Argentina

November 6-29, 2009

November 10: Punta Tomba and Gaiman: Punta Tomba - Part 1

A couple of odd little sandhills along the road south to Punta Tomba.

At first this sign made us think we were getting close, but then we saw another 60km to get there!

Getting closer!

A "community" along the way... blink and you'd miss it!

A sign warning drivers about the wild animals at "La Perla" establishment. The owners of La Perla were the ones who donated the penguin sanctuary to the government for protection and the future enjoyment of others.

A guanaco along the way.

Finally we get a view of the ocean!

Samantha is very excited to go see real penguins!

OK, maybe not a REAL penguin, but a BIG one!

Having stopped numerous times along the way to spot and photograph guanacos along the countryside,
we were amused to find one right behind the ranger station at Punta Tomba.

Patagonian mockingbird (mimus patagonicus).
This migratory bird makes its nests in Patagonia during the spring-summer. Their singing is diverse and pleasant.

Samantha at the restaurant... the sign would turn out to be a bit misleading since we had arrived during nesting season where the penguins would mostly stay close to their nests, not gather on the beach like this.

Welcome to Punta Tomba.

Samantha ready to head out on the boardwalk with guanacos up on the hill behind her.

Sitting in their nests under the bushes. Not quite what we expected!

I'm not so sure this penguin should be standing quite so proudly... that's penguin poo on his chest!

Samantha and Christopher are having fun going on a penguin hunt.

Cuis (Eng: cavy). The cavy is a small rodent that lives under the bushes among the penguins. Cavies eat leaves and grasses.

Christopher and a penguin

It's morning and the penguins are just getting up out of their nests to do a bit of grooming.

A proud little penguin.

A penguin looking out from its nest.

Samantha and a penguin.

This one does not look like it wants to get up!

Samantha is apparently not close enough so she's using binoculars to get a better view.

The walk cuts through an area which penguins use to get to the beach.

A couple of penguins having a little private moment on the beach.

Penguins everywhere!

These penguins have some prime real estate along the coast!

While the 2 penguins on the right were busy grooming themselves,
the left penguin definitely was unhappy about something!

Although we were disappointed at first that we had to stick to the marked path, we soon discovered that we could get quite up close and personal with a lot of the penguins.

Hello!

More penguins!

Could we get any closer?!

A pair of skuas along the beach.

It's nesting season which is why so many of the penguins were staying in their nests.
Here we get a quick glimpse of a penguin egg as the penguin moves to get a bit more comfortable.

Scientists at work - A group of scientists and volunteers are carrying out an ecological and conservation study on the Magellanic penguins through an agreement between the Province of Chubut's Tourist Office and the Wildlife Conservation Society. The objective of this study is the collection of data to help in the conservation of this penguin colony.

This guy was a little shy.

A lazy morning.

As the morning progresses, more and more penguins head to the water for a little dip.

Waddling along.

The whole area is filled with penguin nests. Colourful flags mark nests that are being studied by the scientists.

Look, exit, aim, and fire! We had fun watching the penguins perform the ritual of their morning bowel movement in front of their nests. It was... explosive! :)