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8 Night Best of Chilean Patagonia Fjords Glaciers and Torres del Paine Cruise from Puerto Natales

Ship: National Geographic Resolution

Cruise Line: Lindblad Expeditions

Sailed: Sunday, Mar 17, 2024 from Puerto Natales, Chile

Ended: Monday, Mar 25, 2024

The itinerary information below reflects the original day-by-day port of call schedule for the Sunday, Mar 17, 2024 departure of the National Geographic Resolution. If Lindblad Expeditions modified this itinerary for weather or operational reasons after departing , the modified schedule would not be reflected here.

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Itinerary

Day by Day Summary and Map

Day 1 - Sunday - Mar 17, 2024

Puerto Natales, Chile

Kirke Passage

We have a final morning to explore Torres del Paine. We then drive to Puerto Natales, where we embark our ship. Be on deck to look for condors and other wildlife on our way out of Puerto Natales as our captain and local pilots guide us through the Kirke or White Narrows, accessible only to small ships like National Geographic Explorer or National Geographic Resolution-always a challenge to navigate because of the powerful currents that flow through the pinch point.

Day 2 - Monday - Mar 18, 2024

Cruising the Chilean Fjords, Chile

Today and during the following days you'll be treated to the spectacular features of an active glaciated landscape with hanging valleys and tributary glaciers. This region was navigated by Ferdinand Magellan's expedition, and it took most of November 1520 for his ships to find a way through the channels that lie between the continental mainland and Tierra del Fuego to the south. We'll look to make a first stop in the extensive maze of channels and islands of the Chilean fjords, where we may go out by Zodiac and kayak.

Day 3 - Tuesday - Mar 19, 2024

Cruising the Chilean Fjords, Chile

Day 4 - Wednesday - Mar 20, 2024

Karukinka, Argentina

Jackson Bay, Chile

Tierra del Fuego is one of Patagonia's crown jewels. We visit its newest and largest protected area: Karukinka Natural Park. Established in 2004 through a gift from Goldman Sachs, Karukinka is one of the largest donations ever made for conservation. We are thrilled to have special permission from the Wildlife Conservation Society to visit this private reserve, which spans 1,160 square miles and harbors the endangered culpeo fox, Andean condors, albatrosses, grebes, petrels, fulmars, shearwaters, and many other kinds of wildlife. We may explore Jackson Bay, backed by a skyline of rugged mountains, and look for wildlife including black-browed albatrosses, which nest on one of the nearby small islands. We may walk a trail to a lovely waterfall and look for elephant seals resting on not only the beach but also high in the grass meadows and even in the small river draining the valley inland.

Day 5 - Thursday - Mar 21, 2024

Cruising the Chilean Fjords, Chile

This southernmost corner of the South American continent is also home to Cape Horn, the island at the convergence of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, famously difficult waters that, throughout the centuries, has been the graveyard of many ships from the time before the Panama Canal. Sail the Beagle Channel and look to hike and kayak one of the wild areas in this region of beech forests, mountains, and rivers. We take Zodiacs out to explore these protected waters and rugged shores, keeping watch for the Andean condors, albatrosses, grebes, petrels, fulmars, shearwaters, and many other birds that inhabit this otherworldly realm. We experience more stunning wilderness as we explore the fjords and glaciers of the region by Zodiac, kayak, and on foot.

Day 6 - Friday - Mar 22, 2024

Cruising the Chilean Fjords, Chile

Day 7 - Saturday - Mar 23, 2024

Isla de los Estados, Argentina

We have been given special permission to visit extraordinary Staten Island, and our ship is one of the only expedition ships ever allowed here. It is a place of superlatives, barely touched in recent decades and visited primarily by a few scientists and the staff of the tiny naval observatory. The island was named by Dutch explorers in 1615. Its mountainous, forested landscapes and rugged fjords are beautiful, and there is much to discover here. Our exact schedule remains flexible to take best advantage of conditions. We search for southern rockhopper and Magellanic penguins, other waterbirds, fur seals, and sea lions. We also look for otters on our landings ashore, and we see the replica of the 1884 San Juan de Salvamento "lighthouse at the end of the world", which inspired Jules Verne's novel by the same name. There are chances to walk in the southern beech forests. These days are bound to stand out as a unique chance to explore a very remote place.

Day 8 - Sunday - Mar 24, 2024

Isla de los Estados, Argentina

Day 9 - Monday - Mar 25, 2024

Ushuaia, Argentina

Disembark in Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world. Take a charter flight to Santiago and connect to your overnight flight home. Breakfast and lunch are served on Day 15.