El Chalten Hotels
Shanewilson's travel blogs:
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Trekking in Patagonia
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Patagonia has definitely lived up to its reputation as being an unbelievable travel destination. I can see why the locals go out of their way to come here... the treks and camping are simply first class.
The weather has been absolutely phenomenal... clear blue skies and reasonable temperatures. Puts the Lares trek in Peru to shame. And there were no tourists... very refreshing to think that it is only me and nature for many hours at a time. I loved it. Backpacking at its best. El Chalten is a fascinating little town in the middle of nowhere. Very dusty and set amongst the mountains of Patagonia. El Chalten is in the middle of a building boom and I predict that this town will double, triple or quadruple in the years to come. I have taken a few pics for comparison reasons if I shall ever return. I´m sure it will be a booming touristy town in 20 or so years. The town has numerous restaurants to whet the appetite, but very little night time entertainment. The prime purpose for coming to El Chalten is to participate in the outstanding treks, and camp for free if you have the equipment. I can highly recommend camping in this part of the world. I wish I had of had the means to do it... surprising given my latest camping experiences!
I did two main treks. On arrival in the town at 1pm yesterday, I walked the 6 hour return trip to Lagune Terror which gave me excellent views of Cerro Torre and its range. The walk was probably one of the best I´ve done this year... had just enough challenge to make it worthwhile but the scenery kept me in awe. The hostel, Rio Grande, was excellent as well. Very simple but had a restaurant and bar which makes socialising in hostels so much easier. The staff were outstanding and spoke English. The food was delicious and cheap. I had my first Argentinian steak last night and need I say more but it was an exquisite eating experience! The main difference is the thickness and the juice. My god... it was absolutely delicious. Whilst enjoying this steak, I met a great couple from Zurich who have been following me from Puerto Natales. They are great people... wish I could of gotten to know them better. They will be in Madryn on Friday so I hope to meet up with them there.
On the second day, I did yet another 6 hour return walk to Poincenot which gave me great views of the prime sight here... Cerro Fitzroy, total height 3405m. I am definitely wearing the effects of 12 hours of walking. Am in desperate need of a foot massage and knee reconstruction. I arrived back in El Calafate at 9.30pm. I have since booked my bus ticket for Madryn... will take 24 hours. I depart at 12pm tomorrow, spend 4.5 hours driving to Rio Gallegos, 1.5 hours in transit, and then another 18 hours from Rio Gallegos to Madryn. I have done train trips of this magnitude but never a bus trip. To say the least, I am not looking forward to it.
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