Cold Water · Argentina
Ushuaia & the Beagle Channel
Dry-suit dives through Beagle Channel kelp to channel walls and old wrecks
Ushuaia sits on the Beagle Channel in Argentine Tierra del Fuego, and diving here means dry suits, kelp and subantarctic water. Boats from the town's yacht club run to the Bridges Islands, where the Paredón of Isla H is a wall full of life, while Redonda Island's walls rise through thick kelp that sea lions visit. Experienced divers come for the wrecks: the Sarmiento, entered from the beach, and the cruise ship Monte Cervantes, lost in 1930 near Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse.
About diving in Ushuaia & the Beagle Channel
Diving in Ushuaia goes through local instructors, who show divers the places authorised for it, and timetables are set around the weather. First dives start at Bahía Ensenada, reached by road inside Tierra del Fuego National Park, where a calm beach that deepens gradually lets divers settle into the dry suit and work on buoyancy. From the same bay a motorboat reaches Redonda and Estorbo islands, and Puerto Cucharita lies 20 minutes away by boat. Bridges Islands trips run two ways: a two-dive day of about 6 hours from the AFASyN yacht club, or a 4-hour Zodiac outing with one tank and about 45 minutes in the water.
The channel floor is rock and kelp. Forests of the giant algae locals call cachiyuyos hold most of the life: centollas, snails, starfish and crabs. Iturrieta, or Hache Island, suits night dives. On the Sarmiento, sponges, ascidians and algae cover the remains, and the wreck shelters fish and spider crabs.
The Bridges Islands boat dives take Open Water divers and up, with dry suit, hood, gloves, mask, fins and regulator supplied, and the minimum age is 16 with parental consent. Shipwrecks draw most visiting divers, but they demand preparation for adverse conditions. Divers who want warm water should look elsewhere: the channel reaches only 8–10 °C at the height of summer.
Best time to dive Ushuaia & the Beagle Channel
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Fair |
Diving runs all year; the clearest water comes in winter, when it is also coldest, while summer plankton cuts visibility.
Dive types & marine life
Spider crabs, starfish and other crabs turn up even on first shore dives at Bahía Ensenada, and sea lions often visit the walls at Redonda Island.
- Kelp forest
- Wall
- Wreck
- Night
- Seals & sea lions
Best dive sites in Ushuaia & the Beagle Channel
- 1
Monte Cervantes
A 150 m cruise ship wreck whose deck and cabins sit at 35–45 m; for experts, in calm current only.
- 2
Redonda Island
Walls 27 m high wrapped in thick kelp, often visited by sea lions.
- 3
Paredón, Isla H
A wall in the Bridges Islands, full of the Beagle Channel's flora and fauna.
- 4
Puerto Cucharita
Algae-covered plateaus with tunnels to swim through, with starfish, crabs and anemones, down to 35 m.
- 5
Sarmiento wreck
An old vessel partly sunk in the east of the channel, dived from the beach.
- 6
Estorbo Island
A gentle, gradually deepening slope of leafy algae and small fish.
Site guides
Deck and cabins of a 1930 cruise liner wreck near Les Eclaireurs
Reef
Tunnels through algae-covered plateaus crowded with starfish and crabs
Kelp-wrapped walls where sea lions often join the dive
How to get to Ushuaia & the Beagle Channel
Flying is the practical way in, to Ushuaia's Malvinas Argentinas International Airport (USH), with daily flights from Buenos Aires. Bridges Islands boat dives leave from the AFASyN yacht club at the town's sports pier; the shore dives at Bahía Ensenada are a drive into the national park, and the Sarmiento sits on the outskirts of town.
Dive videos
USHUAIA TIERRA DEL FUEGO DIVING (4K) · AMK Buceo-Viajando on YouTube
Secuencia 01YouTube · Beagle Buceos on YouTube
Questions divers ask
What should divers wear under the dry suit?+
Thermal layers: jogging bottoms or thermal leggings, a thermal or long-sleeved top, two pairs of thick socks, and a towel for afterwards.
Are there charges to pay on the day of a Bridges Islands trip?+
Yes. The AFASyN club's boarding fee and insurance are paid on site before departure, and transfers to the club are not included on the two-dive trip.
Can the Monte Cervantes wreck be dived?+
Yes, by experienced divers when the current is calm. Around Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse the currents and winds are strong and changeable, and there is no shelter nearby.
Sources
- The Unfathomable Southern Seas — InterPatagonia
- Buceo embarcado - Tour Guide Ushuaia — Tour Guide Ushuaia
- Buceo para experimentados — Excursiones en Ushuaia
- Ushuaia — Wikivoyage
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