Patagonia, Argentina

We began our Patagonia journey in El Calafate, a town near the Southern Patagonian ice field in the province of Santa Cruz. The town was used as an area to raise sheep and trade wool in the early 20th century, but with the creation of the Los Glaciares National Park tourism became the main industry of the region. We took a bumpy ride to the top of Huyliche Hills, named for the one of the original peoples of Patagonia, and we drank in the sweeping vistas of the region. We had a panoramic view of turquoise Lago Argentino, the largest lake in the country, surrounded by the Andes Mountains and the Patagonian Steppes.

The dry, mostly treeless area exposed beautiful rock formations.
The main street of the town was colorful and totally tourist oriented with lots of shopping opportunities. It has a population of 25,000 with almost all the jobs geared to tourists or to the people who serve tourists.
Wildlife is not a major feature for the region, but we loved this sighting of the large Bandurria birds, a type of ibis.
We had a lovely view of the lake from our room at the Xelena Hotel.
Dinner our first night included a dance performance of what else….the tango.

El Calafate is the gateway to the massive Perito Moreno Glacier, the largest icecap outside of Antarctica and Greenland. We drove into the national park for our first view of this dramatic glacier. We took a boat ride to see it up close and walked the windy park trail to see it from above.

The Perito Moreno Glacier has an unusual feature. It’s one of the few glaciers that is continuing to move forward and grow. And as it moves forward, it closes the gap across the Lake Argentino. It dams up that section of the lake until an icebridge forms. Water seeps under it, undermining the bridge and eventually what is called a rupture occurs. It’s impossible to predict exactly when it will occur, but when it does, it’s quite a dramatic phenomenon. Water bursts forth and the water level rises, flooding the area.

Near the lake we saw some rare greenery and flowers for this area. We had an amazingly beautiful day to see the glacier and explore the park.

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