PATAGONIA, Day 10, the Last Day

Patagonia: Day 10, March 5

In which we drive from the Pacific to the Atlantic, discover a coal mine, eat sandwiches on a wall in Esperanza and have a farewell fly past over Magellan Straits and Beagle Channel

From Ultima Esperanza to our ultimate day. We have to drive from the Pacific to the Atlantic, partly on the notorious unsealed Ruta 40, to catch a evening flight to BA from Rio Gallegos.

Another picnic lunch is proposed so V and V spend some time hunting for bread and then, more importantly, tomatoes in Rio Turbo, just over the Argentine border. Exiting this mining town John spots an old stream engine, Lots of photos. Then shortly afterwards as we drive by slag heaps he spots a museum for coal railway rolling stock, plus. This is irresistible.

An old steam lorry, yes, a lorry driven by a coal-fired steam engine, absorbs a lot of our wonderment. John ponders what happened to the 50 of the 100 English trucks paid for but not delivered. I wonder why this isn't the solution to the internal combustion engine, Seems not. You need a driver and a stoker and sometimes the amount of coal used is more costly than the value of the coal you are delivering.

Then I spot a coal mine museum. Not an everyday event you have to admit! Yellow hard hats on heads and we move into the mine led by the daughter of a coal-miner who acts as our guide. I like the picture of the yellow canary which someone has painted on the entrance door, the guide ignores it, so I tell V&V that canary was used to warn the miners if they were running out of air. If the bird does a Monthy Python parrot impersonation they know its time to leave the shaft.

As the Spanish guide drones on I notice a couple of oil paintings inside the shaft, they depict miners at the coal face. This is because we saw the Pitmen (of Yorkshire) Painters play at the National Theatre just before we left for Argentina. How do you say deja vu in Spanish?!

Finally on our way again we stop half way between the Pacific and Atlantic at Esperanza (Hope), a place so small they couldn't even afford the one horse. Eat delicious sandwiches sitting on a wall. The bread rolls from Rio Turbo are the freshest and tastiest we have had in Argentina.

Rio Gallegos: drop V&V at airport, I go with J to drop off car at ACA (Automobile Club of Argentina) in town. The incredibly dusty but totally trusty Renault is driven onto the car transporter to be taken back to BA.

Flight back first heads south to Ushuaia before turning and flying north to BA. Frustrating five hours on paper turns out to be brilliant farewell fly past of the land we have just travelled for the past 10 days. Flying over the Straits of Magellan and then the Beagle Channel is just fabulous.

Land in BA just after midnight and remember that in Punta Arenas I rubbed the toe of the Indian on the plinth of the Magellan statue. This is meant to ensure you will return....

THE END?