Here's a report from Dick and Gail Barnes, aboard Ice Dancer II, a Nordhavn 57, that was misplaced when it was first received. Ice Dancer is the second U.S. trawler yacht to visit Cape Horn this year. Copy and paste the co-ordinates provided into <http://maps.google.com> to follow their progress. Sunday 2/18/07 54 48.7S 68 18.1W We are anchored at Ushuaia, Argentina and plan to stay here until at least Tuesday. Tomorrow, we will arrange fueling, maybe for early Tuesday morning. We bought most of our galley provisions on Saturday. It has been quite windy, making trips to the yacht club's dinghy dock a little wet. The weather map shows a passing front associated with a low to the south. Perhaps things will improve. Each morning we see new dustings of snow on the nearby mountains. In Alaska, that's called termination dust, signaling the coming end of the construction season. There are many cruising sailboats in the area, from all over the world. New Zealand seems to have the most, followed by France, Belgium, Germany, Sweden and Great Britain. Further north, most of the cruisers were Chileans. The super yacht Octopus joined us this morning, as the other non-sailboat cruiser anchored here. It has two helicopters and a substantial support boat among its equipment. It is the sister ship of Tatoosh, which we saw last year in the Tuomotus Islands and at Moorea, French Polynesia. Both are owned by Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft. Wednesday 2/14/07 55 59.6S 067 17.0W Ice Dancer II rounded Cape Horn at 8:50 this morning. We rebelled against the typical photos taken with salty, foul-weather gear. Instead we walked from our toasty wheelhouse to the bow for photos, wearing Hawaiian shirts and shorts. Idling downwind in the morning sunshine, it was quite pleasant. Yesterday afternoon, we anchored in 35 to 40 knot winds at Caleta Martial, in Islas Wollaston (55 49.3S 067 17.6W). Sailboats from Sweeden and Argentina joined us in the anchorage, our first sharing with cruisers in a remote cove, since Islas Galapagos. We took advantage of early morning, mild conditions and made our run to Cape Horn, doubling its south side. The Armada kept close track of us all the way from Puerto Williams, giving us good service for fees charged. Today, we are heading for Caleta Lennox (55 17.8S 066 50.3W). Tuesday 2/13/07 55 39.4S 067 06.6W Yesterday, we left Puerto Navarino with the idea of heading on around Isla Navarino, and later out to the Cape. The Armada contingent at Puerto Williams had another idea for us. All traffic heading in or out of the area is required to stop and get a new Zarpe, in each direction. Our plan was to bypass them, go to the Cape and then stop on the way back at Puerto Williams to check out of the country, to Ushuaia, Argentina. When we return from the Cape, we will have to anchor, dinghy to shore and get another Zarpe before going to Argentina. Before we can head north, we must backtrack from Ushuaia to Puerto Williams to check back into Chile, about 58 miles out of the way. On the positive side, we were able to buy fresh fruit, vegetables and a few needed groceries. Last night's anchorage was at Puerto Toro (55 04.9S 067 04.4W); another picturesque and quiet spot, with a few crab-fishing boats. Today, we are crossing to Islas Wollaston and plan to anchor at Caleta Martial (55 49.3S 67 17.7W). Monday 2/12/07 54 55.7S 068 20.4W Caleta Lewaia, Canal Beagle, Cerca de Puerto Navarino The front passed, as they do. Today turned out to be spectacular. We passed tidal glacier after another, crashing off the close-by mountains and into the our canals. We requested and were granted permission to anchor in an unauthorized anchorage (boy are they particular, here), just across from the city of Ushuaia. Under sunny skies, we roasted hot dogs, finally. There was lots of driftwood and it was dry, unlike the wood we found on the shores just north of here. This is Canal Beagle, with Argentina on one side, Tierra del Fuego, and Chile on the other, on Isla Navarino. We just want to get by, thank you. So, I talked to the Armada guys in Spanish, they try to respond in English, and I talk back in Spanish. It is really funny. It is like we are all practicing. Tomorrow, we will zoom past Puerto Williams, the seat of Armada power on the Chilean side, and head for Puerto Toro, the southern-most settlement in the world. From there, we will jump to the offshore islands and then for Cape Horn. If the weather doesn't cooperate, we will sit. Tonight's roast and bonfire were grand, and we are watching the lights of Ushuaia, right now. This whole deal is beyond delight. Saturday 2/10/07 Caleta Huajra, Canal Ballenero 54 53.9W 070 29.2W The southern end of Chile is having a little weather, right now. There is a parade of low-pressure systems trotting by. We anchored last night in a small cove, dropped anchor and tied two stern lines ashore. It was just as well, there is a nasty front passing, today, and we have had sustained winds of 30 knots and gusts of 40. With this system, you don't swing at all, but it takes about a half hour to rig it up and take it down. Today, we are hanging out in the cove and Gail is getting some chores done, while we wait for the winds to die down. It has been raining quite a bit, here at the very south. We will be in Canal Beagle, tomorrow, which is the last one down here. It must be interesting trying to find spots where we report down to a tenth of a mile or 600 feet. My electronic Nobeltec charts for this region are off by 1.5 nm to the south and .6 nm to the east. All of the land masses are screwed up, but further north they are mixed, with some right on and others terrible. So, here I am running back and forth looking at small scale (poor detail) paper charts, drawings in guide books, the electronic version and what the radar shows is really going on. In big canals it doesn't matter, but some areas are choked with pinnacles and ridges. I have the scanning sonar set at 400 feet out and 10 degrees down or about 60 feet. I just leave it on. It has saved our bacon more than once. Wednesday 2/7/07 53 11.4S 073 20.1W Two hours after pulling anchor at Caleta Burgoyne this morning (52 37.6S 073 38.9W), we turned east from Canal Smyth into the historic Strait of Magellan. The S-shaped, 310-mile waterway