Puerto Natales
Encyclopedia
Puerto Natales is a city in Chile
an Patagonia
. Puerto Natales is the capital of both the commune of Natales
and the province
of Última Esperanza
, (Spanish
for "Last Hope"), one of the four provinces that make up the Magallanes and Antartica Chilena Region in the southernmost part of Chile. The city is located 247 km (153 mi) northwest of Punta Arenas and is the final passenger port of call for the Navimag
ferry sailing from Puerto Montt
into the Señoret Channel
as well as the primary transit point for travelers to Torres del Paine National Park
, Chile.
Última Esperanza Sound
, originally inhabited by the Kawésqar tribe or Alacaluf
and the Aoniken or Tehuelche, was sailed in 1557 by Juan Ladrilleros, a sailor who was looking for the Strait of Magellan
.
The city was settled by European immigrants: The largest groups are Germans
; British
such as the English
, Welsh
and Scots
; Croats
; Greeks
; Italians and Spaniards. Later settlement by Chilean people
, with a substantial number coming from the Island of Chiloé
, all attracted by the sheep-raising industry.
The city was formally founded under the government of Ramón Barros Luco
on May 31, 1911. Nowadays, one of the most important activities is tourism
although cattle production and the fishery industries are also significant.
. Some the expeditioners (Robert FitzRoy
, William Skyring and James Kirke) and their higher officers are remembered by several place-names in the area. Vice-Admiral Fitzroy was the captain during the Second voyage of HMS Beagle
(1831–1836).
In 1870, interest in the region of Ultima Esperanza was rekindled. Among the daring travelers who ventured these desolated lands, was Santiago Zamora, also known as 'Baqueano' Zamora. He discovered the lake district of the Torres del Paine area and many wild horses locally known as 'baguales'. Another was the English traveller and writer Lady Florence Dixie
, commemorated in the city's present-day Hotel Lady Florence Dixie. Dixie authored the book, Across Patagonia.
Puerto Natales was founded on May, 1911 as a port for the sheep industry. During the last half of the 20th century the sheep industry declined and many people from Puerto Natales started to work in the coal mines of Río Turbio
in Argentina
. During the zenith of the sheep industry in Patagonia, two large "frigorificos" or freezer plants, were constructed in the Natales area, though only one has survived. The plant at Puerto Bories, about 4 km from downtown Puerto Natales, was a project of the Sociedad Explotadora de Tierra del Fuego. Historians Duncan Campbell and Gladys Grace have provided an extensive website (www.patbrit.org) showing photographic materials related to the Puerto Bories frigorifico and surrounding village. The Puerto Bories site was inaugurated in 1913 and is now a national monument and museum which can be normally be accessed by the public. Construction occasionally interrupts public access. The Cold-Storage Plant was constructed in "Post Victorian Industrial" architectural style and features of number of British machinery examples which reflect the technology of the beginning of the Twentieth Century. The Cold-Storage Plant complex presents an excellent opportunity for visitors to understand the industrial history of the Puerto Natales area. On 2010, The Singular Hotels, start a restoration of the Cold Storage Plant to build a luxury hotel.
Puerto Natales features good tourism facilities, and it has become the base for excursions to the Torres del Paine National Park
; the Cueva del Milodón Natural Monument
(a cave complex used by prehistoric tribes and where remains of the extinct Giant Sloth have been found; the Bernardo O'Higgins National Park
; and the Alacalufes National Reserve
. The latter includes
the Fjord of the Mountains
, Cordillera Riesco
and Cordillera Sarmiento
.
According to the 2002 census
of the National Statistics Institute
, the Natales commune has 19,116 inhabitants (10,068 men and 9,048 women). Of these, 16,978 (88.8%) lived in urban area
of the city and 2,138 (11.2%) in rural areas. The population grew by 10.7% (1,841 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses. The commune comprises 96.3% of the total provincial population of 19,855. Its population density is only 0.38 /km2.
peaks of the Cerro Toro
formation within the Cordillera Manuel Señoret.
