I learned about the glaciers in Argentina after one of my friends took an around-the-world trip more than a decade ago. I'm not sure exactly which glacier/s he visited in Argentina but his stories piqued my interest enough to do my own research. It was then that I learned about Perito Moreno.
Perito Moreno is located in Parque Nacional Los Glaciares (Los Glaciares National Park), which was declared by UNESCO in 1981 to be a World Heritage Site. It is unique for being one of only three glaciers in the world that are advancing (almost all other glaciers are retreating). It is also one of the most accessible glaciers, making it a very popular tourist destination.
While searching for tours to include in our itinerary, I discovered that there is an option to do a mini-trekking tour on the glacier. I asked my mom if she wanted to do it and she said yes. Perfect! Our tour of Perito Moreno was a whole day affair. We did the mini-trekking in the morning until lunch time and we went to the main viewing point to see the massive facade of the glacier in the afternoon.
Our mini-trekking tour was organized by Hielo y Aventura. We were picked up at our hotel and taken to Parque Nacional Los Glaciares. There, we boarded a boat that brought us to the south side of the glacier.
Before starting our adventure, our guide gave us a short talk about glaciers. The guides then put on our crampons which are devices that help prevent us from slipping on the ice. After a few instructions on how to safely walk with our crampons, we were off!
Walking on the ice takes a bit of getting used to because initially, you are afraid that you might slip. It doesn't take too long though before you get used to it and then moving around the glacier becomes pretty manageable.
The mini-trekking part of tour took 1 1/2 hours. In that time, we walked around a section of the glacier and we got to see crevasses and incredible ice formations. We also got to walk through small gullies. It was exhilarating!
We were advised by the guide who picked us up at airport the day before to bring a water bottle during our mini-trek. This is so that we could more easily drink the glacial water when the opportunity presented itself. When we stopped in front of a small lagoon, our mini-trek guide told us we could drink the water if we wanted to. Of course, my mom and I did. It was very cold and refreshing!
As if the mini-trekking experience by itself wasn't enough, towards the end of the tour and while still on the glacier, we got to enjoy some whisky and chocolates. Awesome!
It didn't stop there. Once we took off our crampons, we went into a cave beneath the glacier. Sunlight pierced the translucent icy ceiling of the cave, giving it a gorgeous blue glow.
We then had our lunch break. You need to bring your own lunch because there is no place to buy food at the mini-trekking rest area (our lunch was included in our tour package and it was delivered to our hotel before our tour bus picked us up). After lunch, we boarded the boat then got on the bus that took us to the main viewing area in the National Park.
This is where most tourists go to see Perito Moreno. There is a network of walkways with multiple viewing decks that give visitors a chance to look at the glacier from many different levels and distances from the facade.
Throughout the day, there had been many glacial ruptures, where chunks of ice fall off, generating a loud booming sound. Our guide explained that these ruptures are due to the constant movement of the ice and not because of global warming. Interestingly enough, as I was having my photo taken, there was a rupture. I turned around and pointed at it, but you can't quite see it well enough in this photo (it is behind the leftmost fence post)
We still kept hearing booming sounds so I thought that if I remained patient, I would get an opportunity to see another rupture and even catch it on camera. As luck would have it, I did and amazingly enough, I was able to capture it on video. Check it our here:
I was actually worried that it would rain that day because the weather report said it would. Fortunately for us, the weather remained cooperative while we were touring and it was only when we were safely in our bus heading back to El Calafate that it started to rain. Talk about being lucky! (I guess we were due some good luck after getting drenched in Iguazu Falls.)
After this mini-trekking experience, my mom and I still had two more days left in South America but those were transit days to get us back home (we flew from El Calafate to Buenos Aires the next day and from Buenos Aires to Lima the day after). As such, Perito Moreno was our last tour day. I have to say, it was the perfect ending because we had a full day packed with an incredible variety of amazing and very memorable experiences.
While this is the last post about the tours that we took and the sights we saw and experienced, I will still be writing several more posts about my South America trip.
Next: South American Wildlife
Perito Moreno is located in Parque Nacional Los Glaciares (Los Glaciares National Park), which was declared by UNESCO in 1981 to be a World Heritage Site. It is unique for being one of only three glaciers in the world that are advancing (almost all other glaciers are retreating). It is also one of the most accessible glaciers, making it a very popular tourist destination.
While searching for tours to include in our itinerary, I discovered that there is an option to do a mini-trekking tour on the glacier. I asked my mom if she wanted to do it and she said yes. Perfect! Our tour of Perito Moreno was a whole day affair. We did the mini-trekking in the morning until lunch time and we went to the main viewing point to see the massive facade of the glacier in the afternoon.
Our mini-trekking tour was organized by Hielo y Aventura. We were picked up at our hotel and taken to Parque Nacional Los Glaciares. There, we boarded a boat that brought us to the south side of the glacier.
Before starting our adventure, our guide gave us a short talk about glaciers. The guides then put on our crampons which are devices that help prevent us from slipping on the ice. After a few instructions on how to safely walk with our crampons, we were off!
Walking on the ice takes a bit of getting used to because initially, you are afraid that you might slip. It doesn't take too long though before you get used to it and then moving around the glacier becomes pretty manageable.
The mini-trekking part of tour took 1 1/2 hours. In that time, we walked around a section of the glacier and we got to see crevasses and incredible ice formations. We also got to walk through small gullies. It was exhilarating!
We were advised by the guide who picked us up at airport the day before to bring a water bottle during our mini-trek. This is so that we could more easily drink the glacial water when the opportunity presented itself. When we stopped in front of a small lagoon, our mini-trek guide told us we could drink the water if we wanted to. Of course, my mom and I did. It was very cold and refreshing!
As if the mini-trekking experience by itself wasn't enough, towards the end of the tour and while still on the glacier, we got to enjoy some whisky and chocolates. Awesome!
It didn't stop there. Once we took off our crampons, we went into a cave beneath the glacier. Sunlight pierced the translucent icy ceiling of the cave, giving it a gorgeous blue glow.
We then had our lunch break. You need to bring your own lunch because there is no place to buy food at the mini-trekking rest area (our lunch was included in our tour package and it was delivered to our hotel before our tour bus picked us up). After lunch, we boarded the boat then got on the bus that took us to the main viewing area in the National Park.
This is where most tourists go to see Perito Moreno. There is a network of walkways with multiple viewing decks that give visitors a chance to look at the glacier from many different levels and distances from the facade.
Throughout the day, there had been many glacial ruptures, where chunks of ice fall off, generating a loud booming sound. Our guide explained that these ruptures are due to the constant movement of the ice and not because of global warming. Interestingly enough, as I was having my photo taken, there was a rupture. I turned around and pointed at it, but you can't quite see it well enough in this photo (it is behind the leftmost fence post)
We still kept hearing booming sounds so I thought that if I remained patient, I would get an opportunity to see another rupture and even catch it on camera. As luck would have it, I did and amazingly enough, I was able to capture it on video. Check it our here:
I was actually worried that it would rain that day because the weather report said it would. Fortunately for us, the weather remained cooperative while we were touring and it was only when we were safely in our bus heading back to El Calafate that it started to rain. Talk about being lucky! (I guess we were due some good luck after getting drenched in Iguazu Falls.)
After this mini-trekking experience, my mom and I still had two more days left in South America but those were transit days to get us back home (we flew from El Calafate to Buenos Aires the next day and from Buenos Aires to Lima the day after). As such, Perito Moreno was our last tour day. I have to say, it was the perfect ending because we had a full day packed with an incredible variety of amazing and very memorable experiences.
While this is the last post about the tours that we took and the sights we saw and experienced, I will still be writing several more posts about my South America trip.
Next: South American Wildlife
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