Lighthouse of the End Of The World, Les Éclaireurs

Lighthouse of the End Of The World, Les Éclaireurs

Is there a place with the name “End of the World”? Yes, apparently there is and I was there a few years ago. I might not have heavily promoting about the place but it is never been forgotten. Meet, Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world and the last port before embarking to Antarctica. Yes, I was that close going to Antarctica but I’m sure one day I will go there again.

The reason Ushuaia is named the end of the world because of it close proximity to Antarctica. If you google map the city, it is at the tip of South America and closest to the Antarctica Peninsula. I stayed there for a week in 2010 and venture most of the city including shopping groceries like locals at Carrefour Ushuaia.

There are quite a number of attractions at the end of the world and one of them is Les Éclaireurs. Les Éclaireurs in French means “the Enlighteners” but often named as the lighthouse of the end of the world by the tour operators. It is easier to promote it as “the lighthouse of the end of the world” to the tourists than Les Éclaireurs.

Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse (the French name “Les Éclaireurs” means “the Enlighteners” or “the Scouts”) is a slightly conically shaped lighthouse standing on the northeastern-most islet of the five or more Les Eclaireurs islets, which it takes its name from, 5 Nautical mile east of Ushuaia in the Beagle Channel, Tierra del Fuego, southern Argentina. The brick-built tower is 10 metres (33 ft) high and 3 metres (10 ft) wide at the base, with its windowless wall painted red-white-red and topped by a black lantern housing and gallery. Only a door pointing to the west provides access to the building. The light is 22.5 metres (74 ft) above sealevel emitting white flashes every ten seconds with a range of 7.5 nautical miles (13.9 km). The lighthouse, still in operation, is remote-controlled, automated, uninhabited, and not open to the public, guarding the sea entrance to Ushuaia. Electricity is supplied by solar-panels. On December 23, 1920 the lighthouse was put into service.

It is a popular tourist attraction, reached on short boat tours from Ushuaia. It is known to the Argentines as the Lighthouse at the End of the World (Faro del fin del mundo), although that name is misleading. The lighthouse is often confused with the San Juan de Salvamento lighthouse on the east coast of the remote Isla de los Estados, made famous by Jules Verne in the novel The Lighthouse at the End of the World, which is actually much further east. – Wikipedia.org

I have many pictures of this iconic lighthouse taken from the light aircraft as well as from the cruise. Even though the lighthouse has been around for almost a century, the red colour is still striking and it makes a great photograph.

If you want a memorable experience in Ushuaia, I will recommend you to fly with the light aircraft or at least you try their island hopping cruise. Thus, remember to buy the lighthouse souvenirs in the form of postcards, keychains, fridge magnets and small replicas. These souvenirs are only available to Ushuaia.

Wilson Ng