PERITO MORENO

**WHERE**: Southern Argentina.
**WHY:** The best glacier you’re likely to ever see.
**TIME:** 5 hours
**COST**: $50 US for a tour + entry fee.

It’s big, it’s very bright, and it’s extremely beautiful. 70 meters high, and over 30 km long, Perito Moreno is one of the few glaciers in the world that are said to be growing. Amidst howling wind, lashing rain and utter isolation, Perito Moreno has stood sentinel for millennia, it’s stark beauty largely unseen. However, all of that changed in the 19th century, when the enterprising explorer Francisco Moreno ‘discovered’ the glacier. Since then, Perito Moreno’s reputation has grown and grown, gradually blossoming into one of Patagonia’s most accessible and worthwhile tourist attractions. Read on to find out why visitors continue to flock to this far flung destination.

Like many others, I arrived in El Calafate with one task in mind - to see Perito Moreno. The tiny town of El Calafate is remote by any stretch of the imagination, located in the southernmost reaches of Argentinian Patagonia. I arrived in this tiny lakeside town after a 20 hour bus ride from Bariloche. Knowing that I was going to get my fill of hiking in the coming weeks via the ‘O’ circuit in Torres Del Paine, I planned to skip the supposedly excellent treks around El Calafate and head straight to Perito Moreno glacier. Others that I had met on the road had spoke wondrously of this frozen river. Most had spoke about it in as if in a semi-religious fervor, speaking about how sublime the glacier was, how magnificent the experience of being dwarfed by it’s canyon-like walls was, and how eerie the sounds of cracking ice were by the foot of the glacier. This, and my own brief research into the glacier convinced me - I had to see it.

When visiting Perito Moreno, the backpacker has two chief options; to join an organized tour to the glacier, or to catch a taxi or bus out to the glacier and complete their own tour. In my sleep-deprived fugue I opted to join an organized tour, booking in with a local mini-bus, whom picked me up from my hostel at about 7:00 am, before driving me the 50 or so km north to Los Glaciares National Park. In hindsight, I would probably advise just catching a local bus out to the National Park. Several operators do a daily route from El Calafate out to Perito Moreno - usually leaving at 8:00 am and returning at 4:00 pm for as little as $10 US. From what I heard, people were paying about $20 US for a taxi round trip - so that also could be worth looking into. I, however, went with a tour. Before the sun had fully risen we were already on the road north, speeding along the main highway towards Los Glaciares National Park. Choosing to sit on the left side of the bus proved to be a wise decision - affording me excellent views of the lake country spreading out from the edge of the road. The sheer vastness of Patagonia really struck me on this drive - endless empty fields, lone poplar trees and distant mountain ranges dominated the skyline, but we seemed to be alone on the road.

Upon arrival at the glacier park itself we paid the $15 US entry fee (accurate as of 2014). At the time I considered this to be a wildly exorbitant price, lamenting how far that $15 could have gone towards the next round of beers. However, after being dropped off by the bus my qualms were shortly addressed. The glacier was utterly awe-inspiring. An overused expression yes, but truly fitting for the sight in front of me. Everywhere I looked I could see glacier; in between trees, past the car-park, over the milling crowds of people. Endless stretches of electric blue ice spanned the horizon, trailing back towards distant mountains. As I approached the lower viewing platform, my wonder only grew - the sheer vastness of the glacier seemed to multiply the closer that I came. Tourist numbers at the park were mercifully low that day, so I was afforded unmolested gazing at the sublime sight for hours. What was amazing was how the glacier changed depending on the angle at which it was viewed - thin wooden boardwalks trailed around the headland, allowing the visitor a multitude of different viewing opportunities. I was flabbergasted by the way the various studies of the glacier that this afforded, by the way the wan sunlight seemed to cast one side of the glacier gold whilst bathing the other side in shadow. It was truly a sight to behold. The short trails along the boardwalk were an easy walk, but the gorgeous sight of the distant glacier coupled by the beautiful autumnal trees surrounding the trail gave the place a very magical vibe. Walking the entire length of the boardwalk took no longer than an hour, stopping for regular viewings of Perito Moreno along the way.

Next came the boat-ride. Traditionally, I dread any form of activity that involves bundling tourists into a confined space to be ferried out to sea. It screams of ‘The Titanic,’ and always feels hugely claustrophobic. However, as in so many ways, on this day, my reluctance to sea-fare was challenged. The boat ride afforded truly breathtaking views of Perito Moreno; those around me audibly gasping en masse as we approached the wall of ice. The sight of that cliff face of ice approaching our tiny boat was both incredibly beautiful and utterly mesmerizing. There is just no way to capture in words how stunning the sight was - however, here’s to hoping that the following photos do some form of justice. My advice for anyone visiting Perito Moreno is to shell out for the boat ride - the sight of the glacier up close gives you the true sense of scale necessary to comprehend the place. Awe-inspiring stuff indeed.

However, as in love and war, all is fair with any touristy activity, and a visit to the Perito Moreno Glacier is no different. After such awe-inspiring sights, mesmerising vistas and true natural splendor, it would only be fair for there to be some degree of balance here. At Perito Merino, the balance to the surrounding wonder comes in the form of the cafe on site. The food here is truly forgettable, bland and highly expensive. My advice is to save your money with a packed lunch. While having a beer is surely going to be a tempting proposition, expect to pay about 4 times the normal price for the bubbly treat. I’d advise you to sneak in a hip flask of whisky and enjoy the fiery warmth provided by a few sips on this as you watch large chunks of the glacier tumble off into the lake.

In short, the Perito Moreno glacier is one of the more memorable sights that I’ve been lucky enough to see. It is beautiful, breath-snatching and brooding all at the same time. It speaks of the natural splendor in nature, and also offers the visitor a chance to view something truly ancient - with scientists suggesting that the glacier was probably formed around 18000 years ago. So as you sip on your whisky and watch that large shelf of ice come tumbling off the cliff face at Perito Moreno, take a moment to wonder - that ice has probably been waiting for that moment to descend since before we even discovered fire.

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