The Mountain at Fitz Roy and the Perito Moreno Glacier

Monday morning I took the bus to El Chalten, the town at the base of Fitz Roy -- probably Argentina's most well-knonw mountain; their version of Mt. Rainier. It is a massive vertical spire, capped with ice... if you're familiar with the Washington Cascades, imagine Mt. Index multiplied by 2 or 3. I got to El Chalten by 11:00. It was a spectacular day -- sunny, warm enough for shorts, and not much wind. Apparently some climbers will wait a few weeks for such a day. Wanting to take full advantage, I was on the trail by noon. The great thing about El Chalten is that the trailheads are all right in town. The hike was 14 miles roundtrip with 3,300 feet up to a low peak that offered a stunning panorama of Fitz Roy and the nearby peaks and glaciers, as well as the large lake leading out into the open steppe to the east.

I stayed in a little guest house in El Chalten; only 4 rooms. Eduardo, the owner, was gracious and took good care of me.

Tuesday, I experienced more typical El Chalten weather... overcast with a steady 25-30 mph wind. I still got in a good hike, but this was a shorter one, and there were lots of people on the trail. Had to laugh at a t-shirt I saw a kid wearing as I passed on the trail... Mr. Spock (from Star Trek) doing the Vulcan peace sign, with "Fo' Shizzle" underneath. Got back to town embedded in dust, packed up, and caught the evening bus back to El Calafate.

Wednesday I took the bus up to the Perito Moreno glacier (as if I'm not going to be spending enough time around ice on this trip). What a sight! The glacier is 22 miles long and rises 300 feet above the lake at its terminus; it's one of the few major glaciers in the world still advancing. I did a little boat trip to view it from the lake and then spent a couple hours on a viewing platform watching the calving... huge chunks of it falling off and shattering into the lake. The sounds of the creaking, popping, and booming were as impressive and surreal as the visual experience.

I had an agenda of things I wanted to see in the first three days (which I did), but I had to go non-stop... diet and sleep suffered a little. The last 24 hours has been a nice breather, and I feel like I'm starting to get into the rhythm of traveling and how to get around here (including the ATMs, thankfully). Today is rainy and 50-something degrees. I went for a walk in a little wildlife refuge on the edge of town and am now preparing to head to the airport to move on to Ushuaia.

Thankfully, I do not have to rely on my rudimentary Spanish here. Since these towns are so geared for tourism, most people speak some English (certainly better than my Spanish). I am getting the hang of a few useful Spanish phrases... like ordering food. My favorite thing is the empanada... little pastry pockets filled with meat or veggies. Portable, cheap, and tasty. The food is all pretty good... except I had the worst cup of coffee in my life a couple days ago. Which reminded me of the best cup of coffee I ever had in Ethiopia. Perhaps a trivial example, but a good illustration of how you never know how good or how bad something can really be until you travel... whether to another City or another country.