The Welsh Colony in Patagonia
Patagonia is a wondrous destination that offers a variety of experiences to travellers, including adventure activities, natural attractions, the culture of it original inhabitants and, of course, the history of the Welsh colonists in Patagonia. The peaceful coexistence between the indigenous Tehuelche and the Celtic colonisers was a rare if not unique event in the history of colonisation in the whole of the Americas.
Patagonia has three perfectly defined geographical regions: the mountains of the Andes, the mid-zone tablelands of arid steppe, and the Atlantic coast. It is possible to describe its geography as a series of enormous steps, with the mountains of the Andes as the highest of the steps, which then descend in terraces, through the arid tablelands, until reaching the Atlantic coast. Patagonia has one of the lowest population densities in the World with less than one inhabitant for every one square kilometre.
The region is large enough to offer a magnificent richness of natural wildlife and variety of animal life that makes Patagonia into a wonderful destination. The region contains 11 out of the 23 National Parks, and three out of the 10 UNESCO World Heritage sites, in Argentina. Each national park and heritage site is unique in its diversity of wildlife, fauna and flora.
The Los Alerces National Park, near Trevelin, is one of the largest in the country with a land area of 263,000 hectares (650,000 acres – about the size of the present day county of Gwynedd in Wales). The most outstanding features of the park are the Alerce forests, little evidence of man, remarkably scenery, lakes, rivers and numerous waterfalls surrounded by mountains cloaked in forests. The Alerce tree is a Patagonian cypress tree with some examples achieving nearly 3,000 years of age and over 70 metres (23 feet) in height.
Peninsula Valdés, near Puerto Madryn, is a UNESCO World Heritage site that is important due to its biodiversity. It is famous for the visits of southern wright whales that inhabit its coast for most of the year.
The Perito Moreno glacier is an 8th World wonder. The enormous mass of continuous ice, surrounded by forests and mountains, is an awe-inspiring wonder. Peninsula Valdés and the Perito Moreno glacier are two destinations that attract the large majority of international travellers to Argentina.
The Welsh colony of Patagonia is a historical and cultural attraction. Within its zone of influence are the towns of Esquel and Trevelin in the Andes; Rawson, Trelew, Gaiman and Dolavon in the Lower Chubut river valley; and Puerto Madryn on the coast. Here, you will find the descendants of the Welsh settlers and their culture that they have maintained since their arrival, near where Puerto Madryn is today, on the clipper “Mimosa” in 1865.
