In 1865, Welsh settlers landed on the desolate shores of Puerto Madryn. Their subsequent triumph against the odds is the stuff of legends, and you can still see their influence today in the  Welsh towns of the Chubut Valley.

 

The early Welsh nationalists who promoted Patagonia as a ‘little Wales beyond Wales’ would probably have been hung, drawn and quartered by the original group of 185 Welsh colonisers if they are could have got hold of them.

Far from the ‘luscious pastures’ and ‘tall, strong forests’ promised,  the settlers who landed in Puerto Madryn in 1865 found only a windswept, dry, and barren land. Only help from Buenos Aires ensured their initial survival as well as learning hunting and fishing skills from the local Indians.

However, in 1869, they produced their first successful harvest and using a network of irrigation channels they were thriving by 1880.  By 1884 they had pushed up the Chubut River valley to found Trelew, Gaiman and Dolavan and later settlement even expanded westward to Trevelin in the foothills of the Andes.

The depression years in the 1930’s and government mismanagement saw the end of prosperity but the Welsh clung on, though in later years they were considered unpatriotic and the old language and traditions started to die out.

However, a more recent revival has energised the towns and now there is even an annual Eisteddfod. However, the visitor expecting traditional Welsh villages may be sorely disappointed: what few old houses there are are hidden between more modern concrete blocks and the villages if anything resemble rather dusty Australian outback ones. The old buildings were not particularly notable even in their day and even the chapels are fairly plain and functional – which is as it should be, but whether they are worth the detour is debatable.

Like Chatwin many years ago, we took our life in our hands and boarded a bus at Retiro in Buenos Aires for the 20 hour overnight trip south to Puerto Madryn, the gateway to whale watching on Peninsula Valdes and the Welsh villages of the Chubut.

Trelew

Today, Trelew is the largest of the Chubut valley towns but not a terribly attractive one. There are some old chapels, the oldest being Capilla Moriah which was built in 1880 and lies 3km south of town on the Rawson road; this has an interesting old cemetery around it, but the gate was firmly padlocked when we visited.

 

The highlight of Trelew for us actually had nothing to do with Wales at all: the Museum of Paleontology Egidio Feruglio has a superb fossil collection which although quite small is imaginatively displayed and of great variety. I particularly liked the fighting ‘cats’ and the crabs. However, they also have the giants of the dinosaur world, complete with sound effects that are actually quite atmospheric. This display explains the giant lifesize dinosaur that stands beside the road just north of Trelew!

Don’t miss the dinosaur’s egg in the entrance hall, perfectly round and about 6 inches in diameter. Underneath, there is one cut in half, jewel like in its beauty.  The entrance fee was AR$150 which is quite high, but probably worth it in this case.

The museum is also involved in the Bryn Gwyn paleontology park 8km south of Gaiman where it is possible to walk amongst the fossil beds. However this was mysteriously closed when we tried to visit.

Gaiman

What definitely wasn’t worth it was the Welsh tea in Gaiman, a concept definitely resting on its laurels and long gone visits by Bruce Chatwin in 1974 and Princess Diana in 1995.

To start with, it is is rather disconcerting to find these places looking totally closed – it’s 23° degrees outside, can’t they leave a door open? We started with Plas y Coed which was approached past a totally neglected garden; the little tearoom inside wasn’t much more inspiring. A tea towel on the wall doth not a tearoom make! I think it is this one that Chatwin visited.

At Ty Gwyn, things did not improve. Lack of interior light, too many tables and too many big tables, obviously geared towards the bus tours. Tea when it came was an anemic selection of thinly sliced buttered breads and small dry scones on one plate and a rather scrappy selection of tiny cake slices on another. I’m sorry, but does anyone actually eat bread and butter for afternoon tea these days? In fact, it may well be the only authentic part of the tea experience, a relic of a bygone age.

Neither has bread and butter a place in a menu costing AR$350 per person, unless it is a nice fresh loaf hot from the oven, which this certainly wasn’t. Oh well, the tea was ok and came with a cute crocheted tea cosy!

Gaiman itself was a marginally more attractive village, with poplar trees lining the river banks and a central plaza. Sights included the Primera Casa (first house) dating back to 1874, a basic one storey stone hut and the Museo Historico Regional Gales, a minor museum about the Pioneers housed in the old railway station. The chap in charge is very friendly and happy to fill in on the local history. The railway reached Gaiman in 1902 but was abandoned in the 1960’s due to lack of investment and in fact rail really does not exist at all in Argentina today, which I think a very retrograde step.

To recoup some of our tea expenses, we camped in an enclosed space behind the Bomberos Voluntarios (firemen) buildings (AR$120 each). I think we were the first guests in a while as frantic shower block cleaning ensued but it was a pleasant enough spot,  the showers were excellent and hot, and they had a friendly cat who joined us for breakfast,

Dolavan

The smallest of the three towns, with a shady irrigation channel running through the centre. There is not much to this place either but we had a pleasant drive back to to Gaiman on quiet, green, river valley roads – and there is a lot to be said for that when generally the surrounding area is monotonous and arid.

En route, we found the San David Chapel (1917), a simple brick construction with a bell tower. It was locked.

To Sum Up…

The Welsh settlements in the Chubut Valley are an anachronism. They shouldn’t have worked but they did and today that is where the real interest lies, as an example of survival against the odds and the power of human endeavours. Only in seeing the surrounding countryside, can one wholly appreciate their achievement. The landscape and the architecture may be much more beautiful in the real Wales, but this area holds a unique piece of Welsh history.

So if you do find yourself in this rather desolate corner of the world, then by all means take a look at this strange little spot and raise a cup of tea to the endurance and eventual triumph of those original settlers.

Just be warned, it will cost you!