We returned to South America on the 11 of December, after a fine but partly windy week on Falkland Islands. The destination was Ushuaia far down south in Argentina. We got a relatively decent weather report with not to strong winds, mostly in a favourably direction. We sailed along the southeast coast of the Falklands, so when the wind increased in an unfavourably direction and the sea state became very ruff, we decided to spend the first night anchored. Two hours after that decision we could anchor in a bay full of kelp. We had sort of a pilot describing the bay, telling us to go around some stones and kelp to the bottom of the bay and let the anchor there. Surprisingly it was still correct and we spent a quiet night there, waiting for the wind to change according to the forecast. We started early next morning, not to be late down at Staten Island, but the kelp took some time to get rid of.  The day was bright and clear but almost without wind. We motored to about six o'clock, when the wind came and we got almost two hole days of fine wind down to Strecho La Maire, the sound between Staten Island and Tierra de Fuego. This sound is very nasty in wrong conditions. It's important to match wind and current directions. They should never be against each other, thus creating races and overfalls if the moon is in bad position and the wind is strong. Our plan was to go with the current, which is supposed to flow with 2-8 kn depending on the moon, and have the wind from the northern sector. That plan was very good, but we where there more than six hours before the change to the south current. So much for that plan! Waiting six hours? No way, the wind was relatively weak from the south and the tide was at nip, so we motored the 10nm through the sound. The current against us was never more than two kn. So the famous sound had one of it's best days. 
We continued by motor in light westerly wind around Tierra de Fuego and up the Beagle Channel having Chile to port and Argentina to starboard. We knew that it was not allowed to navigate the Chilean Channels at night, so we where a little concerned whether we were allowed to travel in this borderland at night. There where two Chilean coastguard ships in the dark along the route, but none called us on the VHF, so we concluded that it was allowed to approach port of entry from the open sea at all time. We passed Puerto Williams in the early morning hours, still nobody calling us, and reached Ushuaia around noon, just over three days after we left our anchorage on the Falkland Islands.

During the sailing between Puerto Williams and Ushuaia we heard several of hour previous yacht friends talking on VHF, Yaghan and Cabo de Hornos was already in Ushuaia, Tamara and Six Pack hade anchored for the night in the Beagle and we passed them during the night. The radio traffic was going on between the authorities (Puerto Williams, Chile and Ushuaia, Argentina) and yacht and between yachts. Tamara told Sadko (a yacht in Ushuaia from Bristol) that Lindisfarne should arrive in Ushuaia by noon according to a mail they got from Lindisfarne the other day but they didn't know where we actually where. We broke in and told Tamara that the sails they could se some miles ahead of them belongs to Lindisfarne, and that we where arriving Ushuaia at noon. This of course made some amusements to everybody listening, especially since we hade been so exact with our ETA in our mail to Tamara. 

Checking in to Argentina was a little troublesome for the authorities. We had checked out from Mar del Plata, but coming from Falklands, which they argue is Argentina (Malvinas) made it a bit difficult. We played innocent and didn't understand the problem. Finally they stamped the passports without further comments. The good thing with this was that they didn't want us to go to the customs, probably because that had been the same as they had accepted that we came from abroad!        

Here in Ushuaia we had many reunion with friends from earlier harbours. Yaghan and Cabo de Hornos was already here and during the afternoon came Sol from Denmark, Tamara from US, the Aussies in Six Pack and Empire from Norway. Big Scandinavian get together  in the cockpit of Empire and after that dinner together on the town which didn't end until the next morning at a bar! At  least for some of the participants.
Later came Just do It from Bremen and the Swedish yachts Sawubona and Wild Rose.  We where now four Swedish yachts in Ushuaia and Yaghan  and Northern Light was in Puerto Williams. This must be some sort of a record!

Ushuaia is a very cosy little town where you can by almost everything except for yacht equipments. The surroundings looks like Lofoten in Norway, with more snow and an Alp-village!
Ushuaia is more or less a Winter sport resort, but hiking, bicycling, tours in the archipelago and around the famous Horn are popularly activities in the Summer season, so it's definitely a living community all year round.     

Yaghan left for the Antarctic before Christmas, but weren't ready stocking up with supplies, gas, diesel and a lot of food, so we decided to spend the Christmas together with the Scandinavians in Ushuaia and wait for the next weather window for the Drake Passage.
As you now can see, we have finally decided to visit Antarctica together with Lindisfarne.
Our only big problem is the amount of diesel that we think we have to carry. OK we are a sailing yacht, but because we have to do Drake Passage when it is not that windy, we will probably have to less wind part of the way. This means motoring a lot, not to be exposed to the next low-pressure and it's strong winds. Added to that there is a lot of motoring down in Antarctica, not to forget the cold climate, the stow needs 10l a day! Our fixed tanks carries 350l and we have jerry cans for 140 added to that.  This can keep up with 10 days in the cold and motoring 700nm. That has to be enough, but there is a great distant to cover, only on way Puerto Williams to Melchior Islands is nearly 600 nm.
We did some buying of extra warm clothes, but not many, we are after all from Scandinavian and started this trip by going north of the Polar circle without getting cold!   

After Christmas and some more social events together with Kirsten and Kim on s/y Sol, we hurried out for Puerto Williams to check in to Chile and get allowance to sail to Antarctica. To shorten the overseas passage you want to be able to stay overnight in the archipelago close to the Horn and the same procedure on the way back, and that's means that you have to bee checked in to Chile.

Annika & Björn
S/Y Lindisfarne

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