MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Wulaia, a historical cruise.

A group of Punta Arenas tourist operators have requested authorization for a cruise full of history and archaeology in the protected island of Navarino where aborigines first met English missionaries and later on visited by Fitz Roy and Charles Darwin.

Comapa Turismo is proposing the Wulaia tour, a small bay to the east of the island where Fitz Roy and Charles Darwin and the H.M.S. Beagle arrived at this site in 1833, where Jimmy Buttons organized the killing of English missionaries in 1859 and the Chilean government first established a naval base, later to become Puerto Williams, actually to the north of Navarino.

The Chilean Heritage Office that has the island under its protection has identified 32 different archaeological sites in Wulaia, 25 along the coast and the rest in Button island.

This is because thee Yamana aborigines took refuge in Wulaia bay during winter months.

Arturo Storaker from Comapa admits that the task of making Wulaia accessible is not easy, "it's an isolated place, but we believe the island has the sufficient infrastructure to build a small museum and other facilities; besides we have the support from the "Mare Australis" operators".

Actually the Chilean Heritage Office has already considered the project "viable", but now needs to prepare all the documentation for extending the concession.

"We're quiet close to the concession. So far we've invested approximately 50,000 US dollars and are confident that the regional government will support us", said Mr. Storaker

www.patagonia-chile.com

The Chilean national Tourist Service, Sernatur, is particularly satisfied with the results of the first seven months of the Chilean Patagonia portal.

Sernatur Regional Director Miguel Angel Muñoz said that the Chilean Patagonia promotion project has been in the air since last April with the www.patagonia-chile.com portal.

The electronic address has had a most positive response among 187,000 different sites, particularly with google and yahoo that has Patagonia Chile in the top ten of 117,000 sites.

"This is a good indicator as to how we are positioned and the portal has proven an excellent promotion tool", said Mr. Muñoz. Actually in the last seven months the number of visitors recorded totals over 81,000.

Sernatur interviews with visitors arriving in Chilean Patagonia also point to the fact most tourists search and obtain most of their information through internet.