Sailors, Patagonia and Antarctic Lovers, Club de Yates Micalvi needs you!

People on sailboats from all over the world have been coming, and will keep coming, to this region of high winds and heavy seas in order to reach what many consider the Everest of high latitude sailing: Cape Horn and Antarctica. In their search for adventure, sailors arrive at Micalvi looking for a safe harbor, shelter and the provisions necessary to prepare for and recover from their expeditions. They also find a community of fellow sailors and welcoming locals. Thus the image of Micalvi, the southernmost yacht club in the world, lives in the memories of thousands of sailors around the world making it one of the most famous and remote. It is a community crossroads, a safe mooring, and a museum.

Today, Micalvi is at risk of decommissioning and this is why your help is needed. Without your voice, a safe mooring facility for sailboats might not continue to be available in Puerto Williams.

Over the past few years, Micalvi has deteriorated significantly and it now requires critical maintenance and repairs. We need to draw attention to this critical facility that has played such an important role in the nautical history of the region. The history of Micalvi and its current function as an expeditionary sailing base must be preserved.

The facilities at Micalvi make Puerto Williams the preeminent sail base in this region attracting adventurers and maritime resources while providing local employment, recreation and economic benefits. Without the active voice and presence of sailors this will be forgotten. We would like to hear your voice in order to highlight the importance of Micalvi and its upkeep for future generations of sailors whether local students or dreamers on other continents.

The Chilean Armada in Puerto Williams has continued to offer safe harbor to stranded and damaged sailboats throughout the pandemic. They have set a global example for ensuring the care of all vessels in need. Now we need the Armada to support our cause as we ask the Micalvi administration to bring the mooring facilities and Club de Yates back to life.

We ask that you sign this petition saying that Micalvi is important to you! Let your voice be heard: YES, I have been to Micalvi; YES, Micalvi should be saved; YES, Micalvi is history worth preserving; YES, I plan to visit.

Please tell us what year(s) you have been here, why Micalvi is important to you, record an anecdote or share when you plan to visit. Your voice and opinion are crucial to communicate the need for a sailboat facility in Puerto Williams.

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Background: The Micalvi was built in Germany in 1925 where she was commissioned as the Bragi. Constructed to carry cargo on the Baltic, she was quickly sold and placed into service ferrying goods up and down the Rhine river. In 1928 the Bragi was laden with a cargo of ammunition purchased by the Chilean government, and sailed across the Atlantic. In Tierra del Fuego, the German crew lightered their cargo of ammunition onto the Chilean warship Almirante Latore. Legend has it the Chileans then asked, “What do you want to do with her now?”; and the Bragi‘s captain replied, “She’s non-returnable.” The German crew then disembarked.

The good ship was renamed the Micalvi and she spent the subsequent 30 years as a supply ship carrying food, fuel and passengers between Punta Arenas and the scattered farmsteads, Yaghan villages, mission stations, and naval bases of the remote lands to the south. A rock in the Strait of Magellan would prove the end of her shipping career in 1961. Towed to Puerto Williams, she was finally scuttled west of the Puerto Williams town center where she eventually became a museum and the Club de Yates Micalvi, taking on a new sailing life. Declared a national monument in 1976 and operated by the Armada, the Micalvi has become the critical enabling base for sailors throughout the region. Visiting and community sailboats moor alongside Micalvi rafting with other boats and utilize Armada provided moorings in the adjacent protected waters, affording critical protection in the narrow seno. The Micalvi lounge is filled with memorabilia from previous sailing expeditions, and the ship's bridge serves as a small museum.