The city of Puerto Natales exists within the larger Natales commune, one of eleven communes in the Magallanes Region. Since the entire province of Última Esperanza (56,554 square kilometers) is divided into only two communes, the result is a rather large but sparsely populated area for the Natales commune. The commune's area is 48974.2 km² (18,909 sq mi), which renders it one of the largest communes in Chile, larger than seven regions of the country.
Its geographic coordinates
are: Latitude, 51° 43' 60S; Longitude, 72° 31' 0W; Altitude: 3 m (10 ft).
, headed by an alcalde
who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Fernando Paredes Mansilla (UDI), and the councilors are:
Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Puerto Natales is represented in the Chamber of Deputies
by Carolina Goic (PDC) and Miodrag Marinovic (Ind.
) as part of the 60th electoral district, which includes the entire Magallanes and Antartica Chilena Region. The commune is represented in the Senate
by Carlos Bianchi Chelech (Ind.) and Pedro Muñoz Aburto (PS) as part of the 19th senatorial constituency (Magallanes Region).
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an Patagonia
Patagonia
Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...
. Puerto Natales is the capital of both the commune of Natales
Natales
Natales is a commune of the Última Esperanza Province in the Magallanes and Antartica Chilena Region of extreme southern Chile. Its capital and only port city is Puerto Natales.-Geography:...
and the province
Provinces of Chile
A province is the second largest administrative division in Chile, after a region. Each region is divided into provinces. There are 54 provinces in total....
of Última Esperanza
Última Esperanza Province
Última Esperanza Province is one of four provinces in the southern Chilean region of Magallanes and Antártica Chilena . The capital is Puerto Natales...
, (Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
for "Last Hope"), one of the four provinces that make up the Magallanes and Antartica Chilena Region in the southernmost part of Chile. The city is located 247 km (153 mi) northwest of Punta Arenas and is the final passenger port of call for the Navimag
Navimag
Navimag is a ferry operator in Chile. The company operates two routes carrying passengers and vehicles:*Puerto Montt to Puerto Natales, calling at Puerto Eden *Puerto Montt to Puerto Chacabuco...
ferry sailing from Puerto Montt
Puerto Montt
Puerto Montt is a port city and commune in southern Chile, located at the northern end of the Reloncaví Sound in the Llanquihue Province, Los Lagos Region. The commune spans an area of and had a population of 175,938 in 2002. It is located 1,055 km to the south of the capital, Santiago...
into the Señoret Channel
Señoret Channel
The Señoret Channel is a navigable surface water body in the Patagonian region of Chile. One of the major towns along the channel is Puerto Natales. Hermann Eberhard, the first European to explore the interior of northern Patagonia, used the Señoret Channel to navigate northward in order to access...
as well as the primary transit point for travelers to Torres del Paine National Park
Torres del Paine National Park
Torres del Paine National Park is a national park encompassing mountains, a glacier, a lake, and river-rich areas in southern Chilean Patagonia. The Cordillera del Paine is the centerpiece of the park. It lies in a transition area between the Magellanic subpolar forests and the Patagonian Steppes...
, Chile.
Última Esperanza Sound
Última Esperanza Sound
Última Esperanza Sound is an inlet stretching from the mouth of Eberhard Fjord to the outskirts of Monte Balmaceda, within the Magallanes Basin. This inlet, known within Chile as Seno Última Esperanza, has the characteristics of a tidewater river and drains an extensive basin...
, originally inhabited by the Kawésqar tribe or Alacaluf
Alacaluf
The Alacaluf are a South American people living in Chile on the Strait of Magellan , Chile. Their traditional language is known as Kawésqar.- Economy :They were a nomadic sea-faring people until the twentieth century...
and the Aoniken or Tehuelche, was sailed in 1557 by Juan Ladrilleros, a sailor who was looking for the Strait of Magellan
Strait of Magellan
The Strait of Magellan comprises a navigable sea route immediately south of mainland South America and north of Tierra del Fuego...
