Tuesday 14 March 2023 – 362Km
Today I am heading to Cerro Sombrero an oil town on Tierra del Fuego, the weather forecast is for cold and heavy rain until early afternoon, not the best morning for a ride to the ferry that crosses over the Magellan Straits.
The ride to the first fuel station and a warm cafe seemed to go on for ages, it was cold and very wet, not a journey I will remember fondly. The fuel station was the usual inefficient approach to dispensing fuel I had become accustomed too. One person serving fuel, once he dispensed the fuel he gave a signal to the attendant in the cafe, she noted the price I needed to pay, this allowed the pump to be reset so he could serve the next customer, add in the fuel pump can dispense fuel from both sides and the delay can be frustratingly long.
Once in the cafe the sight that greeted me was very welcome, a log burner, yes that’s correct a log burner in a fuel station shop and they had hot cheese and ham empanadas, all is forgiven. The only problem with the roaring log burner was that I had to leave it and ride a bike in the cold and wet to get to the ferry.
As I approached the Magellan Straits the rain stopped, it got a little colder and alarmingly the Patagonian wind started to blow very hard, hard enough to make passing approaching lorries a challenge and a moment to dread.
One of my fellow riders had taken a detour to Puerto Arenas to have a new chain and sprockets fitted to his bike, I did’t envy the extra miles he had to covered in today’s weather. We all waited in the cafe at the ferry terminal for him to arrive, not the warm and welcoming shelter that greeted us at the last fuel station. This cafe was cold and the person I presume owned it was grumpy, moaning at me for putting my motorcycle helmet on the table, the only plus was it sheltered me from the gale force wind outside.
The ferry crossing at this point of the Magellan straits is 5 or 6Km, as we waited at the cafe two ferries made the crossing loaded with a variety of vehicles varying in size from lorries to motorcycles. As the ferries approach the concrete vehicle ramp they lowered their steel ramp and drove it up and onto the concrete landside ramp, the turbulence in water at the stern of the boat tells me they keep power onto the engines and this is what keep’s the ferry in place for loading and unloading. No ropes are used to tie the ferry up at the dock. When the boat left the port it headed up wind for 4 or 5 Km and then turned for a tail wind to head across the sea to the terminal at the other side of the straights. A combination of head wind and the greater distance made the crossing a lot longer than what I remember from the last time I was here.
Its our turn to get on the ferry, we wait while they load some HGV’s, I presume they load some lorries first so their weight settles the ferry and reduces the roll from the swell. I am waved forward, the strength of the wind makes it difficulty to take one foot off the floor to raise the side stand, one bike in the queue gets blown over as he tries to flick his stand up. Side stand up, I ride forward leaning the bike to counteract the wind blowing from my right, the boats steel ramp is wet, it looks slippery and the wind pushes me a long way left, I am fearful it will blow me off the edge of the ramp. I get to the top of the ramp and wait for the bike to move violent to the right as I get into the shelter of the boat. Made it on board with no mishaps, phew.
Enclosed on the car deck and standing with the bike to stop it falling over all I can see is the sky and clouds moving violently as the ferry pitches and rolls. I know that we are reaching Tierra del Fuego when the ramp starts to lower. The same procedure follows as the power of the ferries engines push the boat onto the shoreside ramp. My next challenge is to remind myself that the wind is blowing from my right and I need to prepare myself for the bike moving violently left as I leave the shelter of the boat. Have I left enough room, I have, just, and avoid falling of the edge of the ramp.
Riding the 40Km to Cerro Sombrero in the wind was difficult, particularly lorries passing me coming from the opposite direction, duck down behind the screen, grip the tank with my knees and ride through the blast of air as the lorry passes.
Cerro Sombrero is an oil town with one hotel and a restaurant next to it. In the town there are houses, a school, a cinema and as far as I can see one very small shop, the size a village store in a UK bygone age. Its very isolated and doesn’t look like the ideal place to bring up a family.
The hotel and restaurant are aimed at oil workers, I have worked away from home a lot and this is the kind of hotel and restaurant that ticks the right boxes, clean, comfortable bed, good shower and good wholesome food in adequate quantities to fuel a working person.
