A bus ride from El Calafate would bring us to the national park. We had nice views along the way on yet another beautiful sunny day.
Swampy area outside El Calafate that is sometimes covered by the waters of Lago Argentino. Evidence of drought.Oily bush used for medical purposes. Lots of bushes and grasses. Daddy Rhea with many babies from several moms.Lago ArgentinoMarta took pictures of clouds, too.Austral ThrushForested hillsBroad anticline across the valley
Near the National Park, the hills were covered with native trees.
Once inside Los Glaciares, the road was steep and windy. Jimena had the bus stop before we arrived at the glacier to explain, clearly and accurately, what we would see. She used some of her own photographs.
Then we split up, to experience the glacier on our own or in small groups.
Map of park with viewpointsExplanation of the glacier Perito Moreno, the second largest glacier in South AmericaPanorama from a low point where we ate our lunch out of the wind. Iceberg in foreground.
We learned that the deeper the blue color of the ice, the more compacted. This explains why the blue color is much more common here than in Alaska, where the ice sheet is thinner. Here, the ice is over 3,000 feet thick. The ice moves an average of 2 meters per day! The front is calving continuously and is currently retreating slowly. In the past, the glacier has sped up and sometimes reached the Magallanes Peninsula, where we are standing, damming the upper portion of Lago Argentino.
Views of glacier from many vistas along the metal walkway. The boat, for scale, holds about 100 people. This ice must have been very deep.Boat for scale Condor
The wind started picking up, and we were glad for our parkas.
The blue in the lake is from light refracting glacial flour. Sedimentary layers below stairs on the walkway. Breathtaking
After spending a few hours at the glacier, we drove to another viewpoint for a toast with Calafate berry liquor. Some say if you drink this, you will return to Patagonia.
Fire bush in front of the glacierA final toast to Los GlaciaresSign at the viewpoint conveying Argentina’s claim to the Falkland IslandsSign in El Calafate honoring Moreno, who named Lago Argentina and founded the first national park in Argentina (Nahuel Huapi in Bariloche). The title Perito (expert) was bestowed to honor his service.
Six of us were dropped off at the Glaciarium, a museum outside the park dedicated to glaciers, one of few in the world.
Glaciarium with shuttle bus that would bring us back to town.Lago Argentino, the largest freshwater lake in ArgentinaMust be windy!South Patagonian Ice FieldDetail showing the long tongue of Perito Moreno glacier encroaching on the Magallanes Peninsula3D map of topography of the South Patagonian Ice Field and associated glaciers.
We took the bus again to a home + restaurant for our last, though delicious, dinner as a group.
The farewell dinner at Gabriel’s house/restaurantGabriel, the homeowner and chef with Marta, our leaderUnwinding back at the hotel Argentinian white wineChris presented Marta with a Colorado souvenir book that we had signed.
Bunch of Geeks go Traveling 