.
The city was settled by European immigrants: The largest groups are Germans
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
; British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
such as the English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
, Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
and Scots
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
; Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
; Greeks
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
; Italians and Spaniards. Later settlement by Chilean people
Chilean people
Chilean people, or simply Chileans, are the native citizens and long-term immigrants of Chile. Chileans are mainly of Spanish and Amerindian descent, with small but significant traces of 19th and 20th century European immigrant origin...
, with a substantial number coming from the Island of Chiloé
Chiloé Island
Chiloé Island , also known as Greater Island of Chiloé , is the largest island of the Chiloé Archipelago off the coast of Chile, in the Pacific Ocean...
, all attracted by the sheep-raising industry.
The city was formally founded under the government of Ramón Barros Luco
Ramón Barros Luco
Ramón Barros Luco was President of Chile between 1910 and 1915.Barros Luco was born in 1835 in Santiago, Barros Luco was son of Ramón Luis Barros Fernández and Dolores Luco Fernández de Leiva. He graduated from Law School in 1858...
on May 31, 1911. Nowadays, one of the most important activities is tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
although cattle production and the fishery industries are also significant.
History and current status
The Province where Puerto Natales is located received the name Última Esperanza (Last Hope) from the sailor Juan Ladrilleros, who was seeking the Strait of Magellan in the year 1557. It was his "last hope" to find the Strait after exploring the maze of channels between the waters of the Pacific and the mainland. It was not until three centuries later, in 1830, that another major expedition sailed through the fjords and channels of Última Esperanza. This was the British expedition of the frigate HMS BeagleHMS Beagle
HMS Beagle was a Cherokee-class 10-gun brig-sloop of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 11 May 1820 from the Woolwich Dockyard on the River Thames, at a cost of £7,803. In July of that year she took part in a fleet review celebrating the coronation of King George IV of the United Kingdom in which...
. Some the expeditioners (Robert FitzRoy
Robert FitzRoy
Vice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy RN achieved lasting fame as the captain of HMS Beagle during Charles Darwin's famous voyage, and as a pioneering meteorologist who made accurate weather forecasting a reality...
, William Skyring and James Kirke) and their higher officers are remembered by several place-names in the area. Vice-Admiral Fitzroy was the captain during the Second voyage of HMS Beagle
Second voyage of HMS Beagle
The second voyage of HMS Beagle, from 27 December 1831 to 2 October 1836, was the second survey expedition of HMS Beagle, under captain Robert FitzRoy who had taken over command of the ship on its first voyage after her previous captain committed suicide...
(1831–1836).
In 1870, interest in the region of Ultima Esperanza was rekindled. Among the daring travelers who ventured these desolated lands, was Santiago Zamora, also known as 'Baqueano' Zamora. He discovered the lake district of the Torres del Paine area and many wild horses locally known as 'baguales'. Another was the English traveller and writer Lady Florence Dixie
Lady Florence Dixie
Lady Florence Caroline Dixie , before her marriage Lady Florence Douglas, was a British traveller, war correspondent, writer and feminist.-Early life:...
, commemorated in the city's present-day Hotel Lady Florence Dixie. Dixie authored the book, Across Patagonia.
