Amy's Blog Post April 1st

Sorry we've been so out of touch but the days down here seem to fly by with loads of exploring and travel. Now that we're on the boat, lots of activities abound that come with life onboard. The boat is going well with the exception of one incident today that was a bit scary, but ended without incident. A few days ago we were in touch with one of the Volvo Ocean Race boats--the Chinese boat was dismasted west of Cape Horn and we offered to help if they needed assistance. As it turned out they were able to motor into the Beagle Channel and make their way to Ushuaia, which is on the Argentinian side of the Beagle. They radioed us to say that they were safe and sound but to be on the lookout for, and stay away from, three young Argentinians who had escaped from the jail in Ushuaia. They are sheep wranglers who made off with 300 head from a local estancia--this is a criminal offense down here.
Anyway we had weighed anchor from a beautiful spot early this morning and made our way west along the Beagle Channel past a blue glacier, accompanied by fur seals and penguins swimming beside the boat. Conditions were a bit cold with sleet and snow in 25+ knots of breeze. Given the inclement weather, we decided to anchor at the head of a little protected inlet on the south side of the Channel with impressive sheer cliffs of moss and vegetation. Hidden on a stony mound amongst trees was a miserable looking camp. We heard a motor start and soon three soggy Argentinians were headed toward us in a small motorboat. We wondered if they could be the escaped convicts??? They were very nervous and we couldn't tell if they had weapons hidden in their soggy jackets. They wanted provisions including chocolate, whiskey, and one of the dressed (meaning butchered, skinned but not cooked) lambs hanging at the stern of our boat (our source of meat for the trip). Luckily we have all these provisions and handed them over. Magnus (our captain) told them (in Spanish) that we are headed west, away from Ushuaia. They seemed reassured by this and returned to their camp with our food. We were sufficiently spooked that we're now changing our anchorage in an effort to put some distance between us and them. Snow squalls and sleet alternate with sunny skies as we forge ahead. Otherwise things are going smoothly and we are all having a fantastic time.
I'll try to email soon but wanted to say hello and send best wishes.


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