El Chaltén

From Buenos Aires we made our way South (further south than we already were!) to Patagonia. Patagonia spans across both Chile and Argentina, separated down the middle by the Andes Mountain Range. The Argentine side is characterized by grasslands and deserts, while the Chilean side is better known for glaciers, greenery, and rainforests.

To get there we flew 3.5 hours Southwest from Buenos Aires to El Calafate, a small mountain village on the Argentinian side. From there we picked up a (standard) rental car and drove north about 3 hours to El Chaltén. It was a bit of a hairy exit from the airport with Matt having minimal standard driving hours under his belt along with our rental car having seen more than a few tourist drivers in shoddy driving conditions. But we made it.

El Chaltén is a town in Los Glaciares National Park made famous by the renowned Mount Fitz Roy and it’s surrounding Glacial Lakes. The village has the very distinct feeling of a ski town, filled with outdoor enthusiasts who spend their days hiking and climbing the surrounding mountains, and their nights drinking cervezas in local bars and ordering empanadas like there is no tomorrow.

We spent 4 nights here, and although we are not experienced hikers, set our sights on the 2 big hikes of this area; both to glacial lakes, at the base of the largest peaks in the area.

The pictures we took show an impressive landscape, but they really do not come close to conveying the unbelievable beauty we saw. Patagonia is hands down the most naturally stunning and magical place we have ever been. The vast landscapes at every turn seem too big, too colourful, too pure, and too natural to be real.

Cerro Torre

Cerro Torre was the first big hike we did. This hike is about 20km total, with varied terrain, and despite no major ascent, a very up and down elevation that was a physical challenge. Initially you are looking around at these beautiful rolling hills as you ascend; thinking it’s incredible. And then about 30 mins into the hike you reach a peak where you can start to see Cerro Torre, and your jaw just drops. This is the view for the remainder of the trip as you get closer to the base:

 

With each kilometer conquered, the mountains get closer!

The flat, open plains were actually some of the most stunning parts of the hike.

Above is the Glacial Lake at the end at the base of Cerro Torre. The wind was definitely the strongest we’ve ever felt – you could barely stay on your feet and it was incredibly loud! We stuck around here for a few pictures and then quickly made our way back down. The mountain in the background is not the one from the first few pictures; we were close enough to the mountain from the first few pictures that it was impossible to take a picture that captured the whole thing.

Fitz Roy

After a rest day we took on the most iconic hike of El Chaltén. When you google ‘Patagonia hiking’ Fitz Roy is one of the most common images that comes up. We spent about 6 hours hiking out to the mountain and back, which doesn’t sound too bad, but the part that makes this a gruelling hike is the last hour before you get to Fitz Roy. The ascent to get to the 2 glacial lakes at the base of the mountain is 1km long at a 60 degree incline, which takes about an hour to climb.

To start however, it’s a fairly easy hike through a forest. Within the first 30 mins of the hike you start to see a large glacier, which you get closer to as you hike.

Repping our brands.

This is an example of the easy going trail and bridges you are dealing with at the start; fairly flat and manageable.

Then you get to the base of the last ascent, and the ground is extremely rough, with loose rocks and sand covering the trail, making for a treacherous climb up (and down!). This is what the “trail” looked like all the way up!

You can see the path of the final ascent on the front of the hill in the foreground. It starts out relatively straight at the base and then turns into a series of tight switchbacks at the top as it gets really steep. This 1 hour ascent was more than worth it though – the view on the other side of the climb was incredible!

The Glacier Lakes really take on a special character with their vibrant aqua coloured water and offer a really high contrast picture compared to other bodies of water.

We were told to keep going to the top of  another small peak to be able to see another lake; in our opinion this is the true beauty; Laguna (Lake) Sucia was truly breathtaking. Here you can see Laguna Sucia on the left and Laguna de los Tres on the right. Notice that they are at different heights; Laguna Sucia is much lower, which makes for an interesting and perplexing visual effect.

Unfortunately the cloud cover was a little low which covered the very peaks of the mountains, but the landscape was indescribable. This is Lake Sucia.

Often the view toward the mountain is the superior one as it’s the target, however the walk back from this one was pretty good too (as seen above)! We descended down the mountain and hiked about 2.5 hours along the river at the bottom out to the road.

During our stay in El Chalten we were either hiking, or we were likely getting a cerveza, at the spa (!) recovering from hiking, or in an incredible restaurant that we found one night. The food in El Chaltén seemed to be more about sustenance and catering to tourists, and less about interesting, local cuisine. We did find a few gems, but one in particular had excellent service, the BEST empanadas we had throughout Argentina, and awesome main courses including freshly made pastas and stews. We ate here more than once and always took extra empanadas to go at the end of the meal!

Looking back at El Chaltén and Fitz Roy one last time.

Adios El Chalten,
– M&A