Sort-of-unrelated aside: Patagonia is amazing. The Chilean bit slightly more so than the Argentinian side IMHO, but in any case: you'll want to go there sooner rather than later (those icebergs don't last forever, you know...).
The W trek is particularly good, despite the hotels-that-have-a-20-year-concession-and-therefore-don't-have-to-care you'll encounter along the way. Get a local guide, they're affordable and fun.
I'm a map geek and I often stare at that super weird border right through Tierra del Fuego, cutting it in half in a nonsensical way, and clearly drawn in some faraway place without much regard for practical life down there. Does that border affect local life? Is it a hard border, or is it one of those borders that exists mostly on paper but locals act as if it isn't really there? Do people on either side "feel" Argentinian or Chilean, or do they mostly feel like "Tierra del Fuego" locals (I can't help notice that your comment does not include which side you live on)?
No, no one lives near there. Tierra del Fuego has a low population to start with, and that border is in the middle of the countryside. I don't how the estancias nearby treat that border.
But the only main road is at the top of that border, and that's a hard border. You have to cross that border to go from the island to mainland Argentina, across Chile. It's a pain everytime, and it affects life very much.
I live on Argentina side. People on each side feel Argentinian or Chilean, they talk a different accent as soon as you cross the border.
yes, when I was a kid, and they were very old. From the Ona tribe. But they dressed and acted like normal old people who lived a countryside childhood. No bow and arrows.
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[ 2.7 ms ] story [ 51.3 ms ] threadThe W trek is particularly good, despite the hotels-that-have-a-20-year-concession-and-therefore-don't-have-to-care you'll encounter along the way. Get a local guide, they're affordable and fun.
But the only main road is at the top of that border, and that's a hard border. You have to cross that border to go from the island to mainland Argentina, across Chile. It's a pain everytime, and it affects life very much.
I live on Argentina side. People on each side feel Argentinian or Chilean, they talk a different accent as soon as you cross the border.