Just back in BA from Ushuaia after travelling down Ruta 40 from Villa la Angostura.

I loved Ushuaia. We rode in over the Garibaldi pass just on sunset. There was plenty of snow reflecting the sunset colours - this was stunning. A highlight of the trip. Be careful though, the road is the best sealed scratching road that we rode and it has claimed two bikers in the fortnight prior to us being there. Too temping to go too fast.

The town is quite eclectic, bit touristy but nothing horrible like Bariloche at one extreme or Perito Moreno at the other. The setting with snow covered mountains is magic. Took a trip out on the original tourist boat (the Barracuda - not the mega cats packed with tourists) into Beagle channel - definitely worthwhile.

In the scheme of things, the balance of the gravel and sealed roads was better than the average for our trip - the gravel is much better than most of that in Ruta 40. Not mentioned by the others are the multiple border crossings needed - these are slow.

I´d say, go!

Cheers

Hi All,

although I understand the point skipping TDF I definitely do not agree. We have done Quito - Ushuaia - BSAS in 2005/2006 and have to say that the Ruta40 /TDF portion was one of the highlights of our trip. For us being Central Europeans the shere remoteness and emptiness of this landscape was just overwhelming. less then 1 inhabitant per km square - go figure...

Being in Ushuaia over christmas and new year's eve, congregate with like-minded souls on the southernmost campsite of the world at appriximately the midddle of our trip added siginificance to the matter. True, Ushuaia itself is nothing to write home about, but it was the circumstances that made the stay worth while...Still there is enough to do, you could hop on an antarctic cruise, explore the surroundings, looking for shipwrecks, drive down to the end of the southernmost road (which is not Ruta 3 with the famous signpost by the way but the road passing estancia harberton) and just recharge your batteries... 2 weeks there passed like no time for us

We found the R40 not too difficult, took it slowly, camping besides the road and enjoying that south patagonian sundown skies every evening.

You could also avoid backtracking and the Ruta 3 altogether by taking the Puerto Montt - Puerto Natales Navimag ferry (what we did). So you'd go Ruta 40 /Carretera Austral one way, take in the sights like Moreno glacier (Beautiful camping Lago Roca, 70 km outside El Calafate direction Glacier), Cueva de los manos, Fitz Roy and Torres del Paine national park) and relax 2 days on the ferry doing nothing the other way.

Also you dont need to backtrack the Rio Grande / Bahia inutil / Puerto Natales portion, there is another border crossing called "paso de los libres", mandatory river crossing included, in the middle of the TDF peninsula. The road there starts at the "estancia menendez" junction just south of Rio Grande...

Oh man, only from writing about it I start longing to go again...

Have a safe trip

Martin and Silvia

zwei auf reise: neun monate durch südamerika

I felt that the Tierra del Fuego part was magic. Some of my best photos were there. It's only an island, but it's a big island, with prairie-like expanses, then mountains, and finally, Ushuaia, sitting like in a fairy tale right on the sea with snow-covered mountains rising up around it. And then I took a quiet sail on the "If," into the Beagle Channel. We sailed to "H" island, and there, contemplated the original Tierra del Fuego people- people now extinct.

On your way, you're riding along, and suddenly the road is HUGE. Like ten times wider than it needs to be. And it's flat. And you wonder... why? And then you realize you're on a runway. I'd like to see an airliner land there.

If I do South America again, I'll want to spend at least a few weeks exploring Tierra del Fuego.

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This is one interesting thread. About a dozen years ago, my wife and I rode our Elefant down 40, and up the coastal roads, eventually to Barilochi. We have ridden all over the world, and my personal favorite is Ruta 40 and everything along its path, including the WINDS. Though I live in the mountains of No. Arizona, USA, I relish the high deserts. Patagonia is a not to miss experience, and we plan to head down there again soon. The gravel is part of that experience, reaching TDF was a reward.
Allen.