Ice Age
Day 200
Leaving El Chalten this morning couldn’t get any easier. Since there is no bus station in town the buses leave from their offices. The easy part was the bus company we were taking also owned our hostel, so the bus departed right out our front door. We, along with Natasha and Seamus climbed aboard for the 4 hour ride to El Calafate.
The trip was scenic but mostly uneventful. Well unless you consider the reststop that had dogs, a goat, a cow and a guanaco (Llama sort of animal) just hanging around. Come to think of it, this was pretty eventful. The guanaco and baby goat were IN the house just walking around and the cow was guarding the door, trying to also get in. Odd just doesn’t describe it. Soon after our animal encounter the road followed Lago Argentino. The lake is the largest t he is wholly in Argentina. Ice bergs floated in the blue water, chunks that had broken off the huge glacier Perito Moreno. The sight we were here to see.
Calafate is a bit like Chalten in that it also exists purely for tourism. The difference is Calafate has been around longer and since the activity here is looking at glaciers it draws all kinds of tourists. This all added up to a tourist town but a more pleasant place than Chalten. Really though the reason we were here was to see Perito Moreno and then leave. We found a room for the night and after a quick lunch Jordana, Natasha, Seamus and I organized a taxi to drive us out to the glacier for the afternoon.
Glaciar Perito Moreno, after Iguazu Falls its probably the most popular natural attraction in the country. You may have seen it before on the news. Every 8 years or so the glacier moves across a channel (Iceberg Channel) in the lake and blocks it. Eventually the pressure builds and the ice ruptures, opening the channel again. Its said the roars of ice breaking can be heard 80km away. This is one big chunk of ice, 14km straight back from the front and 60 meters high at its face. The most impressive stat for myself is that Moreno is one of only two advancing glaciers in South America and one of the very few in the planet. It advances about 7 cm each day in winter.
Our taxi sped down the road out of Calafate toward Perito Moreno, mostly following the blue waters of Lake Argentina with its floating icebergs. Almost an hour after leaving Calafate we turned a corner and there is was, a huge river of ice ending in the lakes waters. We were still over 3km away but it looked huge and very impressive from here. A few minutes later we reached the parking lot.
Jordana and I went to use the wash room and as I returned and waited with Natasha and Seamus we heard a loud thud. I looked at them with wide eyes and we all ran to the edge of the hillside to try and get a view, but we couldn’t even see the glacier from here. “Where is she?” I said, hoping that wasn’t the only action we heard from the ice today. She soon joined us and we headed out on the boardwalks the clung to the hillside across from the glacier.
I knew this would be impressive but I didn’t really know what to expect, I mean I’ve never seen a glacier and there isn’t many like this one anywhere in the world. WOW, that’s was all I could come out with upon first seeing this massive ice field. The glacier went for as far as my eye could see. Its 5km wide and snakes through a valley with rocky mountains on either side. Then it cuts across part of the lake, ending in front of us with 60 meter walls of ice. The colours were astounding. White with hues of blue near the top and at the bottom some amazing deep blues, almost purple shades. As we walked along the boardwalks the glacier creaked, grinded and thudded. Sometimes it sounded like explosions and gunshots as the ice moved and broke off. We settled at the best viewing platform and listened and watched. I now realized how people spent an entire day here. Its an incredible experience to watch chunks of ice break lose and plunge into the lake below. After 2 hours the wind picked up and a light drizzle fell, we were ready to head back to the taxi. Just before we left we saw the best sight of the day, a tall spiral of ice began to lean and plunge into the lake below, making a massive splash. What a finale. It seems I’ve said this a lot in Argentina and the “wow factor” is on overdrive here in Patagonian, but I can confidently say that the Perito Moreno Glacier is the most amazing and powerful natural sight I’ve ever seen.
Back at the hostel Jordana and Natasha cooked a tasty noquis dinner and we talked about the day over some red wine. This was our last night with Seamus and Natasha. Tomorrow we head north to Trelew and them to Bariloche. Things will feel different without our travel comrades. We’ve shared some of the best experiences of our whole trip with them.
Tags: Argentina, El Calafate, Patagonia, Perito Moreno Glacier
Michael Coroneos
And you said they wouldn’t expand/ move a team to Canada
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081020.shoalts21/BNStory/National/home
Please keep the comments on topic sir, although we would appreciate another club in T’Dot.
By the way Montreal is in the CONCACAF quarters. Oh and good thing you ditched that Irish guy I was getting jealous. I thought you two might be trying to replace me.