The Lapataia area of the park is accessed by way of the final
four-kilometre stretch of the RN3, as it winds south from the Lago
Roca junction, past Lago Verde , and on to Lapataia
itself, on the bay of the same name. This is one of the most
intriguing areas to explore: a kind of miniature "park within a
park". Here, in the space of a few hours, you can take a network of
short trails that enable you to see an incredible variety of
scenery, which includes bogland, river islets, wooded knolls and
sea coast. A few hundred metres past the Lago Roca junction, you
cross the Río Lapataia over a bridge that's a favoured haunt of
ringed kingfishers ( martín pescador grande ). Not far
beyond the bridge the road passes through an area known as the
Archipiélago Cormoranes (Cormorant Archipelago). Signposted
left off the road here is a short (20min) circuit trail, the
Paseo de la Isla , which heads through this scenery of tiny,
enchanting humped islets that would not look out of place in a
miniaturist Japanese garden, and which actually has more atmosphere
in the drizzle. Just past the trail, to the right of the main road,
is Las Bandurrias campsite, popular with fishermen ($2; pay
at Lago Verde).
Next you pass Lago Verde, which is not a lake but actually a
sumptuous, sweeping bend of the Río Ovando. Here you'll find
Camping Lago Verde and Camping Los Cauquenes . From
Lago Verde, it's only 2km to Lapataia. On the way, you pass several
brief, easy nature trails that you can stroll along in twenty
minutes or so, and which have signposts with ecological and
botanical information in Spanish. Leaving the campsite, you cross
the Río Ovando bridge, and a couple of hundred metres further on,
you'll find the nature trail loop to Laguna Negra , a
shallow pond fringed by a mulch of peat bog. Insectivorous sundew
plants ( drosera ) grow by the lake shore, but sadly, few
have taken to the area adjacent to the boardwalk that you must
stick to. A little further along the RN3 - about 1km from Lago
Verde - is a turn-off along Circuito Lenga, which takes you to a
lookout over Lapataia Bay. This whole area to the left (east) of
the RN3 is crisscrossed by trails through peat bog scenery,
including the Paseo del Turbal (Peat-Bog Walk). Just past
the Circuito Lenga turn-off along the RN3, is the start of the
Castorera path, heading only a couple of hundred metres off
the road to a beaver dam . You stand a good chance of
spotting one of these goofy rodents ( castores ) if you time
your arrival to coincide with early morning or dusk.
The RN3 comes to its scenic end - a mere 3063km from Buenos
Aires, and marked by a much-photographed sign - at Lapataia on the
Bahía Lapataia . Deriving its name from the Yámana for
forested cove, it is a serenely beautiful bay studded with small
islets. Near the car park here is the jetty for the boat
trips to Bahía Ensenada and Ushuaia, and the adjacent grassy knolls
are Yámana shell middens. For the best, easy photo opportunity of
the bay, it's worth taking the five-minute walk along the Paseo
Mirador , which runs east from the carpark to the little wooded
lookout hill at its head. A path on the western side of the bay
crosses the meadows and reaches another beaver dam, but do not
stray beyond here, as it's off limits.