Puerto Natales was founded on May, 1911 as a port for the sheep industry. During the last half of the 20th century the sheep industry declined and many people from Puerto Natales started to work in the coal mines of Río Turbio
Rio turbio
Rio turbio is a 1952 Argentine film directed by Alejandro Wehner....
in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. During the zenith of the sheep industry in Patagonia, two large "frigorificos" or freezer plants, were constructed in the Natales area, though only one has survived. The plant at Puerto Bories, about 4 km from downtown Puerto Natales, was a project of the Sociedad Explotadora de Tierra del Fuego. Historians Duncan Campbell and Gladys Grace have provided an extensive website (www.patbrit.org) showing photographic materials related to the Puerto Bories frigorifico and surrounding village. The Puerto Bories site was inaugurated in 1913 and is now a national monument and museum which can be normally be accessed by the public. Construction occasionally interrupts public access. The Cold-Storage Plant was constructed in "Post Victorian Industrial" architectural style and features of number of British machinery examples which reflect the technology of the beginning of the Twentieth Century. The Cold-Storage Plant complex presents an excellent opportunity for visitors to understand the industrial history of the Puerto Natales area. On 2010, The Singular Hotels, start a restoration of the Cold Storage Plant to build a luxury hotel.
Puerto Natales features good tourism facilities, and it has become the base for excursions to the Torres del Paine National Park
Torres del Paine National Park
Torres del Paine National Park is a national park encompassing mountains, a glacier, a lake, and river-rich areas in southern Chilean Patagonia. The Cordillera del Paine is the centerpiece of the park. It lies in a transition area between the Magellanic subpolar forests and the Patagonian Steppes...
; the Cueva del Milodón Natural Monument
Cueva del Milodón Natural Monument
Cueva del Milodón Natural Monument is a Natural Monument located in the Chilean Patagonia, northwest of Puerto Natales and north of Punta Arenas. The monument is situated along the flanks of the Cerro Benitez Mountains...
(a cave complex used by prehistoric tribes and where remains of the extinct Giant Sloth have been found; the Bernardo O'Higgins National Park
Bernardo O'Higgins National Park
Bernardo O'Higgins National Park is the largest of the protected areas in Chile, covering an area of in both the Aisén and Magallanes and Antártica Chilena regions. The park is named after General Bernardo O'Higgins, first head of state of the Republic of Chile...
; and the Alacalufes National Reserve
Alacalufes National Reserve
Alacalufes National Reserve is located between Canal Concepción and Strait of Magellan. It is composed of western archipelagos, its landscape is filled with low mountain-like islands and islets, lots of channels and fjords...
. The latter includes
the Fjord of the Mountains
Fjord of the Mountains
Fjord of the Mountains, also known as "Channel of the Mountains", is located to the west of Puerto Natales, Chile and inside the boundaries of the Alacalufes National Reserve. It stretches 66 km from north to south and is flanked by two mountain ranges, the Cordillera Sarmiento to the west and the...
, Cordillera Riesco
Cordillera Riesco
The Cordillera Riesco is a mountain rangelocated in the Chilean Patagonia to the west of Puerto Natales. It extends in north-south direction on the eastern shore of the Fjord of the Mountains and parallel to the Cordillera Sarmiento. The rock towers of the "Grupo La Paz" are the centerpiece of this...
and Cordillera Sarmiento
Cordillera Sarmiento
The Cordillera Sarmiento is a mountain rangelocated in the Chilean Patagonia to the west of Puerto Natales. It extends in north-south direction on the western shore of the Fjord of the Mountains and parallel to the Cordillera Riesco. The highest mountain in this range is La Dama Blanca , with an...
.
Demography
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of the National Statistics Institute
National Statistics Institute (Chile)
The National Statistics Institute of Chile is a state-run organization of the Government of Chile, created in the second half of the 19th century and tasked with performing a general census of population and housing, then collecting, producing and publishing official demographic statistics of...
, the Natales commune has 19,116 inhabitants (10,068 men and 9,048 women). Of these, 16,978 (88.8%) lived in urban area
Urban area
An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...
of the city and 2,138 (11.2%) in rural areas. The population grew by 10.7% (1,841 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses. The commune comprises 96.3% of the total provincial population of 19,855. Its population density is only 0.38 /km2.
