Mount Tarn is a small

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher th ...

located on the southernmost part of the

Strait of Magellan The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and Tierra del Fuego to the south. The strait is considered the most important natural pas ...

, in

Brunswick Peninsula Brunswick Peninsula () is a large peninsula in Magallanes y la Antártica Region, Patagonia, Chile, at . Geography The Brunswick Peninsula is triangular in shape, joined to the mainland in the north by a wide isthmus. It widens to almost in t ...

, about 70 km south of

Punta Arenas Punta Arenas (; historically Sandy Point in English) is the capital List of cities in Chile, city of Chile's southernmost Regions of Chile, region, Magallanes Region, Magallanes and Antarctica Chilena. The city was officially renamed as Magal ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

. It is in the southern extreme of continental Chile very close to

Cape Froward Cape Froward () is the southernmost point of mainland South America. It is located in the Magallanes Region of Chile, along the north shore of Magellan Strait, being the southern tip of the Brunswick Peninsula. In January 1587, the English cors ...

, surrounded by historic places such as

Fort Bulnes Fuerte Bulnes is a Chilean fort located by the Strait of Magellan, 62 km south of Punta Arenas. It was founded in 1843 on a rocky hill at Punta Santa Ana, and named after President Manuel Bulnes Prieto. The fort was built to further the ...

and

Puerto del Hambre Ciudad del Rey Don Felipe, also known as Puerto del Hambre (Port Famine), is a historic settlement site at ''Buena Bay'' (locally known as Mansa Bay) on the north shore of the Strait of Magellan approximately south of Punta Arenas in the Reg ...

(Port Famine). From the summit it is possible to see the Strait of Magellan, Dawson and

Tierra del Fuego Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of the Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main island, Isla ...

islands, and many other smaller ones; the Darwin Mountain Range, Mount Sarmiento, and most of the Brunswick Peninsula.

Toponymy

According to historian Mateo Martinic Beros in his book ''Cartografía Magallánica 1523-1945'', the mount was named after the British

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

, John Tarn, who first ascended the mountain in February 1827 while traveling with

Robert FitzRoy Vice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy (5 July 1805 – 30 April 1865) was an English officer of the Royal Navy and a scientist. He achieved lasting fame as the captain of during Charles Darwin's famous voyage, FitzRoy's second expedition to Tierra de ...

on HMS ''Adventure'' and later ascended it while traveling with

Phillip Parker King Rear Admiral Phillip Parker King, FRS, RN (13 December 1791 – 26 February 1856) was an early explorer of the Australian and Patagonian coasts. Early life and education King was born on Norfolk Island, to Philip Gidley King and Anna J ...

in HMS ''Beagle''), during their surveying voyage from 1826 to 1830. Tarn participated in a

hydrographic survey Hydrographic survey is the science of measurement and description of features which affect maritime navigation, marine construction, dredging, offshore oil exploration/offshore oil drilling and related activities. Strong emphasis is placed o ...

conducted in the area, through the collection and classification of flora and fauna species.

Darwin's ascent

On 6 February 1834 a group from the second ''Beagle'' survey expedition, including

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...

, ascended Mount Tarn by forcing their way up through dense woodland to the bare ridge which took them to the summit. He recounted the story in his ''Journal and Remarks''. In his ascent the young naturalist found the first

ammonites Ammonoids are a group of extinct marine mollusc animals in the subclass Ammonoidea of the class Cephalopoda. These molluscs, commonly referred to as ammonites, are more closely related to living coleoids (i.e., octopuses, squid and cuttlefish) ...

ever known in South America.

References

Instituto Geográfico Militar
Chart, Chile: Rinconada Bulnes, scale 1:100000, Section L, 1987. * * * * Biogeografía del monte Tarn, Magallanes, Chile. Trabajo final de carrera, ETSIAM, Universidad Politécnica de Valencia. Escuela técnica superior de ingenieros agrónomos. Ingeniería de Montes, especialidad Ingeniería del Medio Natural. Universidad de Magallanes. Facultad de Ciencias. Sergio Navarro Cano y Javier González. 2006

Mateo Martinic Beroš, 1999, Punta Arenas, Chile. {{ISBN, 956-7189-07-2.

External links

Mount Tarn Description & Route in AndesHandbook
(in Spanish)

(in Spanish)

Photo gallery

Image:Mount_Tarn_Spring.jpg Image:Mount_Tarn_Summit.jpg Image:Mount_Tarn_Summit_View.jpg Tarn Tarn Brunswick Peninsula

Toponymy

Darwin's ascent

See also

References

External links

Photo gallery