After spending few days in Ushuaia, I continue my journey to the north and stop in El Calafate. I stop here for the main attraction the glacier Perito Moreno. A huge glacier that is moving very fast.
A long journey of bus
I leave Ushuaia around 5 am in the morning, quite early… no, too early! The journey is going to be very long. It takes me around 20 hours to go first to Rio Gallegos for taking another bus that finally reaches El Calafate. On top of that, when we cross the Chilean border for leaving the country, no one wakes me up. Thus, I don’t get my stamp. Never again, I have had some troubles to explain the situation the next time I cross the border to Chile. Finally, I arrive at night in Calafate Hostel. The place is nice but very huge. I feel like in a kind of industrial hostel.
Glacier Perito Moreno
The transport
The next morning, due to my roommates I wake up quite early. Immediately, I decide to do the Perito Moreno as the weather is good: blue sky and warm sun. I go to the bus station for getting information on how to go to the Glacier. While I am withdrawing cash, I meet a group of 3 travelers that go with a taxi. They offer me to join and I accept. A taxi is more or less the same price, 350A$ instead of 400A$ with the bus, but allows me to leave right now. The taxi waits for us for 4 hours in the glacier, a bit less than the bus but enough to visit it. The main advantageous is that the round trip is definitely faster.
The glacier in action
I have never seen a Glacier before, and it is more impressive that I was thinking of. Whereas the valley is totally dry, you see this vast area of ice high of 60 meters. However, the most impressive thing arrives later. After looking to the Glacier for an hour, listening to the ice cracking far away and watching some small pieces of ice rolling on the side, we get our reward. A big piece of ice suddenly breaks and falls into the water. The sound was like a thunder.
The area
Trough we think being lucky, after we discover that an ice breaking happens about every 45 min. Unhappily, we miss the next one as we are walking in the different tracks. Those tracks, always footbridges, are nice for viewing different points. I don’t know who was in charge of putting time for each track. But by taking our time to watch the glacier, taking pictures and walking slowly we still do in half time…
In the city
As I did the main attraction, the glacier, in the morning, I decide to leave the city the day after. While being back to the city around 4 pm, I lunch quickly and go to visit the city. The city itself is charming with houses of wood but has nothing special.
Walk around
At the north of the city, there is a park with flamingos. The park is not impressive at all, at least after a Perito Moreno, and cost money again. Since I already blast the budget, 350$ for taxi and 350$ for entrance fees, I prefer walking around the park. Actually, it is more or less the same. By continuing northeast, I reach first a beach near the river with that blue water I love. Next, I climb a small hill to have a view of the city. I discover that the city is lost in a kind of dessert. As it is windy I don’t stay a long time.
Time for rewards
I recommended trying calafate. This a berry that grows in the area, it looks like a blueberry. I only try it inside an Alfajo and it is really delicious. With the friends I met during the day, we took some beers in the city. The bar La Zorra Taproom has different craft beers and a good atmosphere.
Other posts about El Calafate
A Day in El Calafate – How to Visit the Perito Moreno Glacier
http://bobo-patagonie.over-blog.com/2014/02/el-perito-moreno.html