Geography
Puerto Natales is situated along the shore of the Seno Última Esperanza and has views northward into the Cerro BenitezCerro Benitez
Cerro Benítez is a mountain in the Patagonian region of Chile. In a larger context this feature is an element of the Cerro Toro geological complex. The Cueva del Milodón Natural Monument is situated on the southern flank of Cerro Benítez. The Cerro Benítez is a location for sighting of the Andean...
peaks of the Cerro Toro
Cerro Toro
Cerro Toro is a Cretaceous landform of the Magallanes Foreland the Patagonian region of southeastern Chile. The Cerro Toro is an element of the southern Andes Mountain Range. The Andes fundamentally are the result of plate tectonics processes, caused by the subduction of the Nazca Plate beneath...
formation within the Cordillera Manuel Señoret.
The city of Puerto Natales exists within the larger Natales commune, one of eleven communes in the Magallanes Region. Since the entire province of Última Esperanza (56,554 square kilometers) is divided into only two communes, the result is a rather large but sparsely populated area for the Natales commune. The commune's area is 48974.2 km² (18,909 sq mi), which renders it one of the largest communes in Chile, larger than seven regions of the country.
Its geographic coordinates
Geographic coordinate system
A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system that enables every location on the Earth to be specified by a set of numbers. The coordinates are often chosen such that one of the numbers represent vertical position, and two or three of the numbers represent horizontal position...
are: Latitude, 51° 43' 60S; Longitude, 72° 31' 0W; Altitude: 3 m (10 ft).
Administration
The city of Puerto Natales is the capital of the Natales commune and the Última Esperanza Province. As a commune, Natales is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal councilMunicipal council
A municipal council is the local government of a municipality. Specifically the term can refer to the institutions of various countries that can be translated by this term...
, headed by an alcalde
Alcalde
Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An alcalde was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian cabildo and judge of first instance of a town...
who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Fernando Paredes Mansilla (UDI), and the councilors are:
- Herminio Fernández García (UDI)
- Ana Mayorga Bahamonde (UDI)
- Patricio Gamin Bustamante (PDCChristian Democrat Party of ChileThe Christian Democratic Party is a political party in Chile and governs as part of the Coalition of Parties for Democracy coalition. In the 2009 election it won 19 congress seats and 9 senate seats....
) - Spiro Cárdenas Tadich (PSSocialist Party of ChileThe Socialist Party of Chile is a political party, that is part of the center-left Coalition of Parties for Democracy coalition. Its historical leader was the late President of Chile Salvador Allende Gossens, who was deposed by General Pinochet in 1973...
) - Antonieta Oyarzo Alvarado (PS)
Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Puerto Natales is represented in the Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of Chile
The Chamber of Deputies of the Republic of Chile is the lower house of Chile's bicameral Congress. Its organisation and its powers and duties are defined in articles 42 to 59 of Chile's current constitution....
by Carolina Goic (PDC) and Miodrag Marinovic (Ind.
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
) as part of the 60th electoral district, which includes the entire Magallanes and Antartica Chilena Region. The commune is represented in the Senate
Senate of Chile
The Senate of the Republic of Chile is the upper house of Chile's bicameral National Congress, as established in the current Constitution of Chile.-Composition:...
by Carlos Bianchi Chelech (Ind.) and Pedro Muñoz Aburto (PS) as part of the 19th senatorial constituency (Magallanes Region).
Accommodation
Hostal Dos Lagunas http://www.hostaldoslagunas.com was created by a family from Puerto Natales, being one of the first local companies to offer lodging with the concept of Bed & Breakfast to the visitors, moreover to give a complete information to the guests about Torres del Paine National Park.External links
- News from Puerto Natales and torres del paine
- Patagonia Webcam from Paine and Puerto Natales
- Google map of Natales, Chile
- View the Navimag's route from Puerto Montt to Puerto Natales through the Chilean fjords in Google Earth
- Panoramic virtual tour of Ultima Esperanza Sound from Puerto Natales
- Travel Guide Puerto Natales
- The Singular Patagonia hotel. Opening November 2011. More information at www.thesingular.com