Edge of the World

Tierra del Fuego National Park in Argentina is a maritime forest straddling the Beagle Channel linking the southern Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It is home to wild horses, a diversity of birds and a few shy mammals such as the Andean fox.

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The park lies to the west of Ushuaia, a tourist resort town that serves as a launching point for many Antarctic cruise ships. It's like a mini Gatlinburg with good restaurants and shops.

The mountains of Patagonia stretch nearly to the ocean in Tierra del Fuego.

The flag of Argentina flies from the stern of a boat on the Beagle Channel.

The chimango caracara is a ground-hunting bird of prey that isn't shy about asking people for handouts at popular picnic sites. Since the close bird is the cool bird for me, this was one very cool bird. I got to follow it through this verdant maritime forest on a coastal trail as it hunted for insects in the leaf litter.

Caracaras are sometimes called Johnny rooks. These clever birds seem to know when food is in the offing.

A chimango caracara searches the maritime forest high and low for hunting opportunities.

Les Eclaireurs Light dates back to 1920. It marks a series of rocky islands in the channel.

The imperial shag nests in colonies on islands in the Beagle Channel.

South American sea lions bask on an island outcrop in the Beagle Channel. I also saw a few of them hanging out on a wharf in Stanley in the Falkland Islands.

The blackish cinclodes is endemic to the southern tip of South America. This one found our boat and posed for me.

An upland goose perches on a cliff over the inlet leading to the Pacific Ocean. 

The patterns on an upland goose is unreal.

The zebra patterns on upland geese are wild.

An upland goose browses a meadow.

A thorn-tailed rayadito picks through the tree canopy. These pretty little birds were common as sparrows.

A female Magellanic woodpecker looks for lunch. I briefly saw the colorful male, too, but wasn't quick enough to capture a photo.

Wild horses roam the park and the maritime woods.

A mare finally has enough of being harassed by one of the band stallions. She bolts around the meadow at top speed, making her would-be suitor eat her dust.

The mare made two laps around the meadow, galloping at full speed with her black mane and tail blowing in the wind. Wild, free and beautiful. Simply amazing.

A fire-eyed diucon was a cooperative photo subject.