Argentina 2009

Saturday14November

And hop in the car! We leave El Calafate for two days. Today, we have 220 km to do to reach El Chaltén and its big peak the Fitz Roy!

We cross large spaces and it is not unlike the landscapes of the American West!

Cute these sheep no ???

In the background, the river "Leona"

We take our lunch break at "Parador Leona". Here, we cross paths again with Perito Moreno.
Indeed, here is what is inscribed on the sign:
Historic site
Here on March 3, 1877, Perito Francisco P. Moreno
was attacked by a "leona" (puma)
and endangered his life,
which gave the name to the river Leona.

Homemade hamburger, fries omelet, and alfajor dessert with "dulce de leche"...

Perito Moreno is not the only celebrity to have passed through here...
Indeed, in 1905, Butch Cassidy and the Kid were hosted in this hotel for a month!!!
Small reminder: Butch Kassidy and Sundance Kid were famous bank and train robbers in the United States in the 19th century...  

After a few hours of a long but beautiful road, we arrive at El Chalten. Very small village at the foot of Mount Fitz Roy.
Do not look for the photo of this rocky peak on this site, it was always under the clouds and we did not see it!!! 

Do not look for the photo of this rocky peak on this site, it was always under the clouds and we did not see it!!!  

We will spend two nights in the hostel "Martoni"

Sunday15November

Here we are! A whole day of walking round trip.
Objective: the lake "laguna de los tres" located at 1160 meters altitude, which is 700 meters of elevation gain.

Above, my GPS readings of the hike. 11 kilometers and 730 meters to the lake. Yes yes! I care a lot about those 730 meters!!!

To get up there, it's easy, just follow the path "sendero al Fitz Roy"...

Three Andean condors lying in wait... in case my three acolytes abandon me on the side of the road...  

The Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus) is a species of scavenger bird that lives in the Andes. It is the bird with the second largest wingspan with 3.50 meters

360° Panorama.

Right photo, a Rufous-collared Sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis)

Here are the last 500 meters... All the difficulty is here.
And indeed, this last section will remind me of the last day of trekking in Vietnam, but this time less difficult because my stomach is not full of omelets!!!  

The arrival is near, a whole part of the path is snowy, beware of slipping!

That's it! After 4h30 of walking, I'm there! The laguna de los tres is indeed there but the Fitz Roy is still hiding under the clouds. Too bad!

The small glacier overlooking the lake crumbles and falls into the lake

We must not dawdle! We have to retrace our steps... at least 4 hours of walking await us...

On the way back, we cross the path of a local inhabitant... Not very talkative this beetle!

A last look at Fitz Roy... No. Still not there...

Woohoo!!! I can finally approach this emblematic animal of South America: the llama!
Well not too close because he doesn't look easy going this one...

El Chalten

And here is a big doggy not unhappy to have stayed at the bottom of the mountain...
Besides, we will go eat in his master's restaurant, at "Mi Viejo"!

And here is what I ate there: Lomo beef!
For months, people have been talking to me only about that! And indeed, it is excellent, it melts in the mouth!
But next time, I'll take it plain without garnish to taste all the flavor!