Years ago on a documentary, Michael Palin landed on Cape Horn in Chile. This small island is the southernmost tip of realistic liveable land on planet earth. All that lies south is the ice cold continent of Antarctica. I was off to Cape Horn![]
It's owned by Chile, not Argentina and forms the southern point of the island area known as Tierra Del Fuego. I love the name actually - CAPE HORN. It has a certain inspired ring to it. I was hell bent on seeing it for real, and selfishly I wanted to step foot on it.
it's expensive to visit the Cape of Horn. For some reason Michael Palin didn't pay for it - it would all have been covered by a generous BBC budget for the purpose of filming. My trip was on a much lower budget and I managed to backpack my way to Antarctica - the trip to visit the Horn, even just to see it on the way back was such a bonus. However the Chilean marine authorities don't let ships close to it - they issue a proximity maximum of around 12 - 13 miles except in special circumstances.
The boat we were sailing on was a mighty fine vessel. Having been made in Denmark and registered in Liberia it was now making regular journeys from Antarctica to Argentina! We didn't catch a glimspe of Cape Horn at all on our departure from Argentina and in fact we headed into the dreaded Drake Passage late at night so even passing by the area close most of the passengers on board would have been asleep. Plus we didn't actually go near Cape Horn on the way down, as it's further west. []
Onboard the boat there was talk about whether we could go anywhere near Cape Horn on the way back to Argentina. There were clues onboard that this may happen. Screening an onboard documentary about Cape Horn was one, yet the crew were saying nothing!
However the map of the route onboard the ship was the giveaway as we had departed from Antarctica at Elephant Island and were changing direction rapidly, instead of heading directly north, there was a slight tilting to the north west, where Cape Horn sits.
On the evening of our final ascent up the Drake Passage the visit to view Cape Horn was finally confirmed by the crew amid a joyous response. We were told at the recap of the day and the briefing session that we would indeed be sailing close to Cape Horn for a view at 5am the next morning.
The night before proved to be quite a late one in the onboard Polar Bear Bar, it was our final journey on the treacherous Drake Passage and we had all bonded as a group on board the ship and on land on the magical continent. I left the bar around 2.30 am, with many still up. Sunset had passed us by on the west and sunrise had begun in the east, giving the boat the odd position of one side in darkness and the other side in early morning light.
It was only 2 hours in bed and then up again so that we could actually see Cape Horn. It was a massive crowd gathered on deck for the viewing as we inched closer to the horn itself. It must have been 6.30 when we finally caught sight of it.
The announcement from the bridge confirmed that the island tip ahead was indeed Cape Horn and that we had been given permission due to the favourable weather to breach the 12 - 13 mile barrier and get a bit closer to Cape Horn.
Everyone gathered on the very top deck laden with cameras and warm clothes. It was a joy just staring out at this remote piece of land on the south tip of Chile knowing we had seen the end of the civilised world. We didn't land on it, but we saw it.
It's owned by Chile, not Argentina and forms the southern point of the island area known as Tierra Del Fuego. I love the name actually - CAPE HORN. It has a certain inspired ring to it. I was hell bent on seeing it for real, and selfishly I wanted to step foot on it.
it's expensive to visit the Cape of Horn. For some reason Michael Palin didn't pay for it - it would all have been covered by a generous BBC budget for the purpose of filming. My trip was on a much lower budget and I managed to backpack my way to Antarctica - the trip to visit the Horn, even just to see it on the way back was such a bonus. However the Chilean marine authorities don't let ships close to it - they issue a proximity maximum of around 12 - 13 miles except in special circumstances.
The boat we were sailing on was a mighty fine vessel. Having been made in Denmark and registered in Liberia it was now making regular journeys from Antarctica to Argentina! We didn't catch a glimspe of Cape Horn at all on our departure from Argentina and in fact we headed into the dreaded Drake Passage late at night so even passing by the area close most of the passengers on board would have been asleep. Plus we didn't actually go near Cape Horn on the way down, as it's further west. []
Onboard the boat there was talk about whether we could go anywhere near Cape Horn on the way back to Argentina. There were clues onboard that this may happen. Screening an onboard documentary about Cape Horn was one, yet the crew were saying nothing!
However the map of the route onboard the ship was the giveaway as we had departed from Antarctica at Elephant Island and were changing direction rapidly, instead of heading directly north, there was a slight tilting to the north west, where Cape Horn sits.
On the evening of our final ascent up the Drake Passage the visit to view Cape Horn was finally confirmed by the crew amid a joyous response. We were told at the recap of the day and the briefing session that we would indeed be sailing close to Cape Horn for a view at 5am the next morning.
The night before proved to be quite a late one in the onboard Polar Bear Bar, it was our final journey on the treacherous Drake Passage and we had all bonded as a group on board the ship and on land on the magical continent. I left the bar around 2.30 am, with many still up. Sunset had passed us by on the west and sunrise had begun in the east, giving the boat the odd position of one side in darkness and the other side in early morning light.
It was only 2 hours in bed and then up again so that we could actually see Cape Horn. It was a massive crowd gathered on deck for the viewing as we inched closer to the horn itself. It must have been 6.30 when we finally caught sight of it.
The announcement from the bridge confirmed that the island tip ahead was indeed Cape Horn and that we had been given permission due to the favourable weather to breach the 12 - 13 mile barrier and get a bit closer to Cape Horn.
Everyone gathered on the very top deck laden with cameras and warm clothes. It was a joy just staring out at this remote piece of land on the south tip of Chile knowing we had seen the end of the civilised world. We didn't land on it, but we saw it.
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