Today we visited the beautiful Aysén Fjord in Central Patagonia. This fjord is about 60km deep but reaches 200km from the Pacific coast into the Andes and we anchored National Geographic Explorer off the port city of Puerto Chacabuco. From Puerto Chacabuco we enjoyed two options: the first was a day-long visit to the Coyhaique National Park where we took a walk through the pampas and the dense forest. The highlight was the sighting of magellanic woodpeckers. This excursion included a Patagonian barbecued lamb lunch and was altogether a lovely day including a visit to the town of Aysén. The second excursion visited the Parque Aikén del Sur where we also had a lovely walk through the dense forest where we were able to understand the complex forest ecosystem and have good sightings of the ringed kingfisher and striking Chucao which announces its presence with a very loud call for such a small bird, but is, even so, very difficult to spot in the dense forest cover. This walk ended at a beautiful lodge overlooking Lake Riesco where we also were treated to a Patagonian barbecue lamb lunch complete with local folk dancers. At the end of our excursions we re-joined the ship and sailed west out of the fjord to continue our exploration of the complex fjord country of southern Chile.
3/19/2024
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National Geographic Resolution
Bernal Glacier and Kirke Narrows
Following a short Zodiac ride to the rocky shore, we hiked toward the Bernal Glacier along a wide gravel path through a wild garden. Tall prickly heath shrubs lined both sides of the path. Laden with both pink and red berries and lantern-shaped white blossoms, these seemed to sprout up through a carpet of the round geranium-like leaves of devil’s strawberry. Further along the path, several bushes of hardy fuchsias were draped in pink and purple flowers. A few minutes spent nearby provided glimpses of flitting green-backed firecrown hummingbirds and the opportunity to closely observe the endangered Bombus dahlbomii, the world’s largest bumblebee. Another half mile down the path, as we neared the face of the Bernal Glacier, a muddle of glacier-tumbled rocks spat out at its base. From this vantage point, the glacier revealed its full height and raw power, its slopes bathed in crystalline hues of blue and white as sunlight danced off its massive surface. After lunch, a few sea lions and pods of Peale’s dolphins entertained us as we awaited a short window of time when the tide was still high enough to allow the captain of National Geographic Resolution to swiftly maneuver through the Kirke Narrows.