links the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Four months after Fernao de Magallanes discovered the new route in 1520, he was killed by an Indian in the Philippines, who took offence to his zeal for Christianizing the population. We passed three large ships by noon, that were using this short cut that avoids rounding Cape Horn. We will turn south from the Strait after 90 miles, at Canal Acwalisnan (53 55S 071 37W), and head toward Canal Beagle. South polar fronts pass here every two to three days. High winds, clouds and rain are the norm, not the exception. There are no swells to contend with, except when near ocean entrances and long fetches. Our two cruising guides have detailed information on anchorages. We have adopted the technique of anchoring in a protected spot, and then taking two heavy, stern lines to tie ashore. It is very stable and easy to accomplish, with no swell-induced, shore break. We keep our smaller Zodiac on the swim step, where it is quick to launch and recover. Sunday night, we anchored in a tiny pocket behind an island, named Bahia Hugh (50 24.1S 074 45.9W). Monday's anchorage was another small basin, maybe 200 feet in diameter, with a very narrow and shallow entrance. Without the cruising guides and scanning sonar, we would not attempt entry. Both of these, and last night's Caleta Burgoyne showed us landscapes that looked like professional gardeners had planted and trimmed. Among the mix were Bonsai-shaped trees, colorful, wild fuchsias, holly-like bushes, plants with trumpet-shaped orange flowers, and beautiful covering plants. What a nice surprise. On Tuesday afternoon, we experienced sunshine with blue skies, rain, hail and gale-force winds. The highest peaks have fresh snow, along with last winter's accumulation and glaciers. Many hillsides are barren with only glacial-polished rock showing. It is all very interesting. Sunday 2/4/07 49 43.3S 074 21.9W Friday night was spent in Caleta Vittorio (49 06.9S 074 24.7W), a completely sheltered cove, albeit a little deeper than preferred, at 65 feet. Saturday morning, we planned our departure to make slack tide at Angostura Inglesa, a fairly narrow and twisting route that can have eight knot current at mid tide. To prevent collisions, boats traversing the section are required to radio Puerto Eden when entering and again midway through. We didn't see another boat in a day and a half. By 11 a.m., we were at Puerto Eden (59 06.9S 074 24.7W), a beautiful spot where we spent the day. Through early afternoon, the weather was blustery, with intermittent sunshine and rain squalls. Then it turned into a lovely day. We obtained a new Zarpe from the Armada. Afterward, we hiked hillsides and the boardwalks of the village. Approximately 100 people live there, not including the Army and Navy contingents. Over half are Indians, from the region and further north. Gathering and smoking oysters exported to Puerto Montt is the primary source of cash. The government subsidizes the outpost to keep a presence in this remote area, including a small hydroelectric facility to provide power. Today, we are heading south through the channels. Hillsides look much like Southeast Alaska, with steep faces and snow and glaciers topping many. We are 50 miles inland from the sea. As a result, marine and avian life is less than seen on the coast. We have wind waves, but no swell. Friday 2/2/07 48 04.4S 074 38.1W Wednesday night we shared a large anchorage with three fishing boats, in the rain at Caleta Cliff. The foggy entrance was challenging with Nobeltec's electronic charts off by 1.5 nautical miles. The charts vary in accuracy depending on whether recent hydrology has occurred and whether they cover channels used by large ships. Paper charts, radar and scanning sonar gave us a safe route into the cove. Yesterday, we crossed the 100 nm segment from Caleta Cliff to Canal Messier that includes the Golfo de Penas. Seas were reasonable for our crossing of this notorious gulf, and we were treated with sightings of a pod of orcas, and our first sperm and southern right whales. We checked in with the lighthouse at Faro San Pedro, at the mouth of Canal Messier and anchored at Caleta Ideal (47 45.5S 74 53.5w). The lighthouse has an AIS transpoder, so the Armada personnel knew our boat information. Our stop tonight will be just short of Angostura Inglesa, a section of tidal rapids. Saturday, we will time our crossing for slack water and stop at the village of Puerto Eden around noon. Wednesday 1/31/07 45 50.5S 075 06.6W The Armada de Chile gave us personal attention yesterday, as we cruised through Canal Chcabuco. Two navy ships hailed us within an hour; one that approached from behind, then dropped off, and another that passed from ahead. They wanted to know all about us, where we were coming from and our next port. These were not your U.S. Homeland Security boats, but ships in the destroyer to cruiser size. Well, they do have to keep the rascals from Peru and Argentina from invading, perhaps. Last night, we anchored in a completely sheltered cove called Caleta Mariuccia (45 48.1S 74 23.2W). Gail wanted to hike, so we took our smaller Zodiac to shore. Two problems slowed us down. The rain forest is very dense and there are no medium to large animals trotting around to make trails, as they do in Alaska. The good news is there was nothing trotting around to eat us, although Pumas reportedly exist in small numbers. The shore trip was worthwhile, for the chance to see new trees and shrubs, up close. Also, we burned our paper trash on rocks in the inter-tidal zone. This morning, we left protection of the interior canals and are working our way around a headland, called Skyring Peninsula. Large swells produced by storms further south are here, but winds seem to be cooperating at about 15 kts. NW. Tonight, we will probably anchor at Caleta Cliff (46 26.9S 75 18.3W). From Caleta Cliff, we should be able to cross the Gulfo de Penas in a day, and be back to inside waters by Thursday night. Contact with Winlink e-mail servers is limited to about three or four hours each day, fewer (or none like last night) if we are anchored near mountains. Signal strength and contact periods drop as we travel south. It will be interesting to see how it holds up as we traverse Patagonia. ###