It is located 11 km. from the city of Ushuaia to the southwest of the Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, bordering on the west with the Republic of Chile. It was created in 1960 by Law No. 15,554, covers an area of 68.909 hectares and covers the southern end of the Andes, Lake Fagnano and subantarctic forest to the coast of the Beagle Channel.
It is divided in three areas: a Strict Natural Reserve of prohibited access; one of Wild Natural Reserve, of restricted access; and a Recreational Area, the only one zone we can visit.
Unlike other national parks of the country, it has the particularity of integrating landscapes of coast, forest and mountain, the case on the Beagle Channel. Its an extension we find a synthesis of the biological wealth of the Island of Tierra del Fuego and its beautiful landscapes.
The park presents a typical glacial topography that alternates deep valleys bathed by rivers, lakes and peat bogs with mountain ranges oriented from northwest to southeast.
The vegetation that characterizes the zone are the abundant forests of lengas, cherries and coihues that cover an understory of shrubs, moss and fern; the wild vegetation of the high Andean steppes subordinated to the severe climatic conditions; and the peat bogs, constituted by accumulated and compacted remains of vegetables in depressions of the relief. The multiplicity and profusion of the fuegian flora, changing in each season, give color and texture to unique places like Lapataia Bay, Acigami Lake and Ensenada Zaratiegui Bay, where we can still find vestiges of the ancient inhabitants of the region: the yámanas, mounds of circular-shaped shells called "concheros", product of the accumulated waste of the mollusks they consumed.
The National Park is inhabited by a limited variety of wild animals due to the inhospitable climate, comprising about twenty species of mammals and approximately ninety species of birds. The mammal species most easily found are the red fox and the guanaco; the rest of the species are mostly small rodents, which are not so visible to the visitor. The most striking birds with the greatest presence in the open areas of the park are the three varieties of cauquenes - South American geese - that are usually seen in pairs; woodpeckers, chimangos, black eagles, herons and ducks can also be seen. At the same time, there are some species introduced by man that in just a few decades increased their number due to their rapid adaptation to the environment, such as the European rabbit, the beaver, the muskrat and the grey fox, causing in some cases serious impacts on the natural landscape.
Tranex Turismo S.A., owner of the Ferrocarril Austral Fueguino, carries out part of its route within the Tierra del Fuego National Park.
More information: https://www.argentina.gob.ar/parquesnacionales