Home from home
Trip Start
Sep 2005
1
29
52
Trip End
Sep 2006
El Calafate,
Argentina
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
After all the driving lately I decided to take Desert Orchid to the garage. I call her this because she now runs like a champion. To date I've had a flat tyre, flat battery, busted oil sump, busted handbrake and busted boot. Not bad for 1 month. To be fair I've clocked up a lot of miles (4500km) and on some really shitty roads.
Yesterday I took Desert Orchid to see the Moreno Glacier. Having been in the Parque Nacional Los Glaciers for 3 days I wasn't so enthusiastic but I'd been told that it's a must-see. So reluctantly I went, expecting to arrive and do a quick 5 minute-tour. "Yep it's another glacier", take a photograph and head off. But this was no ordinary glacier. It was the mother and father of all glaciers. Not only was it huge but it's also incredibly active. Most glaciers don't do much, but this one is constantly "calving", which is the techinical term for giving birth to huge ice-chunks - little baby glaciers if you like
01 Glacier ahead
. It advances 2 meters a day, so theres non-stop cracking, creeking, splashing, and the occasional rumble like thunder when a really big bit breaks off. 32 people have been killed watching it. I saw one fairly large chunk fall off which was about 30-40 meters high. Luckily I got some photos of it. My camara was hardly in its pocket the whole time. It was the best thing I've seen since the waterfalls up north. If you're ever in this neck of the woods you should definitely go see it.Afterwards I camped under a lovely starry sky on the other side of the lake from the glacier. All through the night you could hear bits breaking off like distant thunder. It was superb. It would remind you of sitting out in the back garden on a nice calm night listening to a bit of shooting.
