El Chalten (Argentina)
09 - 11April 2015
The distance between El Calafate and El Chalten is not overwhelmingly large, a meagre 213kms in fact with much of that distance being along the famous Ruta 40. For the well healed, cashed up, or maybe even flippant amongst us, you could fly the distance if you dared but for the most part driving is the most sensible of options when taking on the journey and it has to be said that the accompanying views make the journey more than just a cumbersome drive from point to point. When Inga and I decided to make the journey north to El Chalten (Mont Fitz Roy) we decided that renting a car for that drive and also the later trip to Torres del Paine would be the most enjoyable way of visiting the areas. The idea in itself sounded simple enough, a ‘no brainer’ in fact, but more often than not its the simplistic ideas that can have unexpected complexities. Let me explain these complexities further with a quick historical reference.
I grew up in Commonwealth land of Australia,( but don’t hold that against me), and as Inga so often liked to point out, Australia still has a Queen that British and we still have her smug British face on our coins and notes. In that sense, being a British colony, we Australians have blindly adopted many of the antiquated and archaic rules, conventions, practices, protocols and procedures that have been passed down by the ‘Motherland’. So too our 'driving style' is adopted from the British 'way', and incidentally by about 35% of the world population. This left hand side drive remains a relic of the days when 'men were men', carried scabbards and wore them on their left hand side so that their right hand could easily move to draw the sword in the event of a violent 'unprovoked' attack. Thus due to this positioning, passing in the middle ages was generally done on the left hand side. So you ask what does this notion mean for you in this story? Let me summarise ever so succintly;
I sucked at driving in Argentina for the fact that ancient warlords were right handed! Simple as that!
My attempt to escape the clutches of El Calafate therefore was met with crunching gears, discombobulation, swearing in Serbian, driving the wrong way down one way streets and poor old Argentinian men holding their heads is disbelief at my 'mad skills'. Oh yeah, El Calafate was a scene that morning man.
When I finally figured it all out we broke out of El Calafate like a pair of grandmothers busting out of a nursing home to catch a Jerry Springer book signing, slow, but with genuine purpose. And it wasn't too long thereafter that we were on the fabled Ruta 40 and cruising under expansive blue skies and rounding the eastern part of Lago Argentino, heading north.
Lago Viedma - Santa Cruz Province - on the way to El Chalten - Argentina
On the way to El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
On the way to El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
As we drove under that Patagonian blanket all I could think to myself was 'now this is cool!'. Driving through Patagonia with its sweeping vistas, cobalt blue lakes and all encompassing skies, this to me is what I imagined this part of the world to be. Rugged, desolate, beautiful and inspiring. There's moments, and perhaps they come few and far between for most people, when you recognise that you're very happy. As we swung up the eastern side of Lago Viedma and felt the pull of Mont Fitz Roy as it rose in the distance, I could say that unequivocally, I was very happy!
El Chalten is essentially a small mountain village built on the back of its trekking and mountaineering popularity. It's located within the Los Glaciares Nacional Park and is set at the base of Cerro Torre and the majestic Mont Fitz Roy. A frontier town of colour, scattered buildings and no named streets, it holds the torch for hippie values and I wouldn't have been surprised if we had found a boutique bakery that specialised in pumpernickel and clove loaves of bread and fetta & basil muffins. We obviously didn't look that hard in that sense but we did end up finding in our basic searches was La Vineria, a gloriously homely and snug bar that made an equally satisfying mulled wine and was a place that allowed hours to slide by and out of sight without even a second thought.
A preview of my future - La Vineria - El Chalten - Argentina
La Vineria - El Chalten - Argentina
Our first afternoon in El Chalten was spent on a relatively short climb to a vista above the town. The way we spotted the walk originally was pretty much the way that Inga and I did most of our scouting for treks. If we saw a path heading up a mountain and way into the distance then there was no debate, we were going to do it, and not in that casual, comfortable strolling type of manner. When we trekked we put the foot down and burnt rubber (off the soles of our shoes mostly, but still, I won't lie when I say we always moved rapidly). As we also discovered, time signposts to trail locations were always 30%-40% more than we required. A blessing in many ways as we realised walking expectations were desperately inflated but a curse also in the fact that both of us would do the math and work out the (Inga & Henry) arrival time as a reduction from the suggested 'leisurely' time. Our estimates were also mostly correct if truth be told but a trap in waiting for our walk the following day. In any case, on this day the views above El Chalten at Los Condores lookout were exceptionally spectacular, even if Mont Fitz Roy remained in cloud for most of the afternoon. Likewise our walk out to Mirador de las Aguilas brought a view that was perhaps even more exhilarating as it looked out from the mountains onto a vast Patagonian plain with Lago Viedma disappearing off into the distance and bounded by the might of the Andes standing imperiously above it.
