Desolación Island () (Spanish for ''Desolation'') is an island at the western end 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 ...

in the

Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena Region Magallanes may refer to: * Ferdinand Magellan (1480–1521), Portuguese explorer who led part of the first expedition around the world * Strait of Magellan, the strait between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, located in Chile Places * Magallanes ...

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 eas ...

. Its northwestern point is called ''Cabo Pilar'' (Cape Pillar), and marks the entrance to the Strait of Magellan. Off Cape Pillar are three rocks in the sea, called '' Islotes Evangelistas'' (the Apostles).

Desolación Island in fiction

The

Douglas Preston Douglas Jerome Preston (born May 31, 1956) is an American journalist and author. Although he is best known for his thrillers in collaboration with Lincoln Child (including the '' Agent Pendergast'' series and ''Gideon Crew'' series), he has also ...

and

Lincoln Child Lincoln Child (13 October 1957) is an American author of techno-thriller and horror novels. Though he is most well known for his collaborations with Douglas Preston (including the Agent Pendergast series and the Gideon Crew series, among other ...

novel '' The Ice Limit'' described an expedition to Isla Desolacion near Cape Horn in Chile. The map in the (paperback) edition incorrectly identifies easterly Isla Wollastone as Isla Desolacion. The authors, in a note, say this is intentional.

James Michener James Albert Michener ( or ; February 3, 1907 – October 16, 1997) was an American writer. He wrote more than 40 books, most of which were long, fictional family sagas covering the lives of many generations in particular geographic locales and ...

's novel ''Hawaii'' depicts an attempt by a sailing ship to pass the

Straits 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 ...

, describing the western exit past Desolation Island as the most difficult part of the passage. In

Herman Melville Herman Melville ( born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are '' Moby-Dick'' (1851); '' Typee'' (1846), a ...

's novel ''

Moby-Dick ''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is the sailor Ishmael's narrative of the obsessive quest of Ahab, captain of the whaling ship ''Pequod'', for revenge against Moby Dick, the giant whi ...

'', narrator Ishmael recalls a marble tablet at a whalemen's chapel in New Bedford which pays homage to a whaleman named John Talbot, who lost overboard "near the Isle of Desolation, off

Patagonia Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and g ...

". In

Patrick O'Brian Patrick O'Brian, CBE (12 December 1914 – 2 January 2000), born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series of sea novels set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, and cent ...

's novel ''

Blue at the Mizzen The novel ''Blue at the Mizzen'' is the twentieth and last completed historical novel in the Aubrey-Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian, first published in 1999. It is set after the Napoleonic wars, in the fight for Chilean independence from Spa ...

'', a British man-of-war is sent on a peace time mission to Chile and the Straits of Magellan. In the Jackie Chan Adventures animated television series in Season 2 Episode 24 - Scouts Honor,

Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born 7 April 1954), known professionally in English as Jackie Chan and in Chinese as Cheng Long ( zh, c=成龍, j=Sing4 Lung4; "becoming the dragon"), is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and stuntman known for ...

teleport the episode's villain,

Vanessa Barone Vanessa may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Vanessa'' (Millais painting), an 1868 painting by Pre-Raphaelite artist John Everett Millais * ''Vanessa'', a 1933 novel by Hugh Walpole * ''Vanessa'', a 1952 instrumental song written by Bernie ...

, with the

Eye of Aurora Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process visual detail, as well as enabling several photo response functions that are independent of vision. Eyes detect light and conve ...

to Desolacion Island, saying that it is a little island off the coast of

and is "one of the most remote spots on earth".

References

External links

Islands of Chile @ United Nations Environment Programme

World island information @ WorldIslandInfo.com

South America Island High Points above 1000 meters
*

United States Hydrographic Office The United States Hydrographic Office prepared and published maps, charts, and nautical books required in navigation. The office was established by an act of 21 June 1866 as part of the Bureau of Navigation, Department of the Navy. It was trans ...

South America Pilot
(1916)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Desolacion Island Islands of Tierra del Fuego Strait of Magellan

Desolación Island in fiction

See also

References

External links