Glacial Paces

Hola,
I left Chile on a bus bound for Calafate in Argentine Patagagonia 2 days ago. I almost didn't get to Calafate. I almost got left at the Frontier. It seems my papers were not in order. For some inexplicable reason they stamped my passport very lightly and in the middle of Rorschach blotch of other countries stamps also failed to stamp my visa card. The passport stamp was at best illegible. I ended up in an odd predicament, not having an entrance stamp means not being able to obtain and exit stamp. Since I couldn't prove that I legally entered the country I was no not able to leave it. This is an odd predicament because generally if you enter a place illegally they throw you out, it seem s in Chile they keep you there. Eventually some genius realized that passports have bar code on them for a reason and was able to ascertain where and when I legally entered. Back on the bus Gus.

People generally come to Calafate for one reason to witness the Perito Moreno Glacier. I was happy to find a place called Cabanas Nevis that had 6 detached A frames for rent for $50.00 night. I was even happier to learn that with a quick phone call the owner of the Cabanas Nevis was able to arrange to have a van honking outside my cabana in the morning in order to take me to Los Glaciares National Park.

The park is maybe an hours drive north of Calafate. A short and beautiful drive tracing the outline of the never ending Largo Argentino, the largest lake in the country. Not long after you enter the park you get a glimpse of one of the side walls of Perito Morenos, distant but nonetheless impressive. A short while later we were dropped off at a trail which lead to a dock on Lake Argentina. The first thing you notice about the lake is the unique colors of the water, really just two colors a mineral green and gun metal grey. I was told that sediment kicked up by the glacier is responsible for this phenomenon. At the lake we boarded a Zodiac and proceeded to cruise within a 100 meters of the glaciers front wall. Floating out from the wall are various sizes and shapes of ice bergs that recently cleaved off of the Glacier. The closer you get the more the Glacier's scale comes into focus. The length of the front wall is close to 3 miles and the height ranges from 20 to 25 stories high. A true behemoth. The surface of the Glacier randomly alternates between an ivory white and a crystalline blue. Think breath mint. The blue is caused by changes in the ice's density. In the denser areas the only light allowed to escape are the shorter wave lengths in the blue end of the spectrum. Oh science how I love ye! At the closest point the captain cut the engine and we just drifted for a while. Without the drone of the engine you could actually hear the glacier, a muted creaking like an old floor board. This glacier has that distinction of being one of the ones that is not receding. It is constantly growing and moves slightly over 2 meters a day. With all of these characteristics I began to view it more like the biggest piece of kinetic sculpture and less like a wonder of nature. The highlight was when the creaking sounds grew gradually louder causing a moment of rapt anticipation. You knew something was coming but not from where it would come. If your eyes were looking in the right place you saw it. A chunk of ice the size of a small suburban house broke away from the Glacier. The piece that cleaved off was maybe 3/4 of the way up on the front wall. The visual was an equal mix of both grace and violence. The new born ice berg's arrival in the water send shock waves rippling out hundreds of yards on the lakes surface and then the mountains returned the echo of ice hitting the water. It was truly awesome and the only the polite thing to do in this situation was to clap in appreciation. Give the people what they want ...

After about an hour we came back ashore and broke for lunch. The afternoon was spent on the Magellan peninsula which provides an almost panoramic view of the Perito Moreno Galcier. There are many vantage points on the peninsula and different heights, all connected by a muddy trail. The distance from the peninsula to the side wall of the glacier is no more than 100 yards. It is from the top of the peninsula though that you can see and truly appreciate the length of the ice field that feeds the glacier. It extends back almost 6 miles. From this perspective it appears that glacier is a little smaller than the city of Baltimore. Most of the afternoon was spent relaxing and talking in the shadow of ice beast in front of the peninsula. Sometimes its great to feel that small. Like a drop of water. Frozen water.

Some pics can be found HERE