Mirador de los Cóndores - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
Mirador de las Aguilas - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
That evening back at our hotel we informed ourselves on how best to get to see the UNESCO heritage listed granite massif of Mont Fitzroy and were advised to jump a shuttle bus up to the start of a trail head at Hosteria El Pillar, a 30min drive out of town, and located at the start of a walk which would be approximately 20kms in total (apparently 5.5-6hrs in total - yeah sure), ending back up in El Chalten. As always, our decision making for things like this was relatively easy, the conversation going something like;
Inga: 'So, lets do it'
Henry: 'Yep, lets go!'
The next morning we had an early pick-up and were away. Cutting through the tall Patagonian forest and climbing above the Rio de la Vueltas, we arrived to the start of the trailhead at Hosteria El Pillar on a glorious morning. The piercing blue skies acted as the perfect backdrop to the jagged, irregular spires that towered above the valley. Again, if you were one to believe in omens then you would have to say that we were just living within our very charmed existence.
Trepidation or a failed James Bond move? The walk starts...NOW
El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
As we commenced our walk along the Rio Blanco we rose slowly up the mountainside, ascending some 200-300 mtrs above a valley where the trees were just entering their season of colour. The reds and oranges of the leaves for me was something to take note of as us poor Australians are constantly surrounded by the mundane evergreens that keep a hold of their 'Kermit green' all year round. Making our slow ascent up and out of the valley also provided some stunning views of the Glacier Piedras Blancas, a lower glacier captured within the massifs of Mont Fitz Roy.
Glacier Piedras Blancas - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
Glacier Piedras Blancas - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
Moving through mountain trails painted by small shrubs of dark red, orange and yellow was a real highlight for me. Reflecting back on it now, it was a highlight that was not just one of our best in Patagonia but I would have to say, of the whole trip. The colours of the wild and the dramatic peaks were simply breathtaking. Standing there to just marvel at their form and presence was something that I'll always remember.
Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
'Smoking Mountain' - Mont Fitz Roy - Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
'Smoking Mountain' - Mont Fitz Roy - Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
'Smoking Mountain' - Mont Fitz Roy - Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
Having a rough idea of where we were going and with a very rudimental map in hand we followed the steady stream of trekkers across the bridge at the Rio Blanco and made our way to a section of the trail that would end up at Lago de los Tres. Now this was the point in the day where we nearly trumped ourselves cold. The guide marker at this stage stated KM 9 of 10, which was the distance from El Chalten to where we stood. The time guide for the last kilometre, i.e., to 10 of 10 at Lago de los Tres, stipulated1hr.
1hr!!?? As if 1 kilometre was ever going to take a whole 1hr to complete??
WANT TO MAKE A BET?
As we commenced the final kilometre there was an unmistakable 'up-ness' to all that was going on. The speed at which we attacked the ascent and the manner in which the trail continued to rise above our heads after every turn was alarming. The moment you'd reach a rise and peak over it is the moment you'd see a raft of orange arrow markers pointing you ever farther, ever higher. That final kilometre ended up being pure evil. Climbing at speed we challenged the notion of the 1hr time limit in our minds and in the end it challenged us right back. As stubborn as we both are we never relented and eventually made it to the top in some 50-55 mins. Less than the suggested time of course but questioning the validity of how a difficult climb up could actually be accomplished comfortably in that hour. No matter though, as we climbed above the tree line and hit barren peaks of icy snow we reached the magnificent Lago de los Tres and the awe inspiring peaks of Mont Fiztroy. These towers of barren granite simply thrust themselves skyward, with sharp cliffs plunging down vertically into the glacial lake below. The landscape itself was harsh, barren and bare but very much dramatic and glorious in what I termed to be 'absolute rawness'. So fantastic.
Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
'Smoking Mountain' - Mont Fitz Roy - Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
Inga and I remained the shoreline of the frigid glacial lake for enough time for the associated glacial winds to get the better of us and force us down lower in search of warmer temperatures. Climbing down itself was perhaps a little more technically challenging but not as fatiguing as the march up. We had moments of inspiration and self congratulation on the way down with each occasion that we looked into the pained, tortured faces of trekkers making the ascent and knowing that their pain was probably caused by the same assessment that we had made an hour earlier, '1km? Oh that'll be easy'.
The 10km walk back to El Chalten was actually very comfortable and not strenuous at all. Making our way through the Patagonian beech forest it gave us time to fully appreciate our surroundings for their stunning colours and dramatic beauty. It really was just an entirely pleasurable experience.
Rio de la Vueltas - Los Glaciares Nacional Park - El Chalten - Santa Cruz Province - Argentina
Making our way back into El Chalten after about 4.5hrs we had of course put to shame the suggested walking time of 6hrs+. With that understanding there was only one place that we were going to go in order to celebrate our success and reflect on the day, and that was La Viniera. A perfect spot, so we found out, to unwind, have ourselves a few drinks and dive into a very impressively made cheese platter.
Leaving El Chalten behind - hope to see you again soon!
A few hours latter, with the sun starting to fall out of the sky we jumped into our rented car and heading back south to El Calafate, a 213 km drive which was going to be undertaken on the 'wrong' side of the road. Damn you and your right side driving Argentina! Don't sweat it though, I still love you!
