Cabo Vírgenes

Cabo Vírgenes marks the point where the Atlantic ends and the Strait of Magellan begins, the southeastern corner of the South American mainland, named by Magellan's fleet when they sighted it on the feast of Saint Ursula in 1520. A tall lighthouse operated by the navy stands on the headland, and the shore below holds one of the larger Magellanic penguin colonies on the continent, with well over a hundred thousand birds nesting in burrows through the summer among low scrub. A marked trail leads through the colony, and the ruins of a nineteenth-century gold-rush settlement lie nearby. Across the water the Chilean shore is visible, and shipwrecks lie scattered along the beaches.

What you actually see

• The penguin colony - a very large Magellanic colony with a trail through it.
• The lighthouse - the naval tower on the corner of the continent.
• The strait - the meeting of the Atlantic and the Strait of Magellan.
• The shipwrecks and ruins - remains on the shore and of the old gold settlement.

When to go

November to March, when penguins are ashore and roads are passable; the colony empties by autumn. Wind is extreme here, and cold even in midsummer. Rain turns the gravel roads to a difficult surface.

Honest expectations

The drive from Río Gallegos takes around two and a half hours each way on gravel with no services en route. There is nothing at the cape but a ranger post and a small café that opens seasonally. Weather is harsh and shelter minimal.

Nearby

Río Gallegos is the base city; the Chilean border crossing to Tierra del Fuego lies west.