Strait of Magellan
Strait of Magellan is a navigable sea passage between continental South America and the sub-Antarctic archipelago of Tierra del Fuego. This natural channel will connect the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean basins. Through the busy Strait of Magellan trade ships with commercial cargoes follow, passenger cruise liners, whose routes are laid out to Antarctica, call here. This direction of international tourism is becoming increasingly popular and attracts tens of thousands of travelers every year.
Video: Strait of Magellan
Contents- Highlights
- History of the Strait of Magellan
- Geography
- Climate
- Interesting places
Magellan Strait cruises - Shopping
- Local food
- Where to stay
- How to get there
Highlights
The Strait of Magellan crosses the vast Chilean region of Magallanes (Magallania), extending through Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego to Drake Passage. The administrative center of this region is the port city of Punta Arenas, built on the northern shore of the Strait of Magellan. There are about 130,000 inhabitants. The city is supplied with fresh water from the San Juan River, which flows into the Strait. On the Brunswick Peninsula, 100 km southwest of Punta Arenas, is Cape Froward, recognized as the southernmost location on the continent of South America.
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Punta Arenas is the only tourist center on the shores of the Strait of Magellan. From its harbor Antarctic scientific expeditions start, from here passenger cruises to the islands and coasts of Antarctica begin. Icebreakers under the flags of several countries are based in the port. They serve scientific bases, which are located on the Seventh Continent. There is a sea ferry line that connects Punta Arenas to the main island of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago, as well as to the city of Puerto Williams, located in the Beagle Channel.
.Punta Arenas has a regional airport connected by air to Chile’s capital Santiago and the country’s nearest cities. In the city, travelers will find cozy hotels, atmospheric restaurants with Chilean cuisine, stores, several nightclubs and casinos, car rental offices. As a rule, tourists do not stay here for a long time, but have time to walk around the city neighborhoods, buy souvenirs. There are a lot of historical buildings, sights related to the development of the harsh circumpolar region, interesting museums are open.
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History of the Strait of Magellan
In the early 16th century, Portuguese navigator Hernando de Magallanes left his homeland as a result of the intrigues of ill-wishers. Under the name of Fernan Magellan, he entered the service of the Spanish monarch Charles V. The king commissioned him to find a western sea route to the Mollucca Islands, a source of spices that were then valued for their weight in gold. The eastern route around Africa was blocked by the war fleet of the hostile Portuguese crown.
On September 20, 1519, five ships left the Spanish port of Sanlucar, which is at the mouth of the Guadalquivir River, and set a course to the west. The flagship sailing ship “Trinidad” was commanded by Captain-General and Commander of the Order of San Jago Fernan Magellan. 256 sailors embarked on the expedition.
.Reaching South America, the flotilla passed the coast of Brazil and stopped for the winter in the Gulf of San Julian, nowadays belonging to Argentina. Here Magellan’s team first met with incredibly tall Indians people Teuelche. The commander, who noticed the huge footprints in the sand, called the natives patagão (“big foot”). Thus, the name of the Patagonia region appeared on the expedition’s map.
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Manuscript copies of Pigafetta’s diaries with vivid descriptions of the seafarers’ adventures spread to the courts of European monarchs and became a true bestseller of the 16th century. Interesting are the dramatic descriptions of “St. Elmo’s lights” – a pale bluish glow that sometimes appears at the tips of the masts of ships during thunderstorms. Back in the century before last, scientists figured out that these plasma lights are luminescent electrical discharges caused by the potential difference between thunderstorm clouds and sea water. But Magellan’s contemporaries were superstitiously horrified by such a mystical phenomenon.
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Pigafetta’s chronicle, intriguingly titled An Account of the First Circumnavigation of the World, was published in 1550. This narrative is among the most valuable documents of the Great Age of Discovery. The royal archives have also preserved a concise logbook of the Victoria, kept by navigator Francisco Albo.
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The interoceanic route discovered by Magellan’s expedition is marked on Pigafetta’s maps as Todos los Santos – Strait of All Saints. Some geographers suggested renaming the strait after the first ship that entered its waters. But King Charles V ordered the passage to be named Estrecho de Magallanes in honor of Magellan, who died during the voyage. Despite the objections of the Portuguese, who considered Magellan a traitor, the name has stuck and has been fixed on the geographical maps of the planet for 500 years.
