Patagonia
Pete Writes: After a grueling few bus journeys (50 hours in total!) we ended up in El Calafate, which is famous for the Perito Moreno Glacier. We decided that we would book a tour which would include a 2 hour hike over the Glacier wearing crampons. We had heard lots of reports about the glacier, however nothing could prepare us for the sheer size of it! It measures 5 km in width, 80 meters high (above the water) and 30 km in length. It is bigger than the capital Buenos Aires! We were both in ore instantly! The hike over the Glacier was lots off fun, although it did get a bit cold but we were given a nice shot of whiskey Over Ice (pardon the pun!) which soon warmed the cockles :o)
Next mission was to get back on a bus for another 17 hours (glutton’s for punishment) and head North to Puerto Madryn to do a bit of Whale spotting. As we walked along the beach front you could see at least 6 mothers and their calves in the sea. Again we booked onto another tour to go out on a boat to get up closer look at these massive mammals. I was not disappointed as we spent a good 30 Min’s floating next to a courting couple, the female had to be at least 15 meters in length. Amazing!! We then proceeded to the Edge of the Peninsula to see few elephant seals just lazing around on the Beach waiting to conceive and to give Birth. There were only a few on the Beach, but according to our guide in a month there would be 1000´s of seals on this stretch of Beach!
Chloe Writes: The last week has been amazing. Like Pete said the Glacier was breath-taking and one of the most spectacular landscapes I have seen on this trip so far. The sheer size and magnitude was immense and unfortunately the photos do not do it justice. The glacier is one of the few in the world that still advances and every few years it reaches the side of a mountain, which when the water level in the lake rises, this part of the glacier starts to melt, creating an arch which eventually crashes into the sea. Unfortunately we missed this spectacle by a matter of weeks.
The whale watching also made the long bus journeys worth while, they put on an amazing show for us from the boat. The Sound of the female expelling water from the blow hole at the top of her head made me feel like i was watching first hand an extract from David Attenborough´s Planet Earth.
Its back on the bus for another 17 hours (we shouldnt complain as the buses are some of the best in the world), heading North to Buenos Aires. The South was freezing but it´s getting warmer with every bus we take.
Page Gallery
The first of many glacier pics, sorry but we took so many it was hard to choose.
This is the remains of the fallen arch
A view on our walk to the glacier
Pete on the Glacier
Wisky to warm the cockles
Chloe in front of an ice cavern
Our tour group
A hole caused by receeding water…. not one you want to fall in
View from the Glacier
Jagged peaks caused by the advancing (2 meters per day) of the glacier. You can also hear the lound rumblings it makes
View from the ground
The pics do nothing to emphasize the scale of it
The view from our hostel in El Calafate, cant complain!
The beach in Puerto Madryn where you can spot whales
Pete in is whale watching finery
And Chloe in hers on the boat.. the gear was a god send as it was freezing
The male Whale was alot smaller than the female
The females tail
The females head
This beach on the peninsula will be covered with thousands of Elephant seals in a couple of months
Here are just a few of the smaller females
Tags: Argentina
August 25th, 2008 at 8:39 am
That Glacier looks amazing!!