boundary between the South American and Scotia plates. Its East-West orientation in the southern part of

Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego ( English: ''Big Island of the Land of Fire'') also formerly ''Isla de Xátiva'' is an island near the southern tip of South America from which it is separated by the Strait of Magellan. The western portion (61. ...

encompasses the national territories of Argentina and Chile; only a small part of the lake lies in Chile. Its evolution is attributed to constant glaciation during the late

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch (geology), epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.33 to 2.58Pleistocene era. The lake has a total drainage area of with basin elevation ranging from at the lake level to about . The lake water spreads over an area of about , with an average width of (maximum width is over a length of long and the maximum recorded depth is , with an average depth reported as . Its water volume is .

Climate

The park experiences a

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (approximately 23.5° to 66.5° N/S of the Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ran ...

climate with frequent rain, fog, and strong winds. Westerly winds over the sea maintain a uniform climate in the park. The average annual rainfall is . Peak rainfall (snowfall at higher elevations) occurs from March through May; no dry season exists. Average temperatures are about in winter and in the summer. At Ushuaia, the recorded mean annual temperature reported is with maximum monthly mean of and minimum of .

History

Etymology

The first Europeans who came to explore the southern tip of South America saw the campfires of the native inhabitants of the area (the Yaghan people, also called Yámana). The Spanish explorers hence named the area "Tierra del Fuego", meaning "land of the fires" in Spanish.

Pre-Columbian

Humans inhabited Tierra del Fuego as far back as 10,000 years ago. The Yaghan people, living in the harsh environment, survived on the natural resources of the sea. They lived on its beaches and made voyages into the sea in canoes made of lenga beech, hunted

sea lion Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear flaps, long foreflippers, the ability to walk on all fours, short and thick hair, and a big chest and belly. Together with the fur seals, they make up the family Otariidae, eared seals. ...

s, and collected shellfish. They lived in huts made of tree branches and trunks and clothed themselves with leather made from sea lion pelts. They smeared their body with the fat and grease of these animals to waterproof their skins. The southern group of the Selk’nam, the Yaghan people (also known as Yámana), occupied what is now Ushuaia, living in continual conflict with the northern inhabitants of the island.

Post-Columbian

Wasti H. Stirling, an Anglican missionary, settled here in 1870 and started to convert Yaghan tribes, the natives, the original residents of the Beagle Channel. During the 1880s, many

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

prospectors Prospecting is the first stage of the geological analysis (followed by exploration) of a territory. It is the search for minerals, fossils, precious metals, or mineral specimens. It is also known as fossicking. Traditionally prospecting rel ...

came to Ushuaia, following rumors of large gold fields, which proved to be false. Trouble for the Yaghan people began in 1880 when European missionaries entered the area. European settlers brought diseases such as

measles Measles (probably from Middle Dutch or Middle High German ''masel(e)'', meaning "blemish, blood blister") is a highly contagious, Vaccine-preventable diseases, vaccine-preventable infectious disease caused by Measles morbillivirus, measles v ...

, causing a rapid and nearly complete extinction of the Yaghan people. The Yaghan tribe was reduced in number from about 3,000 people in 1880 to less than 100 by the 1990s. Many of them were killed by European settlers' "shoot exercises" and deliberate poisoning to exploit the sea lions, the staple of the Yaghan diet. Following the deaths of 84-year-old Emelinda Acuña (1921 – 12 October 2005) and her sister Cristina Calderón (1928 - 2022) of Villa Ukika on

Navarino Island Navarino Island () is a large Chilean island, with an area of and a coastline of . It is located between Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, to the north, and Cape Horn, to the south. The island forms part of the Communes of Chile, Commune of Cabo ...

, Chile, no native speakers remain. What can be seen of the Yaghan people and their settlements today are mainly relics in the form of piles of

mussel Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and Freshwater bivalve, freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other ...

shells overgrown with grass near the seashore. Some antiquarian links with the tribals can also be seen in the "End of the World Museum" in Ushuaia. The Boundary Treaty of 1881 was an attempted resolution of the territorial dispute between Argentina and Chile, and stipulated that the boundary between the two countries would run south from "Cape Espiritu Santo, on the northern shore of Tierra del Fuego till it touches the Beagle Channel". This division meant that Argentina would be entitled to the eastern portion while Chile would have the western part of the Tierra del Fuego. However, the Treaty did not clarify the terminus of the Beagle Channel, which created many territorial and collateral issues such as navigation rights. This resulted in a dispute between the two countries, particularly on the small islands ( Picton, Lennox, and Nueva) up to

Cape horn Cape Horn (, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which is Águila Islet), Cape Horn marks the nor ...

. The dispute, which started in 1840, almost resulted in war between the two countries in 1978. However, the issue was resolved with the intervention of the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

. The Pope ruled on the dispute, ratification ensued and a treaty was signed on 2 May 1985. Under this treaty, Chile retained control of all the disputed islands, and Argentina was entitled to navigational rights and maintained its limited presence on these islands. After an Argentine naval base was established in 1884, the island was divided between Argentina and Chile. Argentinian President Roca established a penal colony in 1902, on nearby Staten Island, which resulted in its development. Prisoners were the main workforce and were employed to construct the city and exploit the forests of the now Tierra del Fuego National Park. The train lines were also built by the prisoners, covering an area of , which started from the Maipú Monte Susana camp and ran through the park. The city is now an important tourist center as the departure point not only for the park but also for voyages to

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

. Following the establishment of a prison in Ushuaia, in late 1909 and early 1910 the railway line called the Southern Fuegian Railway or the End of the World train was established as a narrow gauge steam railway, replacing an old wood track railway drawn by bullocks. The steam engine-driven railway was built over a length of along the Maipu Avenue on the waterfront, followed the eastern slope of Mount Susana, and branched through the middle of the Pipo River valley into the Tierra del Fuego National Park. The line made with Decauville tracks of gauge, connected the prison camp with the forestry camp. The primary purpose of the railway was as a freight line to serve the prison of Ushuaia, and hence was known as the "Prison train," and was used specifically to transport prisoners to the camps and transport the logged timber from forests. The prison was closed in 1947, and the railway was finally closed in 1952, following the reduction in forest resources and an earthquake that damaged the tracks.

Tourism

There are several attractions within the park including the Beagle Channel, the Pipo River cascade, the Lago Fagnano, Lago Roca, the Ensanada Bay, the Lapataia Bay, the End of the World Train, and the Laguna Negra.

End of the World train

In 1994, 40 years after it had been closed as a Prison train, the train was revived, refurbished with modern amenities, used as a heritage train, and claimed to be the southernmost functioning railway in the world. A new 2-6-2T steam locomotive (Camila, brought from

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in 1995), another made in Argentina, and three diesel locomotives serve on the line. The park can now be reached from the outskirts of Ushuaia from the Fin del Mundo station ( west of Ushuaia) by the heritage railway line and runs over , covering the distance in about 50 minutes.

References

External links

Official site
{{Authority control National parks of Argentina Protected areas of Tierra del Fuego Province, Argentina Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego Protected areas established in 1960