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Magellan’s name is not only the strait between the oceans on Earth, but also meteorite craters on the Moon and Mars. The distant Magellanic Clouds, two galaxies neighboring the Milky Way, are named in his honor. They can only be seen from the Southern Hemisphere as nebulous specks among the stars. Magellan viewed them from the bridge of his caravel. This astronomical discovery is recorded in the Annals of Antonio Pigafetta.
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In 1989, the Magellan probe launched into space, traveling to Venus. Using radar, the spacecraft studied the planet’s surface, determined the composition of its atmosphere, and then transmitted the data back to Earth. In 2025 it is planned to open a grandiose structure associated with the name of the legendary navigator. The world’s largest optical telescope, the Giant Magellan Telescope, worth $1 billion, is under construction at the high-altitude Las Campanas Observatory in Chile’s Atacama Desert. This device is expected to surpass even the Hubble Space Telescope in terms of the “visual acuity” of its 25-meter mirror.”.Geography
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The Strait of Magellan is up to 560 kilometers long and the distance between the shores ranges from 3 to 32 kilometers. The eastern entrance to this natural sea channel faces the Atlantic, while in the west the strait reaches the vast Pacific Ocean at Cape Espiritu Santo.
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According to geologists, the strait was formed as a result of tectonic faulting of the South American continental plate, as well as deformation of the earth’s surface by glaciers. The through waterway opened up about 10,000 years ago. Surprisingly, the collective memory of the indigenous people of the region has preserved the legend of this event. The folklore of Tierra del Fuego island natives includes tales that their ancestors crossed the Strait of Magellan from Patagonia along land isthmuses that were eventually destroyed by the sea.
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The significant depths of the strait – up to 1,080 meters – allow the transit of the largest seagoing ships. The largest ship to transit the Strait of Magellan was the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan, with a displacement of 113,000 tons and a length of 332 meters. The aircraft carrier was on its way from the Atlantic to the Pacific in June 2004. The colossal size and deep draft prevented the ocean giant from passing through the Panama Canal and it was forced to round South America.
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The Strait of Magellan is in Chilean territory, only a narrow strip of coastline at its eastern mouth, marked by Cape Virkhenes, belongs to Argentina. For a long time, these Latin American countries clashed over control of the strategic strait, with disputes reaching the point of armed clashes. In 1984, the two governments signed a treaty that ended years of mutual claims. Nevertheless, there are still disputed territories in the region.
.Climate
The Strait of Magellan lies in the realm of a cold and foggy tundra subpolar climate. Summer daylight hours last up to 20 hours, while in winter the sun illuminates the region for less than 6 hours a day. The average annual air temperature is +6.7 °С. Summer (December-February) is cool, usually +10…+12 °С, but there were recorded and short-term anomalous temperature increases up to +26.1 °С.
.The influence of the ocean mitigates winter cold. Even in the middle of winter, thermometer readings fluctuate within +1…+3 °С. Sometimes, in the cold of June, the mercury drops to -11 ° C.
.The waters of the Strait of Magellan never freeze, in the water area has not been observed neither icebergs nor ice floes brought by the current from neighboring Antarctica. The water temperature fluctuates within +5…+7 °С. The locals do not think of swimming even on the hottest day. But in 1976, 21-year-old American athlete Lynn Cox for the first time in history swam across the Strait of Magellan, setting the world championship. In January 2014, the Guinness Book of World Records added another extreme achievement: the strait was crossed by the youngest athlete ever, 17-year-old Hunter Wright from California.
.Navigation through the Strait of Magellan is complicated by frequent fairway constrictions, underwater reefs, unpredictable currents and unexpected gusts of gale force winds coming down from the mountainous northwest coast. Rain can fall suddenly, even on a clear day. All vessels are necessarily accompanied by pilotage guides.
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Interesting places
Seafarers guiding ships through the Strait of Magellan are shown the way by numerous lighthouses built on the shores and islands. Curiously, until the early 20th century, communication between the keepers of these structures, separated by dozens of kilometers, were maintained by specially trained carrier pigeons.
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Lonely lighthouse towers, towering amidst untouched wild landscapes, especially attract the attention of tourists. Popular excursions across the bay by boat to the ancient lighthouse on Magdalena Island, which lies 37 kilometers northeast of the city of Punta Arenas. The white and red tower is 13 meters high and was erected in 1902. Every 10 seconds, a powerful lamp at the top emits a flash visible 10 nautical miles away. The caretaker’s house houses the visitor information center. Here you can warm up, drink tea, climb up to the tower’s observation balcony and then head out to meet the amusing islanders. Isla Magdalena Reserve has been created on the island and is home to more than 120,000 Magellanic penguins. The deserted shores are favored by sea lions, cormorants, and gulls.
A boat trip to Magdalena Island will cost $128.
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To the northeast of the Strait of Magellan, near the Chilean-Argentine border, lies the vast volcanic plateau of Pali-Aike, home to the national park of the same name. This 4,500 km² rocky valley is covered with cracked volcanic magma, covered in some places with mosses. Glacier-smoothed cones of ancient volcanoes, 30 to 120 meters high, are visible in the landscape. In the craters, extinguished hundreds of thousands of years ago, blue lakes where waterfowl have settled.
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The Rio Chico River flows through the valley, its floodplain is covered with green grass and bushes. The dark soil of the plateau clearly shows light-colored streaks created by wind over many centuries. Such weathering is extremely rare on Earth but is characteristic of Mars.
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In 1936, researchers discovered several archaeological locations here, traces of cave dwellings of prehistoric people. On the walls of the Cueva Fell cave and Pali Aike crater, ancient artists left rock paintings, petroglyphs. More than 500 artifacts have been found here. Among them are stone tools, sharp knives and spearheads made of volcanic glass – obsidian. Paleo-Indian remains and animal bones found allowed dating several cultural layers of the archaeological site. The first settlers came here about 11,000 years ago, and their descendants lived on the plateau for the next 8-9 millennia.
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All the iconic sights of Chile’s southern limits in the Magellan Strait region are included in the popular tourist itinerary Ruta del Fin del Mundo, which can be translated as “The End of the World”. Travelers wishing to get to the “end of the earth” are offered an extensive program of visits to national parks with penguin colonies, hikes in the Andes, off-road trips to the tundra pampa, sea tours with whale and seal watching.
.The itinerary begins in Punta Arenas. Its main square, Plaza de Armas, is adorned with a bronze monument to Magellan. Nearby stands the city’s cathedral. The central quarters of the compact city are built up with historical buildings, where several interesting museums are located.
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On the shores of the Strait of Magellan is the Nao Victoria Museum, which features full-scale replicas of historic sailing ships. Among them is the 27-meter Spanish caravel Victoria, on which Captain Magellan entered the strait for the first time in the history of navigation. Nearby stands the legendary British brig “Beagle”. On its board Charles Darwin traveled here. In the cabin of the brig scientist wrote the first chapters of the famous book, where he outlined his revolutionary theory of human evolution.
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The museum reconstructed a medieval shipbuilding workshop, installed touch screen displays with interactive programs, displays collections of ancient weapons, ship equipment and navigational instruments. The library contains thematic books, documents.
.From October to March, the Nao Victoria Museum is open from 09:00 to 19:00, from April to September – from 10:00 to 17:00. Tickets cost 4,000 Chilean pesos ($4.84).
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The Magallanes National Natural Park is located 7 km west of the city center. The park is open to the public daily. The entrance fee is 3,000 Chilean pesos ($3.66). The Serra de la Cruz hill offers panoramic views of the city and the Strait of Magellan, with the outline of Tierra del Fuego visible to the south.
.Magellan Strait Cruises
Cruise ships from Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, Valparaiso, São Paulo also call at the Strait of Magellan. Ships stop in Punta Arenas, from where passengers go on bus tours.
.Shopping
Punta Arenas has specialty stores selling gear for traveling to the shores of Antarctica, hiking in the foothills of the Andes, and animal watching. They sell warm waterproof clothing, sturdy army boots, tents, marine binoculars, and reliable flashlights.
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A good shopping complex Centro Artesanal is located near the seaport. There is a large selection of expedition food and canned goods, and a fish market in the mornings selling fresh catch. There are several cafes in the market where you can order dishes from the seafood you buy.
Local cuisine
https://trevaladvisor.com/” alt=””/>‘ View of Punta Arenas from the sea side
How to get there
Foreign tourists reach the shores of the Strait of Magellan via the airport of Santiago, the capital of Chile. This air harbor receives flights from many European cities. Among them are Madrid, Cordoba, Barcelona, Paris, London and Amsterdam. From Santiago Airport, regional airlines operate domestic flights to Punta Arenas. The flight will last 3 hours and 40 minutes, the ticket price is from $32. Punta Arenas airport is located 20 km north of the city. The hotel can be reached by bus or cab.
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