| Why |
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 EL
CALAFATE (South Patagonia)
A well structured tourist village with good hotels that
lie on the plateaus and hillsides that surround it. It is
better known as the National Capital of Glaciers. It is
an immense area covered with ice, whose origins dating back
to the Quaternary Period, when the last glacial period took
place. Declared a Monument of the World by UNESCO, it extends
350 KM and covers 14,300 squared kilometers with 47 major
glaciers. At Punta Bandera, it is possible to admire the
icebergs drift as they detach into bits of ice of different
shape and size. The Spegazzini Glacier is one of the most
beautiful glaciers with easy access, reaching the greatest
height above sea level.
This small village is located on the south coast of Lake
Argentino, in the southwest of the Province of Santa Cruz.
According to the latest population census in 1991, there
were 3118 people living there. It was named after a typical
thorny bush of southern Patagonia. The Calafate blooms in
the spring with yellow flowers and in summer with purple
fruits. According to tradition those who eat this fruit
will always return to Patagonia.
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| Activities |
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 Perito
Moreno Glacier: (front at: 50° 28' S and 73° 2'
W) is located in Los Glaciares National Park, home also to
other important glaciers like Upsala and Viedma, and some
smaller ones like Ameghino, Spegazzini, Onelli, Frias, Heim,
Mayo, Agassiz, Bertachi, Murallón, etc.
Perito Moreno Glacier is about
3 km wide, 12 km long and 50 m tall where it ends, in front
of the Los Témpanos (The Icebergs) Channel. This
glacier is in a state of equilibrium between the ice that
it loses at the front and the ice that gains from the accumulation
of snow at the source.
Therefore, the front of the glacier
oscillated around a position in front of the Magallanes Peninsula. From time to time, it goes so
far that it reaches the opposite shore and an ice dam is formed.
This ice dam blocks the drainage of the South and Rico branches
of Argentino Lake. At certain point, the difference in water
heights is so large that the pressure is enough to break the
dam. At the front/center of the glacier, ice speeds of up
to 2 m/day have been measured. |
Mount Fitz Roy This is the most appreciated peak
by the lovers of climbing and trekking. The altitude is 3,405
m. Its original name is Chaltén, that in Tehuelche dialect
means "smoking mountain". In 1877, the expedition led by Perito
Moreno baptized it Fitz Roy, in memory of the sailor that
explored the channels in Tierra del Fuego and the Santa Cruz
river. Not only experienced mountaineers can visit here, there
are also paths for easy walking that would take only 2 to
3 hours. |
 Chalten:
In order to promote human settlements in the Andean range
of the province of Santa Cruz, the provincial government
built housing and this is the way the story of this tiny
town with a population of 100 stable inhabitants began.
It is
surrounded by the rivers De Las Vueltas and Fitz Roy, at
the foot of Mount Chaltén or Fitz Roy and Torre.
It is the closest town to Lago del Desierto.
Chaltén is the name, which the tehuelches (aborigines of
the region) called the "smoking mountain" and that sometime
later; Perito Moreno would baptize it Fitz Roy.
Imposing granitic needles that constitute a great challenge
to the practice of mountain climbing, trekking and walking,
surround the area.
It is a paradise for adventure lovers and its natural beauty
attracts thousands of tourists in the summer season.
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 The
Los Glaciers National Park is located in the southwest
of the Province of Santa Cruz. A blanket of ice covers this
protected area of 600,000 hectares.
Among the 356 glaciers, the Perito Moreno is the most imposing,
with a 5 km. front and a height of more than 60 meters above
water level.
It is know the world over for its rupture process. The front
of the glacier when it reaches the coastal margin, closes
the passage of the waters from Brazo Rico and produces a dam
effect where the water rises some 20 meters, originating a
filtration that results in the awaited rupture. The last one
was in February 1988.
But show is never-ending. You can watch the detachment of
ice blocks of different sizes from a short distance, hear
the roaring they produce, and then watch them turned into
wonderful floating icebergs.
A unique experience is walking on the glaciers or to see the
front of another great glacier, the Upsala, from Lake Argentino.
In 1981 UNESCO declared the Los Glaciares National Park a
World Heritage Site.
To have access to this wonder of nature you have to reach
the picturesque village of El Calafate, sitting on the shores
of Lake Argentino and at 78 km. from the glaciers. From here,
there are buses and programmed excursions that will let you
live an unparalleled experience. |
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| Getting
There |
By
Air:
From Buenos Aires, by plane to Río Gallegos -capital of Santa
Cruz Province-, located on the Atlantic coast, 320 km from El
Calafate, where you can take daily departing buses or a plane
(only during high season). A car can also be hired from any of
the three companies offering this service.
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| Weather
& What to Bring |
Weather:
Tthe Calafate, is located in 50° 20 ' South latitude (equivalent
to the city of London), in the North hemisphere. Their proximity
to the great mass of water of the Argentine Lake, its declivity
oriented towards the north and the artificial protection of their
woods allow him to benefit with a much more benign microclimate
that the one of the surrounding plateaus. Its climate is dry and
its benign temperatures; In summer: the Maxima average is of 65°F;
In winter: the average minim is of 28°F.
The duration of the day varies according to the time of the year:
* In summer the longest day of the year is the 21 of December
that offers 17 hs. Of luminosity
* In winter the shortest day is the 21 of June, counts on 8 hours
of light (from 09:30 to 17:30).
Winds: The predominant winds arrive from the west sector, mainly
in spring and summer in the diurnal hours.
Precipitations:
The rainfall decreases towards the east. In the area of the Continental
Ice the precipitations reach 8,000 annual mm, Descending to 1,000/1,500
mm. In the national Park the Glaciers. In as much winds of the
west they take a escasahumedad to the esteparia zone, receiving
the single Calafate 300 mm annual.
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