El Chalten, Patagonia, Argentina

Our first sighting of Mount Fitzroy - El Chalten

From the beautiful El Calafate, we get the bus to nearby El Chalten. Having developed, after just two days, a very strong friendship with a Canadian girl named Angela, and another, not so strong friendship with a (potentially) french guy, the four of us decide to do the Mount Fitzroy hike together. As we come close to the town, the bus driver stops to let us out to take photos, the view was not immediately visible, but when it appeared in front of me the whole experience was breathtaking. The cool clean air coupled with the pristine white peak of Mount Fitzroy made me feel like I was inhaling the purest oxygen via sight and sound simultaneously. The village of El Chalten is a miniscule map of tiny wooden chalets at the mountains base and I cannot think of a more beautiful place to live on this planet.

One of the lakes where we stopped to have lunch & little cakies!

Always time for a pose!

Models I tell you!

 The water at the base of the mountain comes from the glacier just beneath its peak in this photo. The water is so clean, cold and pure coming directly from the glacier that it can be drank straight from the river. Delicious and incredibly refreshing mid-hike!

Angela and our French friend complete a large part of the hike with us, but turn back before reaching the peak itself. Donal and I continue on, determined not to miss out on this stunning jagged tooth up close! So we march onwards, the hardest part yet to come. It is one and a half hours steep uphill climb across jagged rocky terrain. We sweat, endure and like moan-y non-hikers we repeatedly ask other hikers on the way down how long we have left until the top.

We arrive. It is spectacular. As it is late in the day, maybe 6pm, many hikers are already on the return journey and the peak is ours to enjoy in silence.

It was such an amazing feeling to reach the top!

The lake at the base of the peak - this is as close as we can get to the tooth without rock climbing equipment

The view behind us as we climb the last hour of steep ascent

The glacier up close

The day draws to a close as we descend the mountain..

 This was the last sighting of my amazing camera! This camera slept with me under my pillow on every bus journey and every hostel, until after all my careful-ness I put down the camera on a mountain whilst tying my shoelace! We didn't realise until we got back to the hostel...and Donal, being the amazing boyfriend/person that he is, climbed the mountain again the next day in a last ditch attempt to find it. Although the camera was never retrieved after an extensive ground search/visit to police station/putting up signs all over town & chatting to every single person to come down off the mountain, it did occur to me that I am very lucky. All of these photos are courtesy of Donal & our amazing friend Angela! Thanks guys!

We stayed at this place for one night, when we first arrived. The lady of the manor was freaking out as she was experiencing a 'fly infestation'. 'It ees not becosss I have a derrty home! There are cows everywhere in deeess town and they make deeess flies!'. I don't mind flies, but she was batshit. The El Chalten Fly massacre ensued and we managed to get out of there without catching crazy.

Hey Yo Angelawww!

French guy, Angela, Me agus Donal

El Calafate - Patagonia, Argentina

 

Perito Moreno Glacier

After a week in Buenos Aires we are ready once again for the wilderness! After some difficulty booking a flight, which took a few days, we finally get on board a small plane Southbound for the stunning and spectacular Patagonia - first stop El Calafate!

To fly from such a busy city, and arrive in a vast open windy and beautiful landscape, literally takes my breath away. The airport is tiny, the runway almost like a small road in the middle of a vast open space, with nothing in sight for what seems like hundreds of miles.

The air is pure and clean and my lungs feel cleansed with my first inhale. We are both excited, more so than when we usually arrive at a new place. Patagonia feels different, it feels full of adventure and wildness and its emptiness makes it feel like we are the first people to discover this land.

The town of El Calafate

We board a bus which takes us to the town of El Calafate, it is peak summer season and with our distress at trying to book a flight, we didn't get time to book accommodation. We are dropped off in the towns center and we begin our search.

We try a cute little cottage which advertises rooms free, but alas, they are booked up. Luckily, in typical Argentinian style, the owner, wants to do absolutely everything he can to get us a room, and calls up a few people. Ten minutes later we are on our way to a gorgeous wooden cabin style hostel, private room and hot showers. Just what the doctor ordered!

This was a restaurant window front - at least they removed the guts I suppose!

Our first full day in El Calafate is spent wandering the pretty town which serves as a holiday village for Argentinians during the summer months, and a ski resort in the winter months. As a result the town has a touristy feel, but in a really good, summery way. The town is pretty and filled with artisan shops and crafts and cafes and chocolatey places. Lovely!

The bird in the background was attacking this eagle as it was getting too close to its nest & chicks

Wild Rheas, just running like that in the fields! Amazing!

A typical Argentinian style Ranch - gorgeous!

The main attraction for people traveling to El Calafate is the nearby Poreto Moreno Glacier, one of the only glaciers in the world which is actually growing instead of declining. We arrange a trip out there with our hostel, which also includes stopping at the world's most beautiful ranch/farm.

The ranch looks over this spectacular lake, surrounded by horses grazing and silence, it is the most serene place I have ever been.

View over the lake to the rear of the ranch

Just your average goat chilling out on the back porch!

Tiniest Goat on the planet!

Oh this little guy, I loved him so much! The poor thing was so small he seemed like he had just gotten out of the ole womb - he could barely move like, so I took advantage of the fact he couldn't get away from me & pretty much petted him until we had to leave.

Oh God he was too cute!

The landscape was just so untouched and peaceful

This is a tame Andean Fox which the family running the ranch had found as a pup and then kept him as a pet - his fur was so soft, like a dog with the softness of cat fur!

The llama whose head just comes in a bit from the left, had just spat on one of the others in our group & was pretty unfriendly to all the tourists, so to catch him rubbing noses with this baby goat was so sweet!

The spitting llama in question

Perito Moreno Glacier - side one

For the first part of viewing the glacier, we travel out on the water in a boat to get right up close. The temperature is warm - we have sunscreen on, and it feels bizarre that there could be a glacier in conjunction with such heat. Our guide explains that if we were to fall off the boat, a human could not last more than 3 minutes in the below freezing water.

People hiking on the glacier

The land itself is so unusual - all those geography classes on glaciation have come in useful!

Perito Moreno - Side 2

This side of the glacier is more rapidly advancing and therefore cannot be accessed by boat, instead there is a wooden walkway built so that tourists can get up close safely. The most amazing thing about the glacier, is that is is actually advancing before your eyes! The huge force of the glacier itself pushing forward, puts pressure on the ice at its forefront, causing large chunks of ice to break away. The absolute magnitude and sound from each ice block crashing into the water, reverberates first a low grumble, followed by what sounds like a massive crack of thunder. It really is so spectacular to experience, and something I don't think I ever realised could actually exist. Absolutely amazing.

A huge chunk of ice has just dropped into the water - the oohs and aahs from the crowds were great!