Discover Southern Argentina: Perito Moreno Glacier, Los Glaciares National Park & Fitz Roy Adventure
During my travel to Brazil, I've heard a lot of good opinions about Argentina, so I decided to plan my next trip to that country. I love wildlife, so I took the southern part of the country as my first goal. Welcome to my south Argentina travel guide on Fshoq! travel blog, let's start another adventure!
Argentina is the second biggest country in South America but with the population 44 millions of people, mostly located in the north and north-east states, south Argentina seems depopulated. That's why civilization-lovers should go north, but I decided to see some wildness, so I decided to fly to Comodoro Rivadavia. We will start our journey by visiting probably most famous tourist attraction in southern Argentina: Perito Moreno Glacier inside the Los Glaciares National Park. It's gonna be cold.
Los Glaciares National Park
We start our journey by visiting Los Glaciares National Park, the second biggest national park in Argentina and the most famous one for travelers. It's located in the providence of Santa Cruz in Patagonia, south part of the country. Los Glaciares National Park is filled with a real arctic scenery: a lot of ice, more than 40 glaciers (the largest amount outside the Greenland and Antarctica), lakes, mountains, and wildlife.
One-third of the Los Glaciares National Park in Argentina is covered by ice, so you can find here arctic natural views of sliding icebergs and glaciers. We will also find in the Los Glaciares National Park a large diversity of the wildlife, including deer, gray foxes or cougars near the mountains and variety of birds, like ducks, eagles or condors. All of this includes also beautiful Patagonian views.
The area of Los Glaciares National Park is divided into two parts. On the north, you will find Lake Viedma, which is home to Mount Fitz Roy and Viedma Glacier. Near the lake, you will find the El Chaltén village, which is the great base for travelers to trek and climb the mountains: the best ones are Cerro Torre and Fitz Roy. Lake Viedma is connected by the Santa Cruz River to the biggest lake in Argentina called Lake Argentino, which is home for Perito Moreno, the most famous glacier in the country.
Perito Moreno Glacier
Perito Moreno Glacier is the most famous glacier in Patagonia and whole of Argentina. It's located in the south part of the Los Glaciares National Park, on the Lake Argentino and it's probably the most visited tourist attraction in southern Argentina.
Probably the best place to start our journey to Perito Moreno Glacier in Argentina is a small village called El Calafate (I will describe this town below). It's a good idea to book here a few days to stay as the weather in Argentina can be unpredictable and it's a good idea to wait for sun or at least to skip the rain while traveling to Perito Moreno Glacier.
Weather forecast in southern Argentina cannot be trusted in 100%, as the weather changes a lot, but it's still better to plan our trip to Perito Moreno Glacier in Argentina when they predict sunny day.
To get to the Perito Moreno Glacier from El Calafate, you will need to get a bus (the early morning one would be the best), which will cost you about 32.5 USD (500 ARS). Then you will have to pay another 29.5 USD (450 ARS), to get inside the Los Glaciares National Park.
Unfortunately, the boat to Perito Moreno Glacier is not included, and paying more than 60 USD per person just to get here is in my opinion still a lot of money. But if you want to keep your budget low, you don't need to take the boat, you can just walk around the park to see the Perito Moreno Glacier. The views are incredible and even if it's expensive, it's totally worth it.
El Calafate
El Calafate is a small village with the population of 20 000 placed in Patagonia, Argentina and situated on the southern border of Lake Argentino. The city is usually called the gate to the Los Glaciares National Park, Perito Moreno Glacier, and Monte Fitz Roy.
The El Calafate village is great tourist hub and it's a good idea to stay here for a few days, to visit all great tourist attractions it offers. Also sometimes the weather may be bad, so there is a chance that you won't be able to get to the Los Glaciares National Park or Fitz Roy and it's good to have a few days in stock.
Notice: Flamingos are regularly visible from El Calafate near the Lago Argentino lake, so it's nice to get there to see this wildlife.
Monte Fitz Roy
If you are thinking about climbing Monte Fitz Roy mountain, stop for a minute. Unless you are a very experienced climber, that won't be easy - Fitz Roy is one of the most difficult peaks on Earth (first climbed by alpinists Lionel Terray and Guido Magnone in 1952). But on the other hand, the mountain looks awesome even from down and it's great for photography, so trekking to the bottom of the Monte Fitz Roy in Argentina is a great idea.
Patagonia clothing logo was inspired by Monte Fitz Roy.
Mount Fitz Roy in Argentina is just 3405 meters high (half of the Himalayas), but it needs a long and difficult technical climbing to get up. Also, the weather may be tricky and unpredictable and probably won't help climbing Fitz Roy.
The best way to fully appreciate Monte Fitz Roy (in my opinion), is to see the sunrise above the mountain. To do this, you may want to take a tent with you and sleep under the Fitz Roy (that's what I did). Just remember that nights can be very cold as well as rainy so prepare well. Of course, trekking to Monte Fitz Roy in Argentina can be done in one day, but renting a tent and a sleeping bag and sleep among the wildlife sounded for me like an awesome adventure!
La Cueva de las Manos (Cave of Hands)
Cave of Hands (called in Argentinian: La Cueva de las Manos) is one of two additional interesting places and tourist attractions that in my opinion are worth visiting while being in the Los Glaciares National Park.
La Cueva de las Manos is located inside the valley of the Pinturas River, in Patagonia, Argentina. It's not easy to get here, as it's isolated place accessible via dirt gravel road, but it's really worth to visit it. The Cave of Hands has one of the earliest known forms of human arts, about 10 000 years old. You can find here three different artwork styles made by different people in different time periods. The most famous is (as the name "Cave of Hands") hundred of colorful handprints stenciled along the walls of the La Cueva de las Manos. Those hands are dated to 5000 BC, but you can also find here some scenes of human and animals life that are even older, dated to 7300 BC.
La Cueva de las Manos (Cave of Hands) in Argentina was first explored in 1949. It's a UNESCO World Heritage site.
San Martín de los Andes
San Martín de los Andes in Argentina is a beautiful Alpine-themed town located near the Lácar Lake at the foot of the Andes. The city is easy to discover, as it's very clean, modern, well-designed and compact town. It's a very popular destination for people from the country and from Chile, as it's less than 50 kilometers from the Chilean border.
If you plan to visit San Martín de los Andes in Argentina during the winter, there are many attractions here like skiing or snowboarding in the famous ski resort of Chapelco. During the summer you can get a boat and swim through the Lácar Lake, hike the mountains, get to the beach or go to the golf course. The town itself is very charming, filled with chocolate shops, bakeries, and coffee and tea houses. If you have an opportunity to visit San Martín de los Andes, the town is perfect for wandering and to rest a bit during our Argentinian travels.
Conclusion
This is the end of my travel guide about Southern Argentina. In this travel blog article, we discovered such interesting places and tourist attractions as Perito Moreno Glacier, Los Glaciares National Park, Mount Fitz Roy, El Calafate, La Cueva de las Manos (Cave of Hands) and San Martín de los Andes. If you have any questions about my trip or Argentina itself, feel free to ask me in the comments section below.
