17 ARGENTINA Patagonia Valdez Peninsula

Valdez Peninsula 2nd January 2007

Map of Penninsula Valdez, Coastal Patagonia’s top destination. The UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve of Peninsula Valdes is the place where the great southern right whale arrives to breed and birth in the winter months.

Protected since 1935, the ballena franca (southern right whale) occupies an almost unique position as a natural monument a designation normally reserved for territorial ecosystems within the Argentine national park system.

From January to March Orcas come ashore onto the beach to hunt sealion pups. This is one of the few places in the world that this behaviour can be observed.

The base from which the tourists start to explore is Puerto Madryn, which is also considered the Dive capital of Argentina

Puerto Madryn Eco-centre and its stunning location on a cliff buff. In season, southern right whales approach the promontory of this emblem of Madryn’s ecological commitment.

This building which draws on Patagonia Magellanic architectural tradition and permits the maximum penetration of natural light. The building is crowned by a tower that yields distant views of Peninsula Valdes across the Golfo Nuevo.

It is the work of a nonprofit institution, striving to bring environmental education, research, and the arts under the same roof.

Sea lion and Sea Elephant Colonies.

Armadillo crossing our path on Peninsula Valdez.