Our trip to Argentina began with a trip to the bus station in Punta Arenas where we met an Italian Mountain Guide who had just returned from a successful climb of Cerro Torre. It was his 4th attempt but he said it was not too hard. Only 37 pitches of 5.10+.... The bus trip to Rio Gallegos was 6 hours long most of which was spent at immigration at the border crossing. We had 4 hours in Rio Gallegos and went on a walk in search of town but didn't find anything other than endless sprawl. We managed to make it to El Calafate by midnight though and found a hostel for the night.
We spent one day in El Calafate, walking around town, shopping, and going for a run along the lakefront. It is a very touristy place, reminiscent of a Colorado mountain town. All the amenities were there but all at a high price, although the hostel are cheaper then anyplace else on our trip. nevertheless it is a pleasant place to recuperate for a day or two.
On the way to El Chalten I sat next to a Spanish traveler names Jose. He had a lot of positive energy and was fun to talk to. My Spanish was better than his English so I finally got a chance to speak it. He had traveled through the American west and was familiar with my area. The bus was a beautiful drive on a clear day so we could see Fitzroy from over 2 hours away. We were very lucky. We arrived in time to hike up to the Mirador Fitzroy which was quite impressive. We also found a brew pub with some tasty beer which is quite rare in the southern hemisphere. Of course we ran into fellow Coloradoans at the brewpub.... The next day we hiked to Lago Torre at the base of Cerro Torre. The hike up was quite nice but while we sat at the lake a windstorm came in and it got dusty fast. Made the hike back to town a bit difficult. On the hike we ran into my friend Jose and the mountain guide we met in Punta Arenas. It's fun to see the same people over and over again and feel like you have friends in town.
The wind roared all night and all the next day. We managed to get in a short hike to a point that looked south and east over beautiful lakes and pampas. We will be sad to leave El Chalten. It has been our favorite place so far. Small, quirky, and lots of trails. While there are many places providing services you don't get the impression that everyone is fighting for your money. Nevertheless we are very much looking forward to the next phase of our trip. The Carreterra Austral through wild Patagonia!
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