Icy Force
Ice, ice, and more ice. I left Canada only to pay money to go see ice again, although, I have to say that it was much different.
But before I reach the glacier, I have to mention the special morning. Last night, I had told my new acquaintances about the mate experience that I did in Ushuaia earlier that day. They all asked me to run them through the ceremony, as some had not been in Argentina for that long, and Melissa was also leaving. Thus, I agreed to go through a mate ceremony under 24 hours after learning all about it.
I started up early, but so did everyone around the hostel. The tours in El Calafate started early, with pickups as early as 8 am, and so, many people were already up. It was nice to have a breakfast with a bigger spread than the medialunas I was having in Ushuaia, which here included bread, cereal, jams, fruits, and most importantly, alfajores.
I sat with the same group as the previous night, and explained the mate brewing process as well as some of the history, as I had learned it the previous night. And then we began and I had my first experience as a mate host, which certainly would not be my last. A few chats later and I went in to get ready for the adventure of the day.
My plan for the day was to visit the Perito Moreno glacier, which is a glacier in a quasi-static state, meaning that it has not really expanded or receded over the past decades. While I had the option to walk on the glacier, I had made a last minute decision the night before when booking my tours, and instead opted to kayak on the lake where the glacier sits. I thought that as cool as walking on a glacier could be, kayaking would be even cooler, and I am a sucker for water sports.
I don’t really remember the drive over to the glacier, as it wasn’t too scenic until the end really, and I was also really tired. What I do remember though was that I was picked up in a minivan, and we were a small group, 6 people in total.
Upon reaching the national park, we were told that we had about 2 hours to explore the grounds and do the walks across from the glacier, before having to meet for the kayaking excursion. I have to say that it was a nice surprise, since I did not initially know that we would have time to explore on our own.
Although the trail had a suggestion time of over 2 hours for the entire loop, I was able to do most of it in maybe an hour and a half. If you are alright with lots of stairs, and are in decent shape, you should not have a problem with it at all.
I walked all around the trail, which basically wraps around the coast of the glacier lake made by the glacier melt off. Being so close to a glacier was amazing, and little did I know that glaciers were more or less living creatures. Maybe I was lucky, but the glacier was very active that day. It was very loud, and you could hear it even when a few hundred meters away from it. With that also came the breaking ice parts, which really made you respect the power of what you were looking at.
Small pieces of ice breaking would cause giant ripples across the entire lake, so when an entire wall collapsed into the water, it looked like a tsunami. At this point, I was ready to pull the plug on the whole thing. I mean it was enough to be kayaking in glacial waters, but I was not ready to ride glacial waves and risk getting wet. Yes, I did sign up for kayaking, but I did not really want to get wet when taking in mind how cold it was outside, and the almost freezing water.
Soon enough, it was time to be kayaking. The guys explained all the clothing and equipment, and then we got dressed up. We would be very warm today, in a thermal suit, followed by a dry suit, with boots and gloves as well, and then we set off to kayak. I was paired with an Argentinian lady, whose name I would never get, but it was not a problem at all as we both seemed to communicate the basics well enough. The kayaking was really nice, with many impressive views and photo opportunities. We also were able to get relatively close to the glacier, although after the morning, no one really wanted to get any closer having seen the power of the glacier. We ended up being on the lake for about 2 hours or so, and I have to say that my favourite part was definitely picking up pieces of drifting ice and crunching them as a snack (this is glacier melt so it is very pure and clean).
After the kayaking, we took a group picture and then got back into our old clothes and rushed to see the scoreboard - Argentina was playing the quarter final match against the Netherlands at this point. We would be watching the game and following the score whenever we had the chance on our drive back to El Calafate, with tensions high as soon as we would get any sort of cell service.
Back in El Calafate, I followed the game some more, and was honestly more concerned with observing the audience - children glued to the screen, grown men pacing around, and old ladies with hearts about to stop. Luckily, Argentina won in the penalties and were thus victorious, at which point everyone was filled with joy and excitement. I was as well, since it would allow me to catch the semi-final in Bariloche!
My last act of the day was walking down to the local lagoon, where I was promised sights of flamingoes. I made it there despite the windy conditions, and while I could see the flamingoes, I was not told that they would be quiet a distance away. Take a look at the pictures and tell me your thoughts.
I then took a stroll through town, where everyone was celebrating the win, kids hanging outside car windows and vehicles parading and honking around the street. I grabbed a decent lamb dinner, with a pumpkin soup starter than unfortunately was not too memorable (the lamb was very good though), and then head back to bed to prepare for my day trip tomorrow to El Chalten with Finn.
And that’s it. A nice productive day, with a visit to the glacier, kayaking, and complemented by an Argentinian qualification into the semi-finals. What were your thoughts on my day? Have you visited a glacier before and did you find it “alive”? Who are/were you cheering for in the World Cup? Let me know in the comments below but till then, stay positive!
