El Calafate and the Glaciers

After yet another 18-hour bus ride overnight we arrived in Rio Gallegos and then transferred to another 4-hour bus ride to El Calafate, home of the famous Perito Moreno glacier.

This map in red shows the Santa Cruz province in which El Calafate is located. This was the furthest south that we got.

We had hoped to go to the end of the world, to Tierra del Fuego, a jumping off point to Antarctica, but our flight there was cancelled and we just couldn't hack more bus rides that we had to.

The hostel in Calafate, America del Sur, was pretty good. Compared to our chilly room in Bariloche, it really toasty and they served a great nightly, all-you-can-eat BBQ.

America del Sur was situated up on a hill with a great view of Lago Argentino, one of the biggest lakes in Argentina. The perfect weather during the day lent itself to gorgeous sunsets at night that we enjoyed from the common area.

The town’s economy is centred around tourists who come here for access to the Parque Nacional de los Glaciares. When we arrived at the hostel we were inundated with a variety of tour options for viewing the various glaciers.

For our first full day we selected the all-day boat tour that would take us on Lago Argentino to view the Upsala and Spegazzini glaciers. Upsala is the largest glacier out of atleast 300 in Argentina.

We had a fantastic day on the boat. Not a cloud was in the sky and the majestic, snow covered Andes mountains gleamed white in the morning sun.

Rocky was having a blast taking photos from the outer deck while I preferred to enjoy the scenery from inside where it was warm. When we arrived close to the glaciers, everyone would go outside and get a close look at them.

The glaciers were impressive, but we also really enjoyed the multitude of icebergs floating in the lake. They formed such beautiful shapes, some looking like human-made sculptures. Many were also brilliant blue, floating in blue-green water, set against our clear blue sky that day.

Perito Moreno

For our second day, we had wanted to book the tour to Perito Moreno glacier that including viewing, a boat ride, and then actually hiking on the glacier with crampons on our feet.

When we went to book, it was already full. We were disappointed, but sort of thought there must be a reason we shouldn’t go. That night, Rocky came down with major tummy troubles that lasted three days.

I decided to go on the guided tour to Perito Moreno without him. It’s the most famous of the glaciers in Argentina—because it advances rather than recedes—so I thought one of us should see it.

Two other girls from the hostel and I were picked up by the mini-van. We had about an hour drive to Parque Nacional los Glaciares, while our guide Ramon talked in Spanish, English and some French along the way. He was really funny, so it made the drive go faster.

When we arrived at the park, we stopped at a spot where boats took off from to see Perito Moreno up close. We had to wait 15-20 minutes to get on the boat and during that time it felt like my feet literally froze.

When we finally got on boat, all I could do for about 20 minutes was thaw my icy feet by the tiny little vent with hot air coming out. Once they thawed, I went out side to enjoy the glacier up close.

We were only looking at one small side of it from the boat. It wasn’t as impressive as what we saw later in the day, but I could see the trekkers walking up the glacier with their crampons on.

The fantastic views were at the next stop, where there were a few big balcony lookout points as well as a beautiful walkway through the trees.

During our two hours at the lookout ice fell from the glacier about ten times. The pieces that fall look so small compared to the glacier, yet when they land they make such a massive sound. Perito Moreno is one of the only glaciers in Argentina that is advancing, hence the falling of the ice.

It really was one of the most beautiful things I have seen on earth so far.

Click here to see all the Glacier photos.