Vuelvo al Sur
Trip Start
Oct 25, 2007
1
33
36
Trip End
Apr 17, 2008
El Calafate,
Argentina
Saturday, March 1, 2008
I met some wonderful people here that I hope to be in touch with again in Buenos Aires. I went ice trekking on the Perito Moreno glacier - an expensive but incredibly fun experience. As we sailed from one side of the Lago Argentino to the other past the glacier, we observed huge pieces of it come off and thunderously crash into the icy waters of the lake, creating wave rings that rocked our boat in no uncertain terms. The glacier was while-blueish in color, and where the blue came through it was so intense, bluer than that of the skies.
The skies themselves here are incredible. It's like being in a cartoon - vivid blue with bright white clouds hovering so low above the ground, you feel like they are going to swoop down and brush against you any minute now.
I spent two days in Chile, in the Torres del Paine national park. Each day I did a hike; on the second day I went up to the Torres del Paine mirador (viewpoint) - a 20km uphill hike in under 7 hours. My legs are still hurting from that, but it was all so worth it. Once you climb over the final ridge and look upon the three jagged pillars that are the Torres, your breath stops for a second to take it all in.
I didn't have time to do the famous W circuit because I am moving on to Ushuaia today; but once again I am pretty certain I will return to this wild, untouched by modern civilization corner of the earth. Next time hopefully I can do some camping as well.
El Calafate is horribly expensive. You can't pay less than $10 for a basic meal at a cafe or restaurant, and a simple coffee is $3 - same price as in NY!
