Active volcanoes guard the coastal environment of Chilean Patagonia from the South American continent. The only way to get there is onboard the Atmosphere – the ship cruising along the Patagonian fjords.
A universal means of travel
Each Saturday the Atmosphere with 26 tourists aboard sails from the town of Puerto Mont for a week-long 750 km cruise along the Patagonian coast, from Puerto Mont Bay to the Taitao Peninsula. The trip is called Nomads of the Seas. The ship carries a Bell 407 helicopter, an ocean-going Zodiac speedboat and 6 motor launches - all at the service of the passengers.
There's no fixed programme. The tourists decide what they want to do at the moment depending on the weather, the actual situation and their preferences. If there are whales on the horizon, the crew lowers the Zodiac which flies over the waves at 160 km/h to bring the passengers as close to the giant animal as possible. If people wish to have a boat trip across a mountain lake, the helicopter makes a couple of flights to deliver boats and crew to the top of the volcano where they set everything up, and then brings over the guests giving them an amazingly spectacular air ride around the mountaintops en route.
A trip along a mountainous river is no less exciting: high-tech latest-generation boats go up the rapids bringing the tourists into picturesque lagoons. Only the aficionados of extreme sports would be tempted to swim in the ice-cold water, but everyone would enjoy a walk in the woods admiring the unique nature. And if nobody feels adventurous enough to swim but some still crave for an adrenaline doze, the crew would arrange a rafting trip back down the river.
Note that the crew is big enough to have the guests engage in various activities at the same time: while one group goes to watch the whales the other may fly to the mountains and the third goes hiking around a sea lion colony.
Dreaming about peace and quiet
The ship sails only at night: during the day it stops in harbours so the tourists can go ashore. Accordingly, the seasickness problem is practically nonexistent: after a day full of adventures sound sleep is guaranteed.
There are 13 cabins in the ship: 10 de luxe with two single or one double bed (as the occupants request) and 3 premium class. The latter are a bit more spacious and comfortable. Keeping in mind that the ship itself is not particularly large (45.7 m long and 10 m wide), the cabins don't have any special frills: minimalistic design and as efficient use of every available square inch as possible.
Despite the extreme nature of the trip though, the cabins are as clean and comfortable as five-star hotel rooms: daily cleaning, fresh bed linen every day, snow-white towels and luxurious terrycloth bathrobes.
Massage, thalassotherapy and aromatic baths are available in the SPA cabinet at all times, to help you relax and take a rest.
Passengers' lounge
In the evening the ship Atmosphere stuffed to the brim with all sorts of equipment for extreme adventures, turns into a brilliantly lit restaurant. Until recently the chef worked for the former Chilean president. Nowadays, to fully implement his abilities and introduce foreign guests to Chilean cuisine, he organises special thematic evenings: national cuisine, seafood dinners etc.
Waiters set the tables with full sets of china and cutlery, and offer classes on how to use them: special glass for every kind of beverage, special fork, knife or pincers for each type of sea creature. And since the atmosphere onboard the ship is very relaxed and informal (no dress code or fixed schedule), this "training" is a lot of fun.
By the way, the picnic meals are set just as grandly: starched napkins, cutlery and china and amazingly delicious fish and meat cooked on the grill right there, in the mountains or on the shore. Waiters and cooks who come over along with the tourists find particularly beautiful locations: on the edge of a precipice or at the foot of a glacier. It takes your breath away and spares the need to go anywhere trying to find a good place to take pictures from.
Every night the dinner is accompanied by a large-screen slide-show of the day's events. During the day the courteous staff take pictures of the guests, and in the evening show them as a film, accompanied by music. Thus people can see what other groups were doing, envy them, remember the high points of the day and laugh at themselves.
Later at night the guests do as they please: some like to dance and there's every kind of music available, others play cards or admire the scenery while fishing from the deck and listening to a very human-like snorting of a seal swimming around - just like a tired swimmer.
Expert opinion
Says Natalia Minakova, Ultra Travel's Deputy Director General:
There are 52 staff members on the ship designed for 26 passengers tops. Each trip to the shore in the middle of the Chilean Patagonia is accompanied by three-five crew members who arrange transportation, help the guests to find their way around, assist with difficult climbing. Special staff take care of the picnics.
Almost all crew members have medical training and in case of emergency, before the helicopter arrives, they'll be able to provide adequate help.
All staff members speak at least two languages, Spanish and English. But like most people who work with foreigners and like their job, they have more or less working knowledge of five-seven various languages.
Prices
A week-long voyage onboard the Atmosphere costs $11,000. The price is all-inclusive: meals, drinks, speedboat and helicopter trips, use of the SPA cabinet onboard the ship.
The same trip but with fishing (at any time, night and day, in lakes, rivers and in the ocean) costs $15,000. The fishing programme includes use of full set of spinning fishing equipment - from the rod to water-proof clothes warm enough to spend hours waist-deep in cold water and get nothing but pleasure in the end.
Travelling to Puerto Mont (flying from Moscow to Zurich to Santiago to Puerto Mont) takes just under 24 hours and costs $2,500 (price may vary depending on the season).
The children of Captain Grant have been here
The wild and unpredictable nature of Chilean Patagonia was created with the only purpose in mind: to amaze. The only problem is, there's nobody around: the very few villages scattered along the coast are home to 5,000 people at most. The place remains just like it was before the Ice Age.
There's no big league shipping or industry here, so when the seals see a ship they don't run away. In summer (December to February in Chile) blue whales and dolphins are swimming along the harbours and inlets. Magellan penguins live on the shores - the ones who've learnt to burrow themselves in the ground.
The Andean mountainscapes are really astonishing: the mountain tops covered with transparent blue ice are competing with volcano craters turned into round, deeply turquoise lakes. Mountain rivers, ice-cold and crystal-clear, flow between the sparkling golden sand banks. Even those who've seen a lot of the planet can't hide their surprise when they come to Chilean Patagonia.
Eugenia Sokolovskaya
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