To Polonio by Truck

		MORE OUTINGS IN Cabo Polonio

Florencia Pollack

A Place Hard to Access

Reaching the 265th kilometer marker on Route 10, in the stretch joining La Paloma and Aguas Dulces bathing resorts, several companies offer transportation services to Cape Polonio. The distance may be covered only on authorized vehicles –nicknamed “camels”- or on horseback. Those who choose to go across this area by truck will find the distance is covered fast; the journey is safe and exciting at the same time.

The Frenchman at the Cape

The first one to think about this practical way to access the cape was a character that has become almost a legend: the Frenchman. It is said that he fought during the Second World War and that when he migrated to South America, he settled down at Cape Polonio, a long dreamed-of quiet shelter.

In those days, the cape could only be accessed on foot or on a cart pulled by horses. Both ways implied long hours and effort, and it was very difficult to transport food and people.

The Frenchman had seen the large trucks capable of crossing the dunes fast and safely during the war, so he resolved to import them in order to connect the cape to civilization. The undertaking was a success and so far it has been the most used means to reach the bathing resort.

The Route to the Cape

The old routes along which the colossus used to travel were laid out again when the Cape Polonio dunes were declared Natural Monument by the National Government. In order to preserve them, a route that borders the sand hills up to the cape was set.

The truck is terraced and youths usually stand at the top, as they laugh and enjoy the thrill caused by they vehicle when it speeds up –though it does not go that fast, but raises a huge cloud of sand behind it-, the perspective of getting into wild territory and the taste of adventure.

An atmosphere of comradeship rules among those who sit in the intermediate level. Everybody is charmed with the beauty of nature.

So Long

After spending one day at the cape, going back home makes us feel melancholic. Inside the truck, fading murmurs are covered by the sound of the engine. A solemn feeling invades tourists who are bidding good-bye to this oasis away from time and space.

A delightful sunset sees them off and promises